1. INTRODUCTION
2. MANDATE
3. VISION
4. STRUCTURE
 4.1 Staff Composition
 4.2 Cape Town Staff
 4.3 Centurion Staff
5. INDEPENDENT PRISON VISITORS (IPVs)
 5.1 General
 5.2 Appointment
 5.3 Complaints handled by IPVs during 2004
 5.4 Visitors’ Committee Meetings
6. STATE OF OUR PRISONS
 6.1 Still deplorable due to overcrowding
 6.2 Recent pronouncements on conditions and overcrowding
 6.3 The ten most overcrowded prisons on 31January 2005
7. COMPOSITION OF PRISON POPULATION 
 7.1 Overview
 7.2 Not a static population
 7.3 Awaiting-trial prisoners 
 7.4 Sentenced prisoners
 7.5 Women
 7.6 Children
8. SOLUTIONS
 8.1 Not more prisons 
 8.2 Less prisoners
9. SHORT-TERM FIXES
 9.1 Release of awaiting-trial prisoners 
 9.2 Amnesty 
 9.3 Earlier parole
10. LONG-TERM SOLUTIONS
11. AWAITING-TRIAL PRISONERS
 11.1 Unnecessary arrests – about 18 000 per month 
 11.2 Unaffordable bail – about 14 000
 11.3 Court delays
12. SENTENCED PRISONERS
 12.1 Alternatives to imprisonment
 12.2 Long prison sentences and the Minimum Sentence Legislation
13. THE IMPACT OF THE COMING INTO OPERATION OF THE CORRECTIONAL SERVICES ACT 111 OF 1998
 13.1 Background 
 13.2 The Correctional Services Act 111 of 1998 
 13.3 Release Provisions of the Act 
 13.4 Not retrospective 
14. THE WHITE PAPER
15. PUBLIC AWARENESS
16. DEATHS IN PRISONS
17. DEATH SENTENCES
18. COST OF INSPECTORATE
19. APPRECIATION 
20. NAME LIST OF IPVs 
21. Prisoner categories

  1.         INTRODUCTION Back to top

The period 1 April 2004 to 31 March 2005 has been one of significant progress in our prison administration.  The Correctional Services Act 111 of 1998 which regulates our prisons has had all its sections put into operation;  Regulations amplifying some of those sections have been promulgated;  a White Paper on Corrections aimed at guiding the management and services of the Department of Correctional Services (DCS) in future years has been approved by Cabinet and launched;  new Parole Boards which include community members have been established;  a seven-day work schedule for correctional officials has been agreed upon. 

The period started with the general election on 14 April 2004, the appointment of Minister Balfour and Deputy Minister Gillwald to Correctional Services, the appointment of new members to the Portfolio Committee on Correctional Services with Mr Dennis Bloem as chairperson. 

In his budget speech on 15 June 2004, the Minister referred to the problem of overcrowding in our prisons.  There were about 187 000 prisoners in our prisons.  As the prisons were designed to hold 114 000 prisoners, there were 73 000 too many persons locked up.  Due to various factors such as separation of awaiting-trial from sentenced prisoners, of sexes, of age groups, of categories of prisoners, the need for awaiting-trial prisoners to be near the courts and for sentenced prisoners to be near their families, some of our 240 prisons were more overcrowded than others.    Johannesburg Medium B for example, designed for 1 300, was holding 4 984 prisoners. 

Overcrowding, its attendant woes and appropriate solutions to that problem remained a focus of a much-involved Minister and Deputy Minister and of the Judicial Inspectorate.  Awareness of the problem led to the total number of prisoners being contained at about 187 000.  A steady decline in the number of awaiting-trial prisoners was unfortunately matched by an increase in the sentenced prisoner population. 

Conditions in some of our overcrowded prisons are awful.  Reducing the number of prisoners remains a priority.  The various initiatives to do so must be encouraged and fostered during this next year. 

 

 

 

J J FAGAN

Inspecting Judge of Prisons

31 March 2005

 

2.         MANDATE Back to top 

The Judicial Inspectorate of Prisons (the Inspectorate) was established as an independent statutory body in terms of section 85 of the Correctional Services Act 111 of 1998 (the Act) to monitor the conditions in prisons and the treatment of prisoners and to report to the President and the Minister of Correctional Services.  It was further mandated to appoint Independent Prison Visitors (IPVs) to visit prisoners and, should there be complaints, to try to have them resolved. 

3.         VISION Back to top           

To ensure that all prisoners are detained under humane conditions, treated with human dignity and prepared for reintegration into the community. 

