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Integrated Justice System (IJS)
Introduction
The IJS, approved in 2002, aims to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the entire criminal justice process by increasing the probability of successful investigation, prosecution, punishment for priority crimes and ultimately rehabilitation of offenders. A second version of the IJS was published in May 2003. Issues receiving specific attention include overcrowding of prisons and awaiting-trial prisoner problems, as well as bail, sentencing and plea-bargaining.
Government wants to eliminate duplication
of services and programmes at all levels. The need for
strategic alignment of cluster activities has also been
raised at a series of other governmental meetings
and forums.
Benefits of proper alignment include:
- less duplication of services
- effective use of scarce and limited resources and
skills
- joint strategic planning and a planned
approach instead of reacting to problems.
The Justice, Crime Prevention and Security (JCPS) Cluster has structured itself to focus on two main areas of responsibility, namely operational and developmental issues relating to the justice system, and the improved safety and security of citizens.
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Modernising the justice system
This includes establishing proper governance structures, effective monitoring mechanisms based on proper review findings and the integration and automation of the justice system. While each department within the JCPS Cluster must have its own IT plan to achieve its specific vision, misssion and objectives, the IJS Board co-ordinates the broader and shared duty to integrate information flow throughout the CJS.
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Child justice
The department continues to prioritise access to
justice for vulnerable groups, including:
- Implementing relevant legislation and enabling
policy, for example, accelerating the finalisation and implementation
of the Child Justice Bill [PDF]
- the Sexual Offences Amendment Act, 2007 (Act 32 of 2007) [PDF],
which among other things, broadens the
definition of sexual assault
- ensuring assistance from prosecutors and public
defenders for child maintenance
- enforcing the right of children to receive support
from earning parents
- prioritising child justice and all cases involving
children, especially those in prison awaiting trial.
The Child Justice Bill was resubmitted to Parliament during the first quarter of 2008. The passage
of the Child Justice Bill through Parliament will
assist with formalising the legislation and practice,
many parts of which have already been successfully
piloted in South Africa.
The aim of the Child Justice Bill is to:
- establish a CJS for children who are in conflict with the law and are accused of committing
alleged offences, in accordance with the values
underpinning the Constitution and international
obligations
- create, as a central feature of this new CJS for
children, the possibility of diverting children
away from the CJS
- provide for the minimum age of criminal capacity of children as being 10 years of age
- make provision for child-justice courts to hear
all trials of children who are charged with
certain serious offences
- extend the sentencing options available in
respect of children who have been convicted
- entrench the notion of restorative justice in the
CJS in respect of children who are in conflict
with the law
- provide for related matters.
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Children awaiting trial
The national and provincial focus to fast-track all children awaiting trial in prisons and police cells
has led to a reduction in children awaiting trial.
Specific interventions to address the backlog of
cases pending trial include moving away from
placing children who are in trouble with the law in
correctional detention centres. Children awaiting
trial will be placed under home-based supervision,
in places of safety or in the care of parents or caregivers.
Three one-stop child-justice centres have been established
in Port Elizabeth, Bloemfontein and Port
Nolloth. The National Inter-Sectoral Committee on Child
Justice monitors and evaluates all child-justice
issues and reports to the Justice, Crime Prevention and Security (JCPS) Cluster. This forum
has also been established at regional level. With the expected adoption of the Child Justice Bill [PDF] in 2008, the departments have gone ahead with
practical steps to improve the lives of children going through the CJS. During the past five years,
for example, focused attention to this matter has
resulted in the numbers of children awaiting trial
in and sentenced to correctional facilities decreasing
by 50%.
The Legal Aid Board (LAB) has appointed children’s
units to legally represent children in conflict
with the law and appearing in courts. The number
of children assisted in this regard increases by
20% every year.
The number of children being diverted from the
CJS during the past five years has increased every
year. Statistics received from the NPA indicated that 19 066 children were diverted from the CJS between April 2007 and March 2008.
A time policy for children awaiting trial has
further been agreed upon, as:
- three to six months for chiildren's cases in district courts
- six to nine months for chiildren's cases in regional courts
- nine to 12 months for chiildren's cases in high courts.
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Implementation of the Children’s
Act, 2005
The department has prioritised the planning for
and implementation of the Children’s
Act, 2005 (Act 38 of 2005)
[PDF] especially relating to the protection and care of
children through children’s court processes. The
Department of Justice and Constitutional Development
is working closely with the Department of
Social Development to ensure an integrated and
uniform approach to the Children’s Act, 2005.
To improve general service delivery in the children’s
courts, the department intends to continuously
train the administrative personnel and
magistrates in children’s courts, especially in view
of the new legislation.
The role of the Department of Justice and Constitutional
Development is to ensure that courts, and
especially children’s courts, are capacitated to
handle disputes affecting children in courts.
