Civil Society Prison Reform: Recent submissions
Now showing items 41-60 of 85
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Preventing and combating torture in South Africa: a framework for action under CAT and OPCAT
(Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation & Civil Society Prison Reform Initiative, 2008)This booklet aims to provide more information to decision-makers and stakeholders on the challenges relating to preventing and combating torture; and also outlines South Africa’s obligations under CAT and OPCAT. These two ... -
The African Commission’s Guidelines on Pre-trial Detention: Implications for Angola and Mozambique
(Community Law Centre, University of the Western Cape, 2014)On 8 May 2014, in Luanda (Angola), the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) adopted the Guidelines on the Use and Conditions of Arrest, Police Custody and Pre-trial Detention in Africa (hereafter the ... -
Unconscionable and irrational: SAPS human resource allocation
(South African Crime Quarterly, 2015)The Khayelitsha Commission revealed that areas that are predominantly populated by people who are poor and black are systematically allocated only a small fraction of the average per capita allocation of police personnel ... -
Constructing pre-trial detention indicators for African contexts: Problems and proposals
(Dullah Omar Institute, 2015)This discussion paper arose from the conundrum faced by a paralegal organisation working in an African country in demonstrating both that pre-trial detention is a problem in that country, and that their work has an impact ... -
Punished for being Poor: Evidence and Arguments for the Decriminalisation and Declassification of Petty Offences
(Dullah Omar Institute, 2015)The Ouagadougou Declaration and Plan of Action on Accelerating Prison and Penal Reform in Africa of 20031 endorsed recommendations calling for reducing the size of prison populations in Africa. The Plan of Action recommended ... -
Pocket Guide to Arrest and Detention in Malawi, Lilongwe
(Paralegal Advisory Services Institute (PASI), Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace (CCJP), Centre for Human Rights and Rehabilitation (CHRR), the Centre for Human Rights Education, Advice and Assistance (CHREAA), and the Community Law Centre (CLC) of the University of the Western Cape, 2015)This guide is for anyone who needs a quick reference to the laws around arrest and detention in Malawi. This may include police, court clerks, prosecutors, magistrates, paralegals and detainees. First there is an orientation ... -
The right to a fair trial and being hearing impaired
(Dullah Omar Institute, 2018)The Cape High Court recently (27 August 2018) overturned on appeal the conviction and sentence of a 62-year old man convicted in the Wynberg Regional Court of murder because the trial court failed to protect his right to ... -
Unaccompanied and Separated Foreign Children in the Care System in the Western Cape – A Socio-Legal Study
(Potchefstroom Electronic Law Journal, 2016)This article reports on the findings of a study of foreign children accommodated in the care system in the Western Cape, based on fieldwork conducted in child and youth care centres. The objectives of the study were firstly ... -
Ten years after the Jali Commission: Assessing the state of South Africa’s prisons
(South African Crime Quarterly, 2016)Ten years have lapsed since the Jali Commission’s final report became publicly available, and it is therefore an opportune time to assess the state of South Africa’s prison system. The Jali Commission was appointed when ... -
The Socio-Economic Impact of Pre-Trial Detention in Kenya, Mozambique and Zambia
(Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa, 2016)The project was informed by an understanding of how socio-economic rights intersect with fair trial rights. The nature of the obligations on states, as set out in instruments such as the International Covenant on Economic, ... -
Solitary Confinement - A review of the legal framework and practice in five African countries
(Dullah Omar Institute, 2018)The effect of long periods of solitary confinement have been shown to have severe impacts on a prisoner’s mental and physical well-being. The UN Human Rights Committee (UNHRC) has noted that the use of prolonged solitary ... -
An Assessment of the National Prosecuting Authority: A Controversial Past and Recommendations for the Future
(Dullah Omar Institute, 2017)The Constitution of South Africa provides for a single, independent national prosecution authority. The office of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) was formally established through the National Prosecuting Authority ... -
Expungement of a criminal record May 2018 Crimes committed by an adult
(2018)Expungement removes the criminal record of your conviction from the Criminal Record Centre of the South African Police Service (SAPS).This allows a person to carry on with life without a criminal record being an obstruction ... -
Expungement of a criminal record Crimes committed by a child
(Dullah Omar Institute, 2018)Expungement removes the criminal record of your conviction from the Criminal Record Centre of the South African Police Service (SAPS). This allows a person to carry on with life without a criminal record being an obstruction ... -
National Prosecuting Authority Performance
(Dullah Omar Institute, 2018)The National Prosecuting Authority of South Africa (NPA) was created by legislation which came into effect in August 1998, and became a stand-alone entity in 2002/3, whereas previously it was more closely embedded in the ... -
The effect of sentencing on the size of the South African prison population
(Open Society Foundation for South Africa, 2006-10)That South African prisons are experiencing serious and growing overcrowding problem is well-known to anyone with an interest in the criminal justice sector. Particularly since 2000 the widening gap between available prison ... -
Alternative sentencing in South Africa: an update
(Institute for Security Studies, 2005)With South Africa’s ever growing prison population, the hope is often expressed that non-custodial sentencing options or ‘alternative sentencing’ will relieve the overcrowding and its associated ills. The current situation ... -
Indefinite imprisonment in South Africa: The difference between life and indefinite imprisonment
(Dullah Omar Institute, 2018)In May 2018, Pieter Van Tonder was sentenced to indefinite imprisonment in the Cape High Court. Van Tonder brutally assaulted and murdered the 16-month old baby of his ex-girlfriend. This case happened shortly after the ... -
Report on the evaluation of the Independent prison visitors (IPV) system
(Civil Society Prison Reform Initiative, 2004-05)This report on the IPV system forms part of a larger study into civilian oversight of the correctional system. Saras Jagwanth has completed an evaluation of the Office of the Inspecting Judge, which should be read in ... -
The appointment and dismissal of the NDPP: Instability since 1998
(Dullah Omar Institute, 2018)The position of National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP) has emerged since 1998 as one of the most unstable positions in government. This can to a large degree t be ascribed to how appointments and dismissals are ...