An exploratory analysis of the challenges faced by police in combating mob justice: a case study of Gqeberha
- Loqani Anelisa https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9944-5947
- Authors: Loqani Anelisa https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9944-5947
- Date: 2021-02
- Subjects: Vigilance committees , Criminal justice, Administration of
- Language: English
- Type: Doctoral theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/22000 , vital:51928
- Description: Mob justice is a major issue that will continue to occur as long as criminal activities exist. In South Africa, mob justice has become a major challenge for the government, particularly the South African Police Service as well as the society at large. The South African Police Service (SAPS) has partnered with all relevant role-players in the fight against mob justice and other community problems which threaten the safety of inhabitants. However, concerted efforts have also been made by the government to assist the SAPS to address the occurrence and re-occurrence of mob justice by introducing strategies such as visible policing but the problem seems to persist. The study, thus, analyzed the challenges faced by the police that lead to their ineffectiveness in eliminating mob justice. This thesis draws from two theories, namely Structural Violence theory pioneered by Galtung (1969) and Just World Theory (JWT) by Adelstein (1999) to explore the challenges faced by the police in Gqeberha. This study was conducted in the Eastern Cape Province, in Gqeberha within four townships, namely Kwadwesi, Kwazakhele, Motherwell, and New Brighton. The findings gathered by utilizing Focus Group Interviews (FGIs) and semi-structured interviews with a total number of forty-eight (48) respondents comprising of sixteen (16) SAPS members, eight (08) Community Policing Forum (CPF) representatives, four (04) community leaders and twenty (20) community members. This is a qualitative research project in which participants were chosen using purposive sampling. Participants were chosen based on their knowledge and experiences relating to the phenomena being explored. The aim was to gain an in-depth understanding of the challenges encountered by the police in combating mob justice to discover some techniques to improve and strengthen the police service to make communities safer. To analyse the data thematic analysis was utilized. The results of the study indicate that an increase in mob justice in Gqeberha has been reported to be a result of the high rate of crime. However, the fact that people know they will not get arrested for participating in mob justice is one of the concerns that have led to an escalation in mob justice. The study demonstrates that in most incidents the community members have once witnessed in their respective areas, the victims were killed while few survived and in all those incidents only a few arrests were made and in those few arrests, no convictions were made. Based on this issue of arrests, results indicate that the SAPS members are confronting some difficulties in identifying and arresting the perpetrators of mob justice. The reluctance of community members to report mob justice cases and to provide information was found to be the main challenge faced by the police in combating mob justice in Motherwell Cluster precincts. These challenges have been reported to negatively affect police work performance. Further analysis revealed that CPF, community members and community leaders as part of stakeholders who are working together with SAPS are also facing some challenges in addressing this issue of mob justice. The results also indicate that mob justice does not only harm members of the community who are subjected to these occurrences, but also the police, the victims and the perpetrators themselves. Evidence-based techniques to help eradicate mob justice incidents were developed in response to this problem of mob justice. The participants suggested that the police must be provided with adequate manpower, more community patrols and vehicles. It is believed that if the police could act in time and arrest the suspected criminals, a large number of people would be rescued from being killed in mob justice. The respondents also indicated that the police must build good relations with the communities by being visible and transparent in communities. Furthermore, the SAPS participants alluded that when people are sentenced, a community engagement needs to be conducted before those people are released outside as parolees. Other respondents mentioned the issue of education, proposing that the Criminal Justice System (CJS) should frequently conduct awareness campaigns, imbizos and public meetings to teach and inform people about its operations. , Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-02
- Authors: Loqani Anelisa https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9944-5947
- Date: 2021-02
- Subjects: Vigilance committees , Criminal justice, Administration of
- Language: English
- Type: Doctoral theses , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10353/22000 , vital:51928
- Description: Mob justice is a major issue that will continue to occur as long as criminal activities exist. In South Africa, mob justice has become a major challenge for the government, particularly the South African Police Service as well as the society at large. The South African Police Service (SAPS) has partnered with all relevant role-players in the fight against mob justice and other community problems which threaten the safety of inhabitants. However, concerted efforts have also been made by the government to assist the SAPS to address the occurrence and re-occurrence of mob justice by introducing strategies such as visible policing but the problem seems to persist. The study, thus, analyzed the challenges faced by the police that lead to their ineffectiveness in eliminating mob justice. This thesis draws from two theories, namely Structural Violence theory pioneered by Galtung (1969) and Just World Theory (JWT) by Adelstein (1999) to explore the challenges faced by the police in Gqeberha. This study was conducted in the Eastern Cape Province, in Gqeberha within four townships, namely Kwadwesi, Kwazakhele, Motherwell, and New Brighton. The findings gathered by utilizing Focus Group Interviews (FGIs) and semi-structured interviews with a total number of forty-eight (48) respondents comprising of sixteen (16) SAPS members, eight (08) Community Policing Forum (CPF) representatives, four (04) community leaders and twenty (20) community members. This is a qualitative research project in which participants were chosen using purposive sampling. Participants were chosen based on their knowledge and experiences