Chairperson, hon members, hon members of the select committee, National Commissioner of Correctional Services and senior managers, distinguished guests in the gallery, our officials and offenders, I am grateful to the NCOP for granting our request to present our Budget Vote today, as we only just had the opportunity to hold a Budget Vote debate in the NA yesterday.
Addressing the NA I indicated that we wanted to use the occasion of the debate to provide a midterm report of the progress made in the implementation of our plans since our appointment in 2009.
From the time of our first Budget Vote debate in 2009, we have committed ourselves to transforming the department, with a view to positioning it as an integral part of the integrated criminal justice system and the value chain in the fight against crime and criminality.
We also gave an undertaking to both Houses that the work in our term of office would be premised on the implementation of the programmes aimed at advancing the department's capability to deliver on the objectives of the 2005 White Paper on Corrections. It remains our position that the most critical indicator of progress in this regard should be the extent to which we succeed in delivering effective rehabilitation for offenders.
In order to do this, we committed ourselves to a plan to address both policy and operational challenges inhibiting the department's ability to implement the White Paper and the Correctional Services Act, Act 111 of 1998.
At the micro level, though, the mandate of the department, in terms of the incarceration and accommodation of offenders, needs to be seen in the context of government's efforts to ensure public safety. In order to deliver on the outcomes and objectives of the cluster - those of ensuring that our people feel and are safe - an integrated approach is required, not only in government but in society broadly. It is for this reason that we also committed ourselves to fostering more partnerships in the delivery of the outcomes of the cluster.
Our report to you is that the department is undergoing a process of fundamental change. Previously we committed ourselves to implementing various "quick-win" interventions, aimed at addressing the key challenges and the creation of an environment conducive to the effective delivery of rehabilitation programmes in our centres. As our report card will indicate, these "quick wins" are kick-starters of our programme of transformation.
We are finally succeeding in ensuring that the department operates differently in pursuance of the objectives of the White Paper. Underpinning our ability to implement the White Paper effectively is the need for the department to mitigate a range of operational risks, including overcrowding, the state of our facilities, our staff needs and ensuring appropriate resourcing of the core business of the department.
Overcrowding, our number one operational risk, impacts on the ability of the department to provide effective rehabilitation. It is for this reason that we committed ourselves last year to dealing with the problem of overcrowding in a sustained and integrated manner. We are here to report to you that we are succeeding in this regard.
The department is currently implementing a pilot project for the electronic monitoring of certain categories of inmates placed on parole. This project started only on 14 February and reached a milestone the day before yesterday, when the 106th participant was tagged here in Cape Town. It is our view that the pilot project has been a resounding success and that it is time to extend electronic monitoring to other categories of offenders, including offenders who are still serving custodial sentences in our centres. It is our plan that this roll-out should be finalised in this financial year. It is also our intention to bring before the Justice, Crime Prevention and Security cluster proposals on the use of electronic monitoring as part of alternative sentencing for minor offences. This will ensure that only those who have committed serious offences serve a custodial sentence.
The granting of a special remission of sentence was done as part of our celebration of 18 years of freedom and 16 years of constitutional democracy. The special remission of sentence was in line with the provisions of our Constitution and international practice, where remission of sentence may be granted as part of the recognition of key events in the life of a country. In deciding to grant the current remission - the first under this administration - the cluster took care to ensure that offenders who posed a serious risk to society, particularly those declared to be dangerous criminals, were completely excluded from remission. The department put in place a dedicated operational plan and capacity to manage the impact of the remission process.
Regarding the effective management of remand detention, after the promulgation of the Correctional Matters Amendment Act, the department moved with speed to put in place the plan to operationalise the implementation of the new Act. Since then the department has established a fully fledged branch for remand detention. A total of 23 distinct centres for remand detainees have now been approved and established. We have since appointed a chief deputy commissioner, Ms Roodman, to head that unit. This is at the level of a deputy director-general in other government departments.
