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The Minister of Finance in his Budget speech named seven priority areas of delivery for the 2002 Budget. I shall, of course, be focussing on those areas that pertain directly to the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development. In cross-referencing our department's budget priorities with those of the national budget, I have taken the liberty of quoting Minister Manuel from time to time. A little reflected glory is hard to resist. So, as to those areas pertaining directly to my Department, I highlight the following:

* Strengthening the fight against crime;
* Improving police and justice services; and
* Enhancing administrative services to citizens.

The Minister for Justice and Constitutional Development, Dr Penuell Maduna, has defined the strategic framework for the Department for the upcoming financial year and remainder of the 3 year medium term cycle. In so doing, he has provided a Vision, Mission and Value Statement that will guide the Department's activities and undertakings for the period. The statement is simple, succinct and straightforward. And essentially, these policy directives represent choices that provide the focus and direction for the executive management of the Department.

Our programme will be guided by five key messages and I will elaborate on each of these. These five messages are: Justice is a virtue; Justice is for all; Justice is charged with upholding Human Rights; Justice delayed is justice denied; and Justice must be managed.

1. With regard to Justice is a virtue...

The Department of Justice is the only Government Portfolio that is named after a virtue. This tenet of ethical merit commands that we maintain moral excellence in all that we do.

2. When dealing with Justice is for all...

Our mission is to ensure equitable and accessible justice. We must give special attention to vulnerable groups, such as women, children, the aged and the disabled. We must also ensure that justice serves the needs of those in remote rural parts of our country as well as it serves the needs of those in our cities.

3. In the same vein, we feel strongly that Justice delayed is justice denied.

The Department must deliver improved services. Our civil and criminal justice systems must meet the needs of court users in a manner that is efficient, effective and transparent.

Key areas that have been identified for improvement in our service delivery include: Facilities management, managing monies in trust, specialist services such as in the prosecution of car hijackers, commercial crime, maintenance defaulters, sexual offences, domestic violence, and child abuse.

4. In order to effect the preceding principles, Justice must be managed.

Our processes and practices must be effective, efficient and economic as laid down by the PFMA. Accountability and improved service delivery must be the Department's key performance indicators. Given the task at hand the Department cannot afford to carry passengers. Performance excellence must guide every action of those tasked with the administration of justice. Failure to comply with these performance requirements will result in appropriate and speedy disciplinary action.

5. I turn now to the fact that Justice is charged with upholding Human Rights.

Given the luminary spirit of our Constitution - the pre-eminent law of the land - both the Civil and Criminal Justice Systems must uphold the principles and values espoused by that founding document. Accordingly, those tasked with the administration of justice have a particular responsibility: they must commit themselves to a work ethic and practice that give effect to the human rights framework that lies at the heart of our transforming legal system. In addition, all who make use of our services must be assured of a transparent, fair and efficient legal system that promotes and protects the rights of all court users.

In acknowledging these directives, the Department's strategic plan takes cognisance of the magnitude of the challenges related to providing the wide range of services associated with the administration of justice. Within such a wide spectrum it is, of course, necessary to prioritise. This overview of the strategic plan seeks to highlight the plan's most important components and to evaluate these against the strategic objectives of the National Budget and broader Government policy.

To meet the principle imperatives underlying the National Budget, the core performance areas, which, in the Department's view must be prioritised for improved service delivery, are:

* Developing appropriate policies and procedures for the recruitment and most importantly the retention of highly skilled officials;

* Improving the effectiveness and efficiency of prosecution and adjudication of criminal and civil trials;

* Upgrading 50 major court complexes and the procurement and erection of 26 new facilities;

* Meeting the legal needs of vulnerable groups such as women, children and the aged through the provision of specialised services;

* Developing appropriate IT systems for capturing and processing data on transactions within the maintenance system and Masters' Offices and thereby appropriately managing the trust account moneys that are central to these units;

* Using improved crime intelligence mechanisms within the Scorpions unit to prosecute criminals and syndicates;

* The development of modern systems for the effective management and tracking of cases through the courts; and

* Ensuring that resources are distributed according to the needs of the users and recipients of the Department's services.

These performance areas are prioritised because of the enormous importance Government and the Department attach to the fight against crime, the vital role the maintenance system plays in the alleviation of poverty and the support of children; and the need to ensure that monies held in trust by the Masters are secured and efficiently handled.

Perhaps you will allow me an aside here. Nowhere is the Government's determination to succeed in the fight against crime made clearer than in the new budget. Amongst other items, Minister Manuel indicated that an additional 16,000 police will be provided through the current budget. And of course, this itself leads to the need for greater effort and expenditure throughout the Cluster, from Safety and Security, through Justice to the Correctional Services.

