African Journals Online
Acta Criminologica

Volume 14, Issue 1, 2001
Abstracts

Title: Impact of the dynamics of the reparations and rehabilitation committee of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission on female victims
Authors: Nomoyi, C.Pretorius, R.

Abstract: In South Africa, a system of separate development for different racial groups, known as apartheid, was established and implemented during the 1900s. Although conflicting views exist regarding the exact date, people generally accept that this system was embedded in law by Parliament after the 1948 election, which was won by the National Party (Liebenberg 1998:15). Subsequent to 1948 and up until the 1970s numerous laws that seriously affected people in their day-to-day living were promulgated. Separate facilities, separate group areas, racial classification, which prohibited sexual relations and various other forms of formal and informal contact between racial groups, existed. Dubow (1989:4) points out that over the years, race in South Africa became the key determinant of other social areas such as status and class. Whites as a racial group predominantly formed a strong middle-class group, enjoying honour, prestige as well as privileges afforded them by virtue of birth. However, there have always been middle-class black and especially Asian people as well as upper-class people of all races in South Africa. 


Title: Explaining police action towards gays : a radical criminology approach
Authors: Bezuidenhout, C.Theron, A.

Abstract: The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, Act 108 of 1996, states that the police as servants of the community should uphold the Bill of Rights and in so doing protect all citizens (Nel & Bezuidenhout 1997: Preface). In this regard the former Minister of Safety and Security (Mufamadi 1995, Foreword) states as follows: 
The new South African Police Service must and shall take pride in our Constitution. The human rights chapter of the Constitution will remain close to the heart of the police official, for we believe that the key to its effectiveness and success lies with the police and the courts of the land. In many senses, the police will be the custodians of the Constitution: 
o They will have to enforce its provisions, even if it is the state officials who threaten to violate it. 
o They will protect the exercise of human rights by citizens even if the South African Police Service itself might not agree with the causes espoused by that group of citizens. 
On the basis of the above it is evident that police officers should enforce laws and human rights which are not necessarily favoured by the majority in society. In doing so democratic rights and the freedom of all individuals will be protected. 


Title: The International Crime (victim) survey in Swaziland (1998)
Authors: Prinsloo, J.Naude, B.Ladikos, T.Snyman, R.Ngwisha, J.K.

Abstract: The Kingdom of Swaziland, covering an area of 17 363 square kilometres, is the second smallest political state in Africa after Gambia. It is completely landlocked, sharing borders with the Republic of South Africa to the southwest and north. The Republic of Mozambique lies to the east and separates it from the Indian Ocean. 
The CSO (1995) estimated that 56 percent of the population is economically active. Of the economically active people, 78 percent are employed and 32 percent are unemployed. Although Swaziland is classified as a middle- income country, poverty is a big problem as is evident from the fact that the consumption-based poverty line has risen from 49 percent in 1980 to 1988 to 60 percent in 1995 (UNDP 1999:68). Income statistics furthermore reflect a significant skewness in that the poorest ten percent of the population accounts for 1,4 percent of the total income while the richest ten percent accounts for 42,9 percent of the total income (UNDP 1999:48). The incidence of rural poverty is 25 percent higher than in urban areas. 


Title: Ethics in police management and administration : a South African perspective
Authors: Van der Westhuizen, J.

Abstract: Within South African society there are many who believe that widespread corruption, maladministration and unethical practices occur in the public sector in general. In an opinion survey 73 percent of the respondents indicated that they believe most of the officials working in the public sector are involved in corruption, while 64 percent asserted that the Government is wasting the taxpayer's money. Although there are no definite figures for the amount of money involved in corruption, estimates run into R20 billion (Preliminary Draft Discussion Paper on Corruption and Ethics in Gauteng 1998: 3). The foregoing statement confirms that ethics and corruption go hand in hand. 


Title: Corruption in Southern Africa
Authors: Prinsloo, J.Naude, B.