Sections 14 and 15 of the Children’s Act, 2005
have been put into operation. These sections
provide rights to access to courts for children and
the right to enforcement of the rights of children
through the courts.
Persons who may approach a court are:
- a child who is affected by or involved in the matter to be adjudicated
- anyone acting in the interest of the child or on
behalf of another person (child) who cannot act
in their own name
- anyone acting as a member of, or in the interest
of, a group or class of persons (children)
- anyone acting in the public interest.
Section 28(3) of the Constitution provides that a child is anyone under the age of 18 years.
In terms of the above rights and sections
which have been put into operation, all children’s
rights are protected through court processes. The
department therefore foresees that courts will be requested to help protect and enforce children's rights in a rights-based approach.
However, the department also believes that
approaching the courts should be a measure of
last resort. The department has started consultations
with the relevant role-players in this regard.
The first port of call for the protection, promotion
and realisation of children’s rights should be the
children’s families, caregivers, the community and
service-delivery departments.
For the above purpose, measures to resolve
disputes outside the formal court procedures have
also been provided for in the Children’s Courts
Chapter of the Children’s Act, 2005, such as family
group conferences, mediation services and pretrial
conferences.
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Restorative justice
Restorative justice is a response to crime that focuses on the losses suffered by victims, holding
offenders accountable for the harm they have
caused and building peace in communities.
Restorative justice means the promotion of
reconciliation, restitution and responsibility/
accountability through the involvement of a child,
the child’s parent, the child’s family members,
communities and all interested parties in all
matters of a criminal or civil nature.
Restorative justice elements in many pieces
of legislation, such as the Child Justice Bill, the
Traditional Courts Bill and the Children’s Act, 2005
will promote the use of restorative justice in the
handling of matters within and outside the criminal
and civil justice systems.
The JCPS Cluster ensures that the many practical
steps and programmes that have been developed
during the past few years, both in government and non-governmental organisation (NGO) sectors, will be aligned and will have an impact towards nation-building, restorative
justice and the healing of past and present
wounds caused by crimes.
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Victim-Empowerment Programme (VEP)
This programme aims to improve services rendered to victims of crime.
The NPA has court-preparation officials on
contract who provide support to crime victims,
especially abused children, in preparing them for court proceedings.
The Service Charter for Victims of Crime [PDF] is expected to go a long way
towards assisting crime victims and contributing to interdepartmental and
cluster co-ordination and co-operation. The Development
Committee is mandated to align and coordinate
cluster activities across the various
departments, with the ultimate aim of improving
service delivery, policy co-ordination and planning.
It consists of senior representatives from each
of the partner departments participating in the IJS,
and is chaired by the Department of Justice and
Constitutional Development. National Treasury, the
judiciary and the Department of Home Affairs are
also represented on the committee.
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E-Justice Programme
The E-Justice Programme supports the fundamental reforms necessary to establish a more fair, accessible and efficient justice system in South Africa. The programme aims to reform and modernise the administration and delivery of justice through re-engineering work processes by using technologies, and strengthening strategic planning and management capacity, organisational development and human-resource interventions.
The E-Justice Programme has evolved into the
Information and Systems Management Programme,
which has 25 projects in addition to the three main
ones, namely the Court Process Project (CPP), Digital
Nervous System (DNS) Project and Financial
Administration System (FAS) Project. The E-Justice
Programme is funded mainly by the Justice Vote and supplemented with donor funding
from the European Union Commission, the Royal Netherlands Embassy and the Irish Embassy. With the completion of the DNS III project in March
2007, 554 sites were deployed and 14 000
users trained. This is expected to substantially
enhance service delivery at suboffice level.
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Transforming the
judiciary
A key aspect of the transformation of the justice
system concerns the department’s key strategic
partners and stakeholders. The considerable
effort put into transforming prosecution and allied
services into a prestigious professional force, in
accordance with the Constitution, is paying off.
By mid-2008, of the 199 judges, 48,23% (96) were white, 35,68% (71) were African, 7,54% (15) were coloured and 8,55% (17) were Indian. Overall, 18,59% were female and 81,42% male. In terms of the lower-court judiciary, of the 1 830 magistrates, 47% were white, 38% African, 7%
coloured and 8% Indian. Overall, 31% were female and 69% male.
The transformation of the judiciary is closely
linked with the transformation of the legal profession
and of legal scholarship. The Department
of Justice and Constitutional Development has
worked in partnership with law schools in transforming
the curriculum of the basic law degree to
bring it in line with modern best practices. In addition
to encouraging law schools to widen access to
students from previously disadvantaged communities,
these institutions will further be encouraged
to forge linkages with leading law firms, with
prominent practitioners and with relevant international
organisations. This will:
- ensure the relevance fo the training they offer to the practical demands of the profession
- expose students, especially those from pre
ously disadvantaged communities, to the profession
and vice versa to facilitate professional
training prospects
- engage the legal profession int he evolution of a new legal system that fully expresses the
constitutional and cultural aspirations of the new
dispensation.
