Amnesty no solution

2003-05-25 17:04

Johannesburg - The Democratic Alliance has rejected the proposal of a general amnesty or mass presidential pardon for prisoners as a means of clearing overcrowded prisons, especially for those who were in prison for serious or violent crimes.

The DA was reacting to a report in the Sunday Independent newspaper on Sunday that a judicial watchdog had raised the possibility of a general amnesty or presidential pardon for thousands of prisoners to coincide with the 10th anniversary of South Africa's democratic election on April 27 next year.

According to the newspaper, the latest annual report of the judge inspectorate by Judge Hannes Fagan, said prisons held 188 000 prisoners - 70% more than the 120 000 for which they were designed. This overcrowding was costing the state R18m a day.

In his report Fagan said there were no more funds available for building more prisons and that long-term sentences should be given only when there was no hope of rehabilitation.

Wrong message

DA spokesperson Sheila Camerer said amnesty sent the wrong message, both to the criminals for whom a prison sentence was supposed to be a deterrent, and to the general public who looked to the state to protect them from crime.

She said it was true that the country's jails were seriously overcrowded, but the solution lay in the courts.

"Judge Fagan is correct when he says the problem is with un-sentenced and awaiting-trial prisoners, and more effort must be made to expedite the process of their cases through the courts.

It is also true that many prisoners are in jail unnecessarily, mainly those who cannot pay any amount of bail in relation to minor charges against them."

Camerer said there were two important avenues under the law to release those prisoners from jail even now. The problem was that they were not being utilised by the courts.

"One of them is the releases of minor offenders who cannot pay bail, under Section 65(a) of the Criminal Procedures Act. Passed by Parliament in 2001, this amendment has only been utilised once in the case of a Pollsmoor inmate, and has become bogged down by bureaucracy," she said.

"The other is the use of pre-trial services, which utilise the community to prevent minor offenders from going to jail.

Pilot projects in Mitchell's Plain and Johannesburg worked extremely well, with the communities ensuring that offenders showed up in court. Instead of being terminated, these pilot projects should be expanded to other magisterial districts."

20 000

Camerer said if those two available methods were utilised, the state could immediately release 20 000 prisoners.

"Rather than supporting a general amnesty, Justice Minister Penuell Maduna should ensure that these tools are applied by the courts forthwith.

He should also provide the leadership and resources required to ensure that his department improves its efficiency and effectiveness in processing criminal cases through the courts."

- SAPA