Blaai af vir Afrikaanse weergawe.
16 March 2024
The Free Market Foundation (FMF)’s Section 12 Initiative today launched its Criminalisation Index, which will in time comprehensively quantify the extent of criminalisation that exists in South Africa’s statutory, regulatory, and judicial law. The FMF’s initial findings, with the index in its earliest stage of development, is that South African law is overcriminalised.
Access the index here: https://section12.org.za/criminalisation-index/
At this stage of the index’s development, the FMF considered seven portfolios that in the public mind exist outside of the ‘law and order’ or ‘criminal justice’ sphere. These are Health; Mineral Resources and Energy; Communications and Digital Technologies; Land Reform and Rural Development; Trade, Industry, and Competition; Labour and Employment; and Transport.
Between them, they administer a staggering 169 criminal offences. As more research into these portfolios is conducted, it is expected that more such offences will be found, especially in ministerial regulations.
Out of these, the conduct covered by 64 of these ‘offences’ are plainly inappropriate within the domain of criminal law. These should immediately be decriminalised or become civil matters. An additional 29 of the 169 offences are somewhat inappropriate. 50 are somewhat appropriate, and only 26 kinds of conduct are appropriately criminal.
Violent crime in South Africa is out of control, with the South African Police Service’s latest statistics indicating that there are 86 murders and 136 (reported) rapes every single day. The prosecution rate for these offences is unacceptably low, and South Africa’s prisons are overfull. Despite this travesty of justice, police, prosecutorial, and prison resources are still dedicated to combating an array of conduct and activities that should not be classified as ‘criminal’ in the first place.
‘While you are being hijacked at gunpoint at an intersection, the police might be around the corner arresting an amateur filmmaker for showing his recordings without being registered with the Films and Publications Board,’ says Martin van Staden, FMF Head of Policy.
Single resource
Once the Criminalisation Index is complete, it will be the only publicly accessible resource that South Africans can turn to, to discover every finable or imprisonable offence recognised by law. As things presently stand, interested parties must take on the daunting task of finding offences scattered all throughout national, provincial, and municipal legal instruments.
‘The result of the status quo is that most South Africans simply do not know how criminalised we are. Everyday, seemingly innocuous things that we might do, could very well be a crime in the eyes of the law. Our index aims to ensure that South African society can get a better grip of whether the scope of our criminal law is appropriate or not,’ says Van Staden.
The FMF therefore calls upon Parliament to adopt a Criminal Code that will group all offences in South Africa – whether found in regulation, legislation, municipal bylaws, judicial pronouncements, or the common law – in one, easily accessible place.
A Model Criminal Code is being developed by the FMF to guide Parliament in the right direction.
‘If an offence is not found in the Criminal Code, it should not be prosecutable,’ concludes Van Staden. ‘It is a basic violation of the standards of the rule of law to expect ordinary laypeople to abide by laws that they do not even know exist. Soon, if the new Tobacco Bill is adopted, you could be imprisoned for smoking or vaping inside your own house even if you are alone. Who would have known this?’
The adoption of a widely and continuously publicised Criminal Code is an easy manner of promoting access to justice.
Ends.
Press inquiries
Anneke Burns
FMF Publicist
0714230079 | press@fmfsa.org
***
SA goed op pad na oorkriminalisering, vind nuwe FMF-indeks
Scroll up for English version.
14 Maart 2024
Die Vryemarkstigting (FMF) se Section 12 Initiative het vandag sy Kriminaliseringsindeks bekendgestel, wat uiteindelik die omvang van die kriminalisering wat in Suid-Afrika se statutêre, regulatiewe, en regterlike wetgewing bestaan, volledig sal kwantifiseer. Die FMF se aanvanklike bevindinge, met die indeks in sy vroegste ontwikkelingsfase, is dat die Suid-Afrikaanse reg oorgekriminaliseer is.
