ATIONAL COUNCIL OF PROVINCES
QUESTION FOR WRITTEN REPLY
PARLIAMENTARY QUESTION NO.: 488
DATE OF QUESTION: 21 OCTOBER 2011
488. Mr Z Mlenzana (COPE-EC) to ask the Minister of Justice and
Constitutional Development:
(1) Whether the Integrated Justice System 2000 Plus Strategy has
enabled his department to modernise the functioning of the courts in
order to (a) allow for more extensive use of technology, (b) promote (i)
efficient and (ii) effective case management, (c) allow easier public
access to court information and (d) provide value-added services; if
not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details;
(2) whether his department has experienced any technological or
systematic delays; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so,
what are the relevant details?
CW590E
REPLY:-
I would like to inform the Honourable Member that the Department has
made important strides in developing technology solutions to ensure
improved efficiency and effectiveness in our courts as part of the
implementation of the Integrated Justice System (IJS) Strategy. The
Department, through the IJS Board, has also been involved within the
Justice Crime Prevention and Security Cluster in promoting technology as
an enabler and to help integrate information communication technology
(ICT) across the Cluster. The JCPS Cluster is not satisfied with the
speed at which the ICT integration across the Cluster Departments is
taking place. As a result, the JCPS Cluster has reviewed the
prioritisation of integration activities which are dealt with through
the IJS Board. Consequently, the IJS Board is being strengthened to
fast track integration and modernisation efforts.
(1) Yes, my Department was able to modernise the functioning of the
courts by using information and communications technology as an enabler.
(1)(a)More extensive use of technology was made possible by the
successful development and national roll out of the Integrated Case
Management System (ICMS). The ICMS features various modules which
support the automation of core business processes such as case
registration and management of cases through the lifecycle. This
solution makes provision for the registration of the criminal case and
the case outcome (postponement, withdrawals, conviction etc). It also
features an automated court roll, document scanning, electronic National
Register of Sex Offenders and management reports. Other processes that
have been automated include the Masters, Civil and Small Claims.
Audio-Visual postponing of cases is also now a reality in courts and
prisons throughout the country. The Audio-Visual Remand system has been
deployed at 47 courts and 22 Correctional Centers nationally.
(b)(i) The modernisation initiatives above have improved efficiency in
the administration of our courts in that case information and court
records can be obtained much quicker by using an electronic reference
system to search for court case information, including physical
documents digitised through a scanning process.
(b)(ii) The transition from manual processes to electronic processes
has, to a large extent, improved the overall effectiveness of case
management processes. The system generated information reports enables
court managers to be pro-active and ensure that all necessary documents
are available before the next court date.
(c) The automation of these processes has enabled the courts to
render a speedier service to the public when dealing with queries. By
simply entering the case number on the system, court clerks can retrieve
information within seconds as there is no need to find hardcopies of
files to be able to respond to a query. The Integrated Case Management
System also makes it possible for court managers to indicate to the
public in which cases their cases will be dealt with.
(d) Value-added services include the introduction of the Justice
Deposit Account System (JDAS) functionality with electronic and
internet banking facilities whereby bail and maintenance monies can be
paid and received at any court regardless of where the case was
registered.
(2) The Department of Justice and Constitutional Development is
not immune to complexities and delays associated with technology
development projects. Most of the delays which occur relates to
replacement or acquisition of technical skills. Salary scales of
Government makes it difficult to attract the specialised IT skills
required, in particular IT Architects and Systems Integrators and as
well as Project Management Skills. Another cause of delays is the
procurement processes or tender processes relating to procurement of IT
services. We are, however, continuously monitoring and managing the
impact of any delays and seeking ways to prevent delays as well as fast
track the speedy implementation of ICT solutions and in particular
integration across the criminal justice value chain.