Abstract: Most of the research conducted on corruption in Africa over the past forty years has shown that it is one of the most important contributors to high levels of poverty and deprivation in the region (Mbaku 2000: 70). African countries depend on development assistance to pay for essential imports and essential domestic services. The development assistance received by Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe in 1994 for instance, amounted to more than ten percent of their Gross National Product (GNP) (Lichthelm 1997: 63). In general Africa is not regarded as an attractive location for direct foreign investment due to prevailing negative perceptions of civil unrest, crime, economic disorder, starvation and fatal diseases. The fact that the continent as a whole has not fared as well as other developing countries and that the region has fallen behind in virtually all crucial indicators (Maipose 2000: 87), is also discouraging. Due to economic stagnation and declining output, various African countries had negative average growth rates although this trend has been reversed since 1994, especially in sub-Saharan Africa (Prinsloo and Naudé 2000:40-448). 


Title: Community policing in the Vaalrand (Gauteng)
Authors: Morrison, C.Prinsloo, J.

Abstract: In the period preceding the nineties, the Police became a symbol of oppression to the greater part of the community in South Africa, as the strategy of the police was characterised by a strong emphasis on the military style of policing (Stevens & Yach 1995:2). South Africa's first democratic elections in 1994 resulted in a change of government that brought with it dramatic reform. A demand for fundamental reassessment of policing was also established, especially in view of a high crime rate which hampered long-term socio-economic changes. Crime inhibits economic activity and demotivates international investors who wish to invest in South Africa (Cokayne 1998:14). According to Van Blerk (1996:21), violent crimes often lead to a tragic loss of life and injury and the loss of possessions, and the effect on one's livelihood as a result of crime, is incalculable. He also states that the freedom and rights of the individual, as entrenched in the Constitution, are threatened every time a citizen becomes a victim of crime. The newly elected government subsequently instituted community policing to establish an effective partnership against crime between the police and the communities they serve. This resulted in the removal of the top structure of the South African Police, which meant replacing officials who resisted reform with more enlightened managers, and creating a police service instead of a police force (Fox, Van Wyk & Fourie 1998:168). 


Title: Exploring the impact of crime on tourism in St. Lucia
Authors: Ntuli, T.G.Potgieter, P.J.

Abstract: South Africa is rich in tourist attractions. These include, inter alia, accessible wildlife sanctuaries, unspoiled landscapes (beaches), wilderness areas and indigenous forests, diverse cultures, a generally sunny and mild to hot climate and a well-developed infrastructure. These features attract not only local but also foreign tourists. However, a trend has emerged where some countries, including a developing country like South Africa with its democracy still in its infant stage, are listed and categorised overseas as a place where tourists are vulnerable to crime and criminal victimisation (Ntuli 1998:1) - despite the recent declaration of three of South Africa's tourist spots: Robben Island, the Sterkfontein Caves and the St. Lucia wetlands as world heritage sites. 
To safeguard tourism as an income-generating source for South Africa, a countrywide priority committee on the safety of tourists has been established. The Provincial Priority Committee (PPC) of KwaZulu-Natal is specifically charged with the safety and security of local as well as foreign tourists. Education programmes for local communities located in tourist attraction areas, the involvement of farming communities to ensure the safety and security of Bed and Breakfast locations, most of which are situated on farms, the creation of a tourism web-page to provide vital information about tourist attractions in South Africa and the compilation of an official manual for police officers containing information on tourism and the safety of tourists, are only some of the constructive efforts that have been introduced in an orchestrated effort to involve as many as possible stakeholders in a partnership with the police to prevent crime being committed against tourists (Annual Report 1999:30). 


Title: Consequences of vehicle hijacking
Authors: Davis, L.

Abstract: Although incidents of vehicle hijacking are spiralling world-wide, vehicle hijacking has been identified as a priority crime in South Africa. This is based on the serious implications it holds for the individual in terms of the physical, emotional, financial and social consequences associated with it, as well as the negative local and international response it elicits. 


Title: The prevention pyramid : a model for fundamental crime prevention
Authors: Depuydt, A.Deklerk, J.