relating to the phenomena being explored. The aim was to gain an in-depth understanding of the challenges encountered by the police in combating mob justice to discover some techniques to improve and strengthen the police service to make communities safer. To analyse the data thematic analysis was utilized. The results of the study indicate that an increase in mob justice in Gqeberha has been reported to be a result of the high rate of crime. However, the fact that people know they will not get arrested for participating in mob justice is one of the concerns that have led to an escalation in mob justice. The study demonstrates that in most incidents the community members have once witnessed in their respective areas, the victims were killed while few survived and in all those incidents only a few arrests were made and in those few arrests, no convictions were made. Based on this issue of arrests, results indicate that the SAPS members are confronting some difficulties in identifying and arresting the perpetrators of mob justice. The reluctance of community members to report mob justice cases and to provide information was found to be the main challenge faced by the police in combating mob justice in Motherwell Cluster precincts. These challenges have been reported to negatively affect police work performance. Further analysis revealed that CPF, community members and community leaders as part of stakeholders who are working together with SAPS are also facing some challenges in addressing this issue of mob justice. The results also indicate that mob justice does not only harm members of the community who are subjected to these occurrences, but also the police, the victims and the perpetrators themselves. Evidence-based techniques to help eradicate mob justice incidents were developed in response to this problem of mob justice. The participants suggested that the police must be provided with adequate manpower, more community patrols and vehicles. It is believed that if the police could act in time and arrest the suspected criminals, a large number of people would be rescued from being killed in mob justice. The respondents also indicated that the police must build good relations with the communities by being visible and transparent in communities. Furthermore, the SAPS participants alluded that when people are sentenced, a community engagement needs to be conducted before those people are released outside as parolees. Other respondents mentioned the issue of education, proposing that the Criminal Justice System (CJS) should frequently conduct awareness campaigns, imbizos and public meetings to teach and inform people about its operations. , Thesis (PhD) -- Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, 2021
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2021-02
The recognition of victims rights of sexual offences
- Authors: Dipa, Asanda
- Date: 2012
- Subjects: Sex crimes -- South Africa , Criminal justice, Administration of , Sex and law -- South Africa , Victims of crimes -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , LLM
- Identifier: vital:10181 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1014361
- Description: “Indeed in rape cases it is the victim who is most often placed on trial rather than the perpetrator, accused of having ulterior motives and subjected to degrading questions with often pornographic overtones. Prosecutors might fail to adequately address the victims needs and all too often, information is either intentionally or unintentionally withheld from victims.” The victims of sexual offences have to face not only the consequences of the sexual crime that was perpetrated upon them, but they also have to deal with the effects of the criminal justice system. Victims who take part in the criminal justice system should not be exposed to unnecessary distress and trauma. The victims of sexual offences must not be re-victimised by the criminal justice system. Re-victimisation has been coined to describe the experience where victims are subjected to further victimisation by the very state organs to whom they turn for assistance. This has the effect that the victim is victimised twice, first by the offender and then by the criminal justice system. It is therefore the duty of the law to protect this group of witnesses from such a traumatic and damaging experience. The question that needs to be answered in this research is whether the Sexual Offences and Related Matters Amendment has made any difference in respect of protection of victims sexual crimes. It was concluded that the Sexual Offences Act is indeed a step in the right direction to protect the rights of victims of sexual offences but that it could have afforded more protection.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2012
- Authors: Dipa, Asanda
- Date: 2012
- Subjects: Sex crimes -- South Africa , Criminal justice, Administration of , Sex and law -- South Africa , Victims of crimes -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , LLM
- Identifier: vital:10181 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/d1014361
- Description: “Indeed in rape cases it is the victim who is most often placed on trial rather than the perpetrator, accused of having ulterior motives and subjected to degrading questions with often pornographic overtones. Prosecutors might fail to adequately address the victims needs and all too often, information is either intentionally or unintentionally withheld from victims.” The victims of sexual offences have to face not only the consequences of the sexual crime that was perpetrated upon them, but they also have to deal with the effects of the criminal justice system. Victims who take part in the criminal justice system should not be exposed to unnecessary distress and trauma. The victims of sexual offences must not be re-victimised by the criminal justice system. Re-victimisation has been coined to describe the experience where victims are subjected to further victimisation by the very state organs to whom they turn for assistance. This has the effect that the victim is victimised twice, first by the offender and then by the criminal justice system. It is therefore the duty of the law to protect this group of witnesses from such a traumatic and damaging experience. The question that needs to be answered in this research is whether the Sexual Offences and Related Matters Amendment has made any difference in respect of protection of victims sexual crimes. It was concluded that the Sexual Offences Act is indeed a step in the right direction to protect the rights of victims of sexual offences but that it could have afforded more protection.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2012
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