Cabinet approves submission of Criminal Law Amendment Bill

Thursday, November 20, 2014

Pretoria - Cabinet has approved the submission of the Criminal Law Amendment Bill, 2014 to Parliament.

The Bill addresses two separate Constitutional Court judgments, by amending the applicable sections of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related matters) Amendment Act, 2007, to remedy the current position of constitutional invalidity.

In October last year, the Constitutional Court handed down judgment in the case between the Teddy Bear Clinic for Abused Children and the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development. It partially confirmed an order of constitutional invalidity granted by the North Gauteng High Court.

Addressing media on Thursday about the decisions taken at the Cabinet meeting held on Wednesday, Minister in the Presidency responsible for Performance, Monitoring and Evaluation, Jeff Radebe, noted that the primary objective of sections 15 and 16 of the Act, namely to protect vulnerable children against sexual exploitation by adults, remains unaffected by the proposed amendments.

“The proposed amendment to sections 50 and 51 of the Act aims to give effect to the principle that the best interests of children are of paramount importance in all matters that concern them,” Minister Radebe explained.

The amendments introduce a two year age gap in respect of children between the ages of 12 and 16 years who engage in sexual acts with each other. It also proposes providing presiding officers with a discretion in order to decide in individual cases whether the particulars of children should be included in the National Register for Sex Offenders or not.

The Bill also introduces a procedure in terms of which certain persons may apply for the removal of their particulars from the National Register for Sex Offenders.

Meanwhile, Cabinet also approved the introduction of the Judicial Matters Amendment Bill, 2014. The Bill amends numerous Acts, administered by the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, to address practical and technical challenges, with a view to enhance organisation efficiency and accountability.

Cabinet has further approved the introduction of the draft Banks Amendment Bill, 2014. The amendment to the Banks Act, 1990 (Act No. 94 of 1990) enhances curatorship of banks in order to make the financial sector safer and protect depositors.

In prompting the soundness of the banking system, Minister Radebe said, it is imperative that the regulation and supervision of banks are based on international standards and best practice.

“The Bill seeks to enhance the powers of the curator of a bank while under curatorship by providing an alternative to the recovery of a bank within the existing corporate entity, facilitating the transfer of all or part of a bank’s business to a successor entity pursuant to a transfer under section 54 of the Banks Act; and facilitating the implementation of the above steps by the curator,” Minister Radebe said. – SAnews.gov.za