Cape Town – Justice and Correctional Services Minister Michael Masutha says his department intends to review the Criminal Procedure Act with an aim to expunge the criminal records of offenders.
The Minister said he would hold a national consultative conference this year to talk about a possible amendment to the Act with an aim of giving offenders who committed minor crimes a second chance in life.
The Minister said this when he briefed the media at the Imbizo Centre in Parliament on Wednesday ahead of the department’s Budget Vote speech.
“Given the fact that the 2008 amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act, which came into effect in May 2009, has effectively seen its sixth year this month, it is, perhaps, time to open dialogue on possible further amendments that will give more offenders a second chance in life.
“Our focus will remain on those who committed minor, and non-violent crimes. The idea is not to compromise public safety, but to enhance it,” the Minister said.
The Minister said corrections remained an integral part of the criminal justice system.
A cardinal indicator of success in correcting offending behaviour and the rehabilitation of offenders is their successful and sustainable reintegration into their communities, the Minister said.
“In numerous interactions with former offenders, who have remained law abiding citizens for years, the matter of criminal records and their detrimental effect on successful social reintegration has consistently been raised,” he said.
The Minister said the consultative conference was part of difficult policy discussions that society needed to participate in.
Currently, the expunging of offender criminal records can happen in various ways, one of which includes a Presidential pardon. However, this can take up to 10 years until it happens, the Minister said.
“The real issue is about whether we can find a way to do that sooner than ten years because ten years may be a long time in the life of a young person.
“It is obviously a sensitive matter because on the one hand, society may feel they need to be protected because some person who has had a previous brush with the law is being unleashed into the community.
“We can’t deny people that opportunity to be re-integrated back into the community because if you deny them that, you are actually undermining your own programmes of restoring the positive side of their humanity,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Minister said to advance the department’s cause on crime prevention, correctional services would adopt a particular community and share their expertise in food production that they had been developing over the years.
“They will teach communities modern and advanced models of food production, and expose unemployed youth to technical skills such as furniture making, motor vehicle repairs and construction,” he said.
Ministry to update public on Task Team on political prisoners
The Minister said he would soon update members of the public on the work of the Ministerial Task Team appointed to conclude the outstanding matter of political prisoners.
“The task team has taken stock of the scope of work, starting with restorative justice elements of the programme, which included victim and family consultations as well as engaging NGOs and political parties.
“The known applications are in different categories, and include those who have completed their sentences, those placed on parole and those still incarcerated,” he said. – SAnews.gov.za