The department assists law graduates through
its internship programme, which also provides research training to give much-needed assistance
to state legal officers, prosecutors, public defenders,
the judiciary and the magistracy.
Transformation of the legal profession includes
making judicial services accessible to the poor,
the uneducated and the vulnerable. This entails
establishing a physical presence in rural areas and
in townships, offering affordable fees and providing
speedy and empathetic services. It also entails
facilitating access of all aspects and levels of the
profession to aspirant lawyers, especially to those
from previously marginalised backgrounds.
The provision of alternative dispute-resolution
mechanisms is another key aspect of transforming
justice services, thus making justice more accessible
and more affordable.
The department gives prominence to integrating
and modernising justice services through technology.
It seeks to evolve simplified, cheaper and
faster processes geared for the poor and vulnerable
in townships and rural areas. It seeks to achieve
this in partnership with its customers, with other
government departments and with stakeholders.
The South African Judicial Education Institute
Act, 2008 (Act 14 of 2008) [PDF], will, for the first
time in history, introduce a state-sponsored judicial
education programme for judges. The Judicial
Education Institute will provide training for both
judges and magistrates.
The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) Amendment
Bill [PDF] will enhance the accountability of judicial
officers by introducing complaints-handling procedures
for judges.
Other bills identified for priority introduction in
2008 included: Constitution 14th Amendment Bill
[PDF] and Constitution 15th Amendment Bill [PDF], dealing with floor-crossing; the Reform of Custormary Law of Succession Bill [PDF]; Jurisdiction of Regional Courts
Amendment Bill [PDF], conferring civil jurisdiction on
regional courts; Traditional Courts Bill [PDF], regulating
the role of traditional leaders in the administration
of justice; National Prosecuting Authority (NPA)
Amendment Bill [PDF]; Criminal Procedure Amendment
Bill [PDF], dealing with the expungement of criminal
records for certain offences and the postponement
of certain criminal proceedings by means of audio-visual linkage; the Renaming of High Courts Bill to
bring the names of the high courts in line with the
Constitution; and the Legal Practice Bill.
The department was also finalising a consolidated
policy framework document to address other
outstanding aspects relating to the transformation
of the judicial system. These include rationalising
high courts, harmonising the appointment procedures
for judges and magistrates and addressing
aspects relating to language use in courts.
By mid-2007, the speical project of selectiing aspirant female judges had been completed.
Twenty-three women were selected from the legal
profession to undergo a specially designed judicial
education programme, which commenced in June 2007.
Transforming the judicial system also includes
transforming traditional courts. Traditional leaders
are conferred with criminal and civil jurisdiction
to exercise judicial authority in respect of certain
offences and claims. The conferment is by virtue
of sections 10 and 20 of the Black Administration Act, 1927 (Act 38 of 1927).
Since the Act is not consistent with the current
constitutional dispensation, it was repealed in
November 2005.
Only sections 12 and 20, which deal with the
establishment and functioning of traditional courts, were kept in operation until 30 September 2007. The Repeal of the Black Administration Act and Amendment of Certain Laws Amendment Act, 2007 (Act 13 of 2007) [PDF], extended the deadline of 30 September 2007 to 30 June 2008.
The extension allowed the department to formulate
policy on the role of traditional leaders under
a democratic dispensation, which will be followed
by appropriate legislation to replace the repealed
sections.
An interdepartmental task team, comprising
officials of the departments of justice, provincial
and local government, and land affairs, was appointed to draft the required policy in conjunction with the national and provincial houses of
traditional leadership. The policy was approved
by Cabinet and launched on 28 March 2008 in
Nelspruit. The Traditional Courts’ Bill has also
been introduced into Parliament. The Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Bill was finalised by Parliament in 2007.
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Court performance
The branch Court Performance is responsible for
the development and monitoring of processes
and systems, introducing case-flow management
(CFM), that facilitate efficient and effective
court and case management, develop and facilitate
the implementation of a court-management policy framework, evaluation of the quality of services and performance within the courts and facilitation
of the development of uniform performance standards to enhance institutional performance.
It is also responsible for providing an effective
and responsive management and administrative
support for judicial decision-making process
within the court environment.