If we are to meet the national budget expectations of improved service delivery, and strengthening the fight against crime, the Justice, Crime Prevention and Security (JCPS) Cluster must work in an integrated and coordinated fashion. This is, of course, not new. But we must continue to improve the flow of work in and between the participating Departments in such a way that it genuinely provides a seamless service delivery process. This seamless experience must be true from the time that a crime is reported, through prosecution and ultimately conviction and sentencing.

The Integrated Justice System (IJS) task team has been created to give impetus to this process. In this regard, the IJS Court Centre Project aims to reduce the average case cycle time by managing court rolls, tracing cases through the system and controlling the awaiting trial period of each detained accused. The project includes the establishment of a Reception court, where all first appearances, remands, bail applications and guilty pleas are heard. This ensures that only trial-ready cases are dealt with in other courts.

The second IJS initiative, the Court Process Project (CPP), is our flagship and provides for the automation of both civil and criminal court and case management. The pilot project initiated at both Johannesburg and Durban effectively allows for a criminal case to be managed electronically from the South African Police Service, through prosecution and adjudication. It allows for the necessary interaction with both the Departments of Social Development and Correctional Services. We have proven the systems functionality and real life application. This pilot project is due to be concluded at the end of this month. It is scheduled for enhancement and roll out to further sites later this year. I would like to note that this system is a world first in Justice ICT. We should heartily congratulate all those involved.

The Department's contribution to these initiatives comes under the banner of our E-justice Programme. Aside from the CPP, there are other equally dramatic developments scheduled for delivery this year. These include:

* The Digital Nervous System (DNS) project which is designed to provide 11 300 officials of the Department with electronic infrastructure, total connectivity including internet access, an intranet portal and training over a period of two years. Thus far, we have delivered and implemented this project at 45 sites and have a further 60 sites schedules for delivery over the next six months. In total, we have provided 3 500 officials with this infrastructure and plan to extend this to a further 3000 officials over this period.

* The Guardian's Fund Digital Management project, which addresses the financial administration of Estates, has been developed and will be piloted in Kimberly in April this year. This project is scheduled for rollout to all Master's Offices during the course of this year. We are particularly pleased to address this area which has been a problem cited in several of the Auditor-General's reports.

* The IJS Court Centre Project is an outstanding example of an integrated approach to project implementation and speaks to the heart of the National Budget's call for improved service delivery.

Appropriate diversion mechanisms for cases that can be dealt with through alternative dispute resolution are currently being explored. This and the implementation of the recently promulgated Plea Bargaining legislation is expected to have an exceedingly positive impact on the numbers of awaiting trial prisoners. The initiative to reduce case backlogs with the introduction of Saturday and additional courts has been extremely successful, with a total of 17 232 cases being finalised by February 2002.

I wish to turn now to a subject that has been causing deep concern to the Government and public alike. The prevalence of sexual violence and child abuse in our society has necessitated the expansion of the 20 existing Sexual Offences Courts to 30 such centres during the upcoming year. And in terms of strengthening the fight against crime, the deterrent effect of appropriately harsh sentencing for crimes against the women and children of this country cannot be overstated. In this regard, I would like to point out that our courts handed down no less than 97 life sentences for violent crimes against children last year. Perhaps if more people know about these sentences, the tide will turn...

Preliminary research at our Thuthuzela project has shown that when women are provided with a supportive, survivor-centred court environment, they are more willing to stay the distance and see matters through to conviction. We will continue to refine our protocols, upgrade the skills of the specialist teams dealing with rape and expand the customised infrastructure required for such programmes. The participating departments (Health, Justice and Social Development) are currently seeking ways to roll out similar centres to other provinces.

As justice improves and refines its management information systems, the Ministry is firmly in favour of providing gender analyses of our budget and actual expenditure. We hope that this will be achieved before March 2004. We would then be reinforcing our government's commitment at Beijing to incorporate a gender perspective into the design, development, adoption and execution of all budgetary processes in our Department. Promoting equitable, effective and appropriate resource allocation to support gender equality and enhance women's empowerment not only meets the imperatives of our Constitution, it makes good financial and economic sense!

Indeed, Noeleen Heyzer, in her recent statement to the UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) said:

"A financial architecture that promotes the progress of women will not just promote gender equality; it will also promote poverty reduction, human development and the realisation of human rights."

In summing up the Department's plans for the effective and efficient use of the financial resources made available to us, I can do no better than quote, once again, from the Minister of Finance's budget speech. He said in his preamble:

"We know that the society to which we aspire - compassionate, democratic, egalitarian - will not come about by belief alone. It is a society we seek to create."

We will continue to invite the public to participate in letsema programmes in and around our courts. In this and in the way we do our work, I am sure that it will become clear that the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development is entirely focussed on maximising the speed and efficiency through which our contribution can help to deliver a truly compassionate, democratic and egalitarian society.

Thank you.

Issued by: Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Development, 14 March 2002