Hon Chairperson, Minister, Deputy Minister, hon members, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen; the history of correction system in South Africa can be traced back to former colonial times when punishment of offenders was the sole purpose of imprisonment.
During the colonial times, retribution was the only justification of punishment. Hence, some of our correctional facilities which were built during apartheid still reflect that. The belief that criminals deserve to be punished as repayment for their crimes is one of the oldest reaction to wrong doing.
The law of retaliation traces its origin as far back as the code of Hammurabi as well as the Law of Moses in the Old Testament. The story of Joseph in the Bible, the son of Jacob reminds us that he was once imprisoned and he came out to be the second in charge in Egypt, right here in Africa. This story also reminds us that even if you can find yourself in prison, don't lose hope. The story of Joseph brings memories about our late icon, the father of our great nation, the late Rolihlahla Nelson Mandela who spent 27 years in prison and came out to be the President of our country, this country.
Both the story of Joseph and the late Nelson Mandela show us that even if you have been imprisoned, you can still be a respectable leader in society upon release. This debate takes place a day before the world celebrates Mandela Day as it was indicated earlier. We would like to encourage everyone to remember this great leader and the giant of our beloved movement by doing something positive for
humanity and contribute their time to assist those who are less fortunate.
This debate also takes place in the month of July. This is the month when Solomon Kalushi Mahlangu was born in 1956. When the apartheid government hanged in him in April 1979, he said, I quote:
My blood will nourish the tree that will bear the fruits of freedom, tell my people that I love them, they must continue the fight.
The panel system in South Africa has undergone a radical change from prison system during apartheid to correctional system under the ANC government. These changes reflected the ANC desired to move from punishment to rehabilitation of offenders.
The transition was informed by the freedom charter, which was adopted at the congress of the people in Kliptown in 1959. The freedom charter says, imprisonment shall only be for serious crimes against the people and shall aim at re-education not vengeance. This is why under the ANC government the correctional system in South Africa has moved from retribution to rehabilitation of offenders in their care.
Section 35 subsection 2(e) of the Constitution provides that everyone who is detained, including every sentenced prisoner has the right to conditions of detention that are consistent with human dignity. All efforts should be made to ensure that rehabilitation of offenders takes place in a conducive environment.
The Department of Correctional Services is indeed on track in transforming prisons into effective rehabilitation centres. A good example, the Minister visited his Boksburg Correctional Centre in Gauteng two weeks ago. The Boksburg productive workshop is one of the biggest in the Department of Correctional Services. The workshop started in 1993 and has developed a new range of furniture and has also extended its services and training skills for offenders to be equipped with skills in textile industry, bakery, powder coating, agriculture and horticulture.
We are aware of the number of partnership the department has formalised with other sister departments, civil society organisations, academic institutions and other relevant external stakeholders to assist with developing and implementing rehabilitation programmes in correctional facilities across the country. This is in line with the White Paper on Corrections 2005 which states that corrections are a societal responsibility.
In February 2013, the department signed a memorandum of understanding, MOU, with the Department of Basic Education to use offender labour to build schools and supply furniture as a good gesture of giving back to the community they have wronged.
In this MOU, the responsibility of Department of Correctional Services, DCS, includes amongst others, manufacturing and delivering of school furniture, rehabilitation of school furniture, construction of school infrastructure, maintenance and refurbishment of schools and establishment of school gardens.
No correctional system can achieve its objective if it does not have a range of healthy external partnership. To this end the National Development Plan vision 2030 recommends that education, training and skills development programmes within correctional services should be increased. Businesses and the Department of Correctional Services should work together to proactively to identify skills needs for development that would increase the chance of absorbing into economy after release.
Education is central to rehabilitation. Today the department is reporting on the number of full time schools in the correctional facilities which has increased from one in 2009 to sixteen in 2019.
There is little doubt that literacy simply being able to read and write is one of the most critical skills needed to function in our current society. This is the reason why in 2013 the department announced on 1 April, it is compulsory for every inmate without a qualification equivalent to grade 9 to complete adult education and training level 1-4.
In 2017-18 financial year, approximately 10 996 offenders accessed education and training through adult education and training and further training programmes. In the same period, 142 learners passed grade 12 while incarcerated in correctional facilities across the country. We have also observed introduction of grade 12 for learners in Ekuseni and Rustenburg youth centres in the previous year.
Social reintegration is one of the key programmes in the Department of Correctional Services. One of the challenges faced by parolees during their reintegration back to the community is acceptance by their victims, families and the community in general. This challenge, if not properly addressed has consequences of recidivism amongst ex-offenders.
A study released in 2009 on ex-convicts - Views on imprisonment and Re- entry conducted by Lukas Muntingh also found that finding
employment, re-establishing family relationship, reconnecting to community and society and the loo of the prison, were some of the most challenging confronting ex-offenders upon release. As the ANC ...
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