4.         STRUCTURE  Back to top

The Inspectorate operates in four units:  the IPV, the Legal Services, the Inspectors and the Administrative Support units.  Together they strive to achieve the objectives of the Inspectorate which are:

•     To ensure that prisoners are treated humanely;

•     To deal with complaints received from prisoners and their families;

•     To contribute to the improvement of conditions in prisons;

•     To provide quality and accurate information about the treatment of prisoners and the conditions in prisons; 

•     To promote community involvement in correctional matters.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4.1       Staff Composition Back to top

On 31 March 2005, the staff consisted of: 

Post level	Posts	Salary level
Director	1	13
Deputy directors	3	11
Assistant directors	5	9
Inspectors/Managers	10	8
Admin. support staff	25	6 and lower

36 staff were employed in Cape Town, 8 at the Regional Office in Centurion.  221 IPVs had been appointed to visit prisoners at prisons throughout the country.

Since its inception in July 1998, the Inspectorate was faced with the challenge of regional presence.  To this end, the first Regional Office was opened on 1 October 2004 in Centurion, Pretoria.  The Regional Office brings its services closer to the IPVs and other stakeholders.  The staff complement comprises 6 Regional Coordinators and 2 Support Staff.

The Inspecting Judge during January 2005 appointed one Special Assistant in terms of the provisions of section 87 of the Act to assist the Inspectorate with the development of prison profiles.

4.2    Cape Town Staff Back to top

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 4.3    Centurion Staff Back to top

 

 

 

5.         INDEPENDENT PRISON VISITORS (IPVs) Back to top

5.1       General Back to top

IPVs are appointed by the Inspecting Judge and their functions include regular visits to prisons, interviewing prisoners and recording the complaints received from prisoners. During 2004, the 221 IPVs appointed visited prisons 9 948 times, interviewed a total of 573 941 prisoners, dealt with their complaints, attended a total of 399 Visitors’ Committee meetings with other IPVs and reported to the Inspectorate electronically on the internet.  The names of the IPVs and their allotted prisons appear at the end of this report.

5.2       Appointment Back to top

IPVs are appointed after a process of publicly calling for nominations and consultation with local community organisations.  They are people who have been identified as being public-spirited with a strong interest in the social upliftment of prisoners.  They are carefully selected, receive 4 days’ induction training and are then appointed on a non-renewable contract for 3 years.  The Inspectorate’s Regional Coordinators provide general supervision, conduct performance audits and give continuous training at the prisons where the IPVs are stationed. 

IPVs are remunerated at a rate of R50.41 per hour worked.  Hours assigned to IPVs depend on the number of prisoners in a prison.  It varies from 14 to 67 hours for from 100 to 1000 prisoners.  The average cost per IPV was R2 596 per month. 

Contracts of IPVs in Gauteng, Limpopo and Mpumalanga provinces are expiring at the end of 2005.  The process of “publicly calling for nominations and consulting with organisations” in terms of s92 of the Act will start from mid-2005.  Mainly nominees from NGOs/CBOs involved in community development will be considered to serve in the 65 positions. 

5.3       Complaints handled by IPVs during 2004Back to top

 

	EC	FS	G	KZN	L	M	NW	NC	WC	Totals
Appeals	2,701	2,187	6,251	4,371	3,070	1,351	1,609	455	1,625	23,652
Assaults (Inmate on Inmate)	318	993	413	984	270	44	308	225	472	4,047
Assaults (Member on Inmate)	474	574	399	888	141	268	355	94	455	3,722
Bail	2,869	1,000	1,891	2,756	709	1,808	610	986	1,646	14,420
Communication with Families	2,893	1,560	7,438	5,154	2,924	2,524	3,009	2,285	5,883	33,822
Conditions	1,854	877	2,590	2,820	388	794	840	1,186	4,555	15,904
Confiscation of Possessions	243	361	376	429	41	45	358	92	352	2,297
Conversion of Sentences	458	413	1,047	751	335	216	411	23	322	3,976
Corruption	233	760	192	153	76	41	174	39	157	1,825
Food	1,661	3,109	2,384	2,371	452	150	725	138	2,446	13,439
Health Care	2,703	3,718	5,140	4,402	1,817	708	2,849	717	4,208	26,262
Inhumane Treatment	446	915	1,586	458	789	245	342	93	1,182	6,056
Legal Representation	1,687	918	3,232	2,466	2,133	587	768	567	1,483	13,841
Medical Release	121	169	214	356	291	21	194	2	121	1,489
Parole	1,595	919	5,477	2,691	1,531	303	686	208	2,220	15,630
Rehabilitation Programmes	747	467	1,706	1,672	181	87	556	609	947	6,972
Remission	208	102	327	284	26	47	185	28	72	1,279
Transfers	3,858	7,875	9,115	6,647	4,832	2,251	3,042	800	6,411	45,031
Other