As a service-delivery improvement programme,
the CFM Project seeks to put in place institutional
arrangements for integrated CFM in the court system. Given the broad and large sector of the
justice system, this will be done incrementally over
the years. The project therefore supports the institutional
arrangements in the following ways:
- establishing judicial leadership regarding CFM
– as the judiciary is in control of the court, it
makes sense to facilitate extending such control
to judicial pre-adjudication stages to achieve a
holistic CFM judicial leadership
- re-engineering CFM support structures in the courts to respond adequately to the CFM regime.
The following projects are linked to the Integrated CFM project:
- registrars
- legally qualified clerks of court
- court clerks to support the proceedings of each
court
- court managers' skills-development programme
- legal research support to the higher courts
- facilitating development and maintenance of
CFM systems through exploiting technology to
inculcate a culture of management by information
- E-Scheduler
- Video Remand System
- Digital Court Recording System (DCRS)
- Document Management System
- Scanning Solution
- transcription services
- Re Aga Boswa
- case backlogs.
Actual implementation at the courts will be facilitated
by the regional offices in each province.
This approach will provide for a uniform CFM
framework, which will be streamlined in the entire
court system. This will have the benefits of cases
being managed better, the customers of the court seeing quicker results and confidence in the
justice system being restored.
The Court Performance Programme is faced
with the following challenges:
- increasing capacity at programme and region/court levels to effect service delivery
- increasing/improving skills and competencies
- continued efforts to reduce case backlogs
- outdated court procedures/processes and the
regulatory framework
- organisational efficiency
- skills required to operate the new systems and
support.
As an effort to address these challenges the Court
Performance Programme has embarked on a
number of roadshows and information sessions.
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Case-flow management
The Department of Justice and Constitutional
Development is engaged in the development of
an enhanced version of the CFM framework for
implementation by involving all stakeholders. In
the process, the participants from other partner
organisations will make meaningful contributions
on the issues and blockages affecting the proper
implementation of CFM in the court environment.
Efforts to eradicate such blockages will be
proposed by adopting workable solutions. These
include the following:
- continuous co-operation of stakeholders to implement and maintain CFM at all courts
- establishing judicial leadership and CFM buy-in processes in the lower and higher courts in the
form of CFM forums
- facilitating and monitoring the creation of CFM
governance structures to sustain productivity in
the courts environment
- maintaining the CFM concept (guidelines, plans, governance, reporting, and systems).
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E-Scheduler
The E-Scheduler is one of the most prominent
information technology (IT) innovations of the
department. It is set to make a dynamic impact on
service delivery. This application is used to register
criminal case information for the district court
environment. The enhancement for the regional
court environment has been completed and is
currently in testing phase. The E-scheduler, which
is the department’s official monitoring case-management
tool, is used to determine performance
at court, as well as at institutional level.
The system provides for daily information
capturing, which includes, among other things,
the following:
- case details (case number, name of investigating officer, date reported, first appearance date,
relevant charges and remand dates)
- details of the accused party
- postponement details (the postponement history
of the case).
The application allows the court to schedule cases,
thereby determining when the future court diary is
available. This information can be displayed both
per court and per court room. The daily court roll
is also available for printing, for perusal and to address queries from the public and the South
African Police Service (SAPS) in some instances.
The following reports are available on the application:
- case cycle-time statistics
- cases registered per month
- charge sheet filing audit
- cases scheduled for the court (notice board)
- monthly statistics - cases closed, children
outstanding on the roll, outstanding cases,
postponed cases and unreturned cases.
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Video postponements
By mid-2008, the pilot was still in place in
KwaZulu-Natal and over a period of 15 months, the
successes yielded were 4 899 remands concluded
without the detainees leaving the correctional
facility. The system has added tremendous value
to the process of conducting remands and ensuring
faster turnaround on cases using the system.
The video remand system will be implemented in
the top 40 courst, which will be aligned to the 169 contact crime priority police stations and linked to
correctional centres housing the remand inmates.
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Scanning solution
The E-scheduler system provides document
scanning of all incoming cases’ dockets/charge
sheets.
A total of 300 scanners have been procured
and placed into various courts throughout all
provinces. As soon as the finalisation of the final
version of the scanning solution is signed off, the
roll-out will take effect in all the courts with scanners
installed. More scanners will be purchased
in the new financial year, with respective budget
allocations.
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Digital Court Recording System (DCRS)
The DCRS has been rolled out to all courts
to replace the outdated analogue recording
machines. By mid-2008, a total of 2 430 recorders
had been installed in the courts. The roll-out, which commenced in October 2006, has been completed in 164 high-court rooms, which have also been installed with a server in each court house (13 servers in total).
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Document Management System
By mid-2008, the analysis of the process flow of
documents to support an automated process of
filing, archiving and retrieving files in the court
environment had been finalised in courts.
Source: South Africa Yearbook 2008/09
Editor: D Burger. Government Communication and Information System
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Last modified: 21 July 2009 10:15:31. |