Abstract: This article reflects on a model for fundamental crime prevention, named the prevention pyramid, which was developed to overcome the problematic aspects of crime prevention (see Deklerck and Depuyt 2000:57- 63). The main aim of the model is to offer a conceptual framework for an integrated policy that never loses the basic purpose of crime prevention, which is creating a more safe and peaceful society. One of the basic principles of the crime prevention pyramid is the involvement of the societal context within the discussion of crime prevention. The general social climate must remain a reference point for each crime prevention intervention. This general social climate cannot be disconnected from the ecological dimension. 


Title: A critique on individual-oriented crime explanation in general textbooks on criminology and a proposed integrated model
Authors: Van der Hoven, A.

Abstract: Over a long period of time, individual-oriented factors contributing to crime have been neglected in the field of criminological research and in general textbooks. Milieu-oriented factors and theoretical explanations dominated the study-field of Criminology. The purpose of this article is to give a broad overview of the limitations with regard to individual-oriented factors in a number of well-known textbooks on Criminology and to suggest an individual-oriented integrated model for explaining criminal behaviour. The theoretical model will be explained by means of a case study. 


Title: Process evaluation of the victim empowerment programme for abused women in the Northern Province
Authors: Makofane, D.

Abstract: Women are generally regarded as one of the vulnerable groups in society. Every South African woman may find herself in an abusive heterosexual relationship at any given time since the country has been declared the most violent in the world (Human Rights Watch 1995:44). Hardly a day goes by without media reports of violent and heinous crimes committed against women in and outside the home. 


Title: Violence and mental illness
Authors: Labuschagne, G.

Abstract: The issue of violence and dangerousness amongst the mentally ill has long been debated and is the subject of much speculation and stigmatisation. This article examines recent literature that revisists this topic in order to investigate which diagnoses, if any, and which conditions are a requisite for violence to occur amongst the mentall ill. Specific examples from various countries and specific statistics are also mentioned. The issue of mental illness and the legal system is also briefly touched upon. 


Title: Management of witchcraft (bolôyi) in an urban and a rural community in the Northern Province of South Africa
Authors: Peltzer, P.

Abstract: Witchcraft beliefs among Northern Sotho-speaking people in South Africa can be summarised as follows from a recent community study: (Peltzer submitted): 
o Witches can be divided into 'night bolôyi' (witchcraft) and 'day bolôyi' (sorcery). The former inherit their powers ("it runs in the family, e.g. from mother to daughter") whereas the latter acquire the skill. 
o Witches use a familiar object for witchcraft which can be small animals like a cat, hyena, wolf, baboon, monkey, snake and certain birds like an owl or a thokoloshe [an ugly small animal symbolizing sexual lust (Niehaus 1995)]. The latter is believed to cause car accidents, being or becoming unemployed, or may even come to your house and take away food. 
o Witches can also transform human beings into a setlotlwane (zombie). 


Title: The value of the Herrmann Brain Dominance Instrument (HBDI) in facilitating 
effective teaching and learning of Criminology
Authors: De Boer, A.Van den Berg, D.

Abstract: For many decades, educational systems worldwide have focused mainly on left brain teaching and evaluation strategies. From a Curriculum 2005 perspective the historically separate worlds of "work" and "learn" are no longer acceptable and it is therefore important to look at the context of subjects as well as the changes that are being demanded by the future employers. In analysing the needs of potential employers it seems as if there is a demand for students who can think holistically, be innovative, work in teams, synthesize information, integrate environmental and societal values and ethics into their work, communicate effectively and solve problems in creative ways. These ways of thinking have been neglected in most curricula.


Title: Drinking and drunken driving in South Africa
Authors: Van den Berg, D.Pretorius, R.

Abstract: The violent society in which South Africans live is reflected daily in the media (Are crime and violence unstoppable? 1995:1-2; Criminals on rampage in Jo'burg 1997:1). Despite the disapproval of some forms of violent action (e.g. murder and rape), it is also characteristic of modern society that certain forms of violent behaviour are accepted as normal. When the consequences of serious traffic offences in terms of the extent of injuries and deaths are taken into account, it becomes apparent that this form of violence has become such a general occurrence that it engenders little public interest.