As per our undertaking in the previous Budget, we opened the first state- funded halfway house in February this year. We had identified the real need to prepare offenders to function normally in society after their release, by creating a bridge that could help them adjust to the move from incarceration to reintegration. We need to ensure that the confusion caused by this transition is not so detrimental as to drive them to wish to return to a correctional facility or force them to reoffend.
As we indicated last year, this halfway house is currently housing juveniles who could initially not be released because of the lack of a support system. The next category of offenders who will benefit from the establishment of halfway houses will be women. The halfway houses, although funded by the department, are run in partnership with nongovernmental organisations and other community-based organisations. This important partnership demonstrates what can be achieved when we all share the view that rehabilitation is a societal responsibility. When we opened the halfway house, we stressed the point that as South Africans we needed to deal with the question of what role society should play in supporting those who have committed crimes but are now deemed ready for social reintegration.
Yesterday during our Budget Vote debate in the NA, we reported on the protection of vulnerable groups and said that we had succeeded in piloting key projects aimed at enhancing rehabilitation work, particularly in relation to vulnerable groups within our offender population. We have opened the first new-generation mother-and-baby units for women with young babies under the age of 2 years who are serving sentences. The purpose of these units is to allow the child as close to normal an existence as possible, even if this is under the conditions of the incarceration of the mother. These centres are currently operational in Pollsmoor, Durban- Westville and Johannesburg.
We have once again increased the number of youth centres that are participating in youth dialogues, wherein parents are encouraged, firstly, to visit their children and, secondly, to interact and engage with them in the centres through a facilitated dialogue. During the last year we held these dialogues in 10 youth centres across the country.
Regarding medical parole and the new medical parole policy, we have appointed the Medical Parole Advisory Board in accordance with the provisions of the Correctional Matters Amendment Act. This is an independent panel of medical doctors that considers and decides on all medical aspects in applications for placement on parole based on medical grounds. Only after their input may a parole board consider such an application and make a decision in terms of the broader criteria for placement.
After we took a decision to cancel the procurement process for four correctional facilities according to the public-private partnership model, we have now put in place a plan for acquiring additional bed-space capacity with the construction of new centres. This plan is the outcome of our consideration of the department's long-term facility needs, in relation to the optimal size for inmate type and location of our centres. It is our view that the issue of size for our centres should be based on these requirements, as opposed to the initial proposal that the new facilities should have a bed-space capacity of 3 000 across the board.
In terms of this plan, the department will begin the construction of the following facilities in this financial year: two facilities with a bed- space capacity of 500 in Limpopo, Mpumalanga and North West, two facilities with a bed-space capacity of 500 in the Eastern Cape, one facility with a bed-space capacity of 500 in the Western Cape, and a centre in KwaZulu- Natal with a bed-space capacity of 1 000. An additional 12 centres with bed- space capacities of between 500 and 1 500 will be constructed throughout the rest of the regions over the next few financial years. In this regard, consultation is under way with both National Treasury and the Department of Public Works.
I am pleased to report that we are succeeding in placing rehabilitation work and case management at the centre of our work at centre level. The interim case management committee structures have now been established in all centres, in accordance with section 42 of the Correctional Services Act. On 26 March 2012 we had a national work session for parole boards and case management committees with a view to improving the effective functioning of both these structures. The department aims to improve the development of a needs-based assessment of offenders to improve the quality of sentence plans for offenders. The law requires that correctional sentence plans are implemented for all offenders who have a sentence of 24 months or more. Approximately 80% of offenders in this category currently have sentence plans. The biggest concern still remains the quality of these sentence plans. We are, however, encouraged by the fact that most new admissions with a sentence of 24 months or more are profiled within 21 days, as required by the law.
The issue of the rehabilitation of short-term offenders is a complex one that requires the attention of the cluster. We have already identified appropriate centres for the accommodation of short-term offenders, separate from long-term offenders. We are concerned about the proverbial revolving door among short-term offenders and hence I have issued a directive that the department should review the rehabilitation path of such offenders.
Since last year a National Framework on Offender Labour has been developed, consulted on, approved and disseminated to regions for implementation. It is our plan that this new framework will help increase the number of offenders who participate in offender labour and skills development programmes.