Kry toegang tot die indeks hier: https://section12.org.za/criminalisation-index/
In hierdie vroeë stadium van die indeks se ontwikkeling het die FMF sewe portefeuljes oorweeg wat in die openbare oog buite die ‘wet en orde’ of ‘kriminele justisie’ sfeer bestaan. Dit sluit in Gesondheid; Minerale Hulpbronne en Energie; Kommunikasie en Digitale Tegnologieë; Grondhervorming en Plattelandse Ontwikkeling; Handel, Nywerheid, en Mededinging; Arbeid en Werksgeleenthede; en Vervoer.
Tesame administreer hierdie portefeuljes ‘n verstommende 169 kriminele oortredings. Na gelang van verdere navorsing word dit verwag dat nog sulke oortredings gevind sal word binne hierdie portefeuljes, veral in ministeriële regulasies.
Die gedrag wat deur 64 van hierdie ‘oortredings’ gedek word, is duidelik onvanpas binne die domein van die strafreg. Dit behoort onmiddellik gedekriminaliseer te word of binne die siviele reg geplaas te word. ’n Addisionele 29 van die 169 oortredings is ietwat onvanpas. 50 is ietwat van pas, en slegs 26 soorte gedrag is van pas binne die strafreg.
Geweldsmisdaad in Suid-Afrika is buite beheer, met die jongste statistiek van die Suid-Afrikaanse Polisiediens wat aandui dat daar elke dag 86 moorde en 136 (aangemelde) verkragtings plaasvind. Die vervolgingsyfer vir hierdie oortredings is onaanvaarbaar laag, en Suid-Afrika se tronke is oorvol. Ten spyte van hierdie onreg, word polisie-, vervolgings-, en gevangenis-hulpbronne steeds toegewy aan die bekamping van ‘n reeks gedrag en aktiwiteite wat nie as ‘krimineel’ geklassifiseer behoort te word nie.
‘Terwyl jy by ‘n kruising gekaap word met ‘n vuurwapen op jou, mag die polisie om die draai besig wees om ’n amateur-filmvervaardiger in hegtenis te neem omdat hy sy opnames gewys het sonder om by die Films en Publikasiesraad geregistreer te wees,” sê Martin van Staden, FMF Beleidshoof.
Enkelbron
Wanneer die Kriminaliseringsindeks voltooi is, sal dit die enigste openbaar-toeganklike bron wees waarna Suid-Afrikaners kan draai om elke beboetbare of tronkstrafbare oortreding wat deur die reg erken word, te ontdek. Soos dinge tans staan, moet belanghebbendes die ontmoedigende taak aanpak om oortredings regdeur nasionale, provinsiale, en munisipale wetlike instrumente te vind.
‘Die gevolg van die status quo is dat die meeste Suid-Afrikaners eenvoudig nie weet hoe oorgekriminaliseer ons is nie. Daaglikse, onskuldige dinge wat ons doen, kan heel moontlik ‘n misdaad wees in die oë van die reg. Ons indeks beoog om te verseker dat Suid-Afrikaanse samelewing ‘n beter begrip kan kry van of die omvang van ons strafreg regverdig is of nie,’ sê Van Staden.
Die FMF doen derhalwe ‘n beroep op die Parlement om ‘n Strafkode aan te neem wat alle oortredings in Suid-Afrika – of dit nou in regulasie, wetgewing, munisipale verordeninge, regterlike uitsprake, of die gemenereg gevind word – in een, toeganklike plek sal groepeer.
‘n Model Strafkode word ontwikkel deur die FMF om die Parlement in die regte rigting te lei.
‘Indien ‘n oortreding nie in die Strafkode gevind word nie, behoort dit nie vervolg te word nie,’ sluit Van Staden af. ‘Dit is ‘n basiese skending van die standaarde van die oppergesag van die reg om te verwag dat gewone leke wette moet nakom wat hulle nie eens weet bestaan nie. Binnekort, as die nuwe Tabakwetsontwerp aanvaar word, kan jy in hegtenis geneem word omdat jy binne jou eie huis rook, selfs al was jy alleen. Wie sou dit geweet het?’
Die aanvaarding van ‘n wyd en voortdurend bekendgemaakte Strafkode is ‘n maklike manier om toegang tot die reg te bevorder.
Einde.
Persnavrae
Anneke Burns
FMF Publisiteitsbeampte
0714230079 | press@fmfsa.org