The department is in the process of evaluating the current security technology systems, which include access control systems, surveillance systems, alarm systems, and fencing systems, to ensure alignment with the security challenges and technology strategy of the department. This process will direct the management, maintenance and upgrading of existing systems, as well as the implementation of new ones.
A contract has been awarded for the installation of security fences with closed-circuit television cameras and detection systems at 27 correctional facilities. We are also in the process of the procurement of a service provider for the upgrading, maintenance and management of the existing access control system for the Department of Correctional Services. The access control and fencing virtual private network that was run and controlled by external service providers has since been taken over by the department. Body scanners will be installed in 20 priority facilities, whereafter further roll-out will be considered.
A skills development framework for security personnel, inclusive of emergency support teams, ESTs, was approved and a Safety and Security Seta- accredited training curriculum for ESTs is under development.
The current security policy procedures of the department have been revised and aligned to the approved minimum security standards of government. The revised policy procedures are in their final consultation process and will be approved and implemented in the 2012-13 financial year.
We have also identified a number of facilities with a high risk of gang activities. Although we experienced some escapes in the last year, we are encouraged by the report that we are succeeding in the down management of escapes, from a total of 106 in 2010-2011 to 41 in the last financial year.
I am glad to announce that Judge Desai has once again agreed to serve as chairperson of the National Council for Correctional Services, NCCS, for this term. The NCCS has, in recent months, participated in the training of parole board members, where they shared weaknesses and best practices that they picked in considering lifer profiles. They were also instrumental in the development of a new policy framework for the consideration of medical parole and in the provision of feedback on the then draft Correctional Matters Amendment Bill. The capacity of the National Council for Correctional Services has been strengthened in the past financial year by the appointment of a full-time secretariat. I have also appointed Judge Vuka Tshabalala as the new inspecting judge, with effect from 1 November 2011.
The gallows restoration project, based in the Pretoria management area, is aimed at contributing to nation-building and recording the impact of the violent and inhumane policy of capital punishment, a part of our history that shall never be repeated in our beloved country. The restored gallows were officially opened by President Jacob Zuma on 15 December 2011. We believe that through this museum many of our people, including younger generations, will come to terms with this aspect of our history and dedicate themselves to ensuring that we never return to such an era.
In order to address the issue of adequate skills for women, we have launched a pilot project for the production of sanitary towels, called the Sanitary Dignity Campaign. The project is currently being piloted in the East London, Durban-Westville and Thohoyandou Female Correctional Facilities. While the project will make a significant contribution to the skilling of offenders, it will also assist with the provision of sanitary towels to young women in rural schools in the proximity of the centres.
The department has entered into partnerships with the private sector and NGOs to educate and skill our offenders in preparation for their reintegration into society. We are particularly thrilled with our partnership with the Department of Communications to offer the e-Literacy Programme for Youth Offenders to young offenders between the ages of 14 years and 35 years. The department has also embarked on a project to establish computer-based training centres at youth and other centres. Offender involvement in skills development programmes and in vocational and skills training programmes in production workshops and on agricultural farms is an area of work that needs some refining.
I have now approved the high-level structure of the Department of Correctional Services, which will fundamentally transform the manner in which the Department of Correctional Services provides delivery of service. The span of command of the national commissioner has been rationalised to eight direct reports, as opposed to the unmanageable 17 direct reports that he had before. We have established a chief operating officer who will report directly to the national commissioner, and to whom the six regional commissioners will report. The following managers will be reporting directly to the chief operating officer: chief security officer, the head of facilities, a deputy commissioner for operations support, and the head of litigation. Also reporting directly to the national commissioner are the head of strategic management, the chief financial officer, the head of human resources, and the Department of Public Works government IT officer.
Finally, in line with the logic of the mandate of Correctional Services, we have established three core business branches, namely remand detention, correctional incarceration and community corrections. The restructuring of the core business branches is in line with the Cabinet decision in relation to remand detention, which combines the functions currently carried out in personal corrections and development and care. No, not remand detention ...