Chairperson, hon Minister of Safety and Security Mr Steve Tshwete, hon Minister of Justice Mr Maduna, hon Minister of Correctional Services Mr Ben Skosana, MECs and special delegates from provinces and fellow colleagues in the National Council of Provinces, I am, indeed, honoured to be participating in this debate this afternoon.
After the Ministers had spoken, I tried from the point of view of being a member of the ANC, to get words of wisdom from our fellow members on the other side, that is, the opposition, but I really drew few lessons. I heard some sense in what Mr Kent Durr said today, at least. All the others have been teaching us about statistics. They have been telling us about the failure of the Government, and have been singing the praises of criminals, telling the public out there that criminals will continue to hold this country to ransom because the Government is weak. I think we must not allow ourselves to be intimidated by the attitude of those hon members.
Allow me to join others in echoing my support for the Ministries, the departments and the Government at large for a job well done in re- engineering the criminal justice system to meet the challenges of making our beloved country, South Africa, a crime-free society.
Our support for the Ministers will never be complete if we do not equally give accolades to men and women in the Police Service, the justice system and Correctional Services who, under the most difficult circumstances, are unwavering in their commitment to making our country a crime-free society.
Indeed, the successes of this Government against crime must be attributed equally to the increasing support that the police continue to receive from our communities, from ordinary men and women in the streets of our townships. Accordingly, for millions of our people who were subjected to social deprivation for many decades, a new season of hope has dawned because, for the first time a child can report an indecent assault, for the first time a mother can report all forms of abuse, even by her spouse, and an ordinary citizen can report any form of corruption committed by any officer in the Police Service or justice system.
I do not think it is my duty to remind some of the speakers, particularly Mr Lever and company, that there never was a criminal justice system in this country before April 27, 1994. [Interjections.] What we had in this country before that particular period was a system of policing which was based on racism, a system that was based on the oppression of the black majority of this country. We are undoing this. In this process, the selfsame creators of the same institution come back and tell us that we are not doing enough. I do not think that we should be intimidated by this chorus of hopelessness.
Quite clearly, a culture of silence against crime, engineered for many decades of colonial rule, has been broken down in six years' time. It has been built over more than 40 years, since 1948 when the NP took over. In six years we have broken that culture of silence. People are able to report criminal offences to the police and relevant authorities.
The renewed confidence in the criminal justice system has not been brought about by speeches. I think we need to understand that and the MEC from Gauteng has alluded to it. It has been brought about by the concerted effort of our Government in partnership with our people. That is very important and critical - it was achieved in partnership with our people. We are engaging everyone, those who agree with us and those who do not agree with us, to say this is the line we want to take in terms of creating a South Africa which is free from crime. I am inviting the fellows from the Western Cape, in particular Mr Wiley, to join us in that particular march. [Interjections.] Whilst the prophets of doom continue with their chorus of hopelessness about the inability of Government to bring the levels of crime down in this country, our Government and our people are firm and unflinching in their resolve to combat crime.
Allow me to highlight some critical initiatives that the provincial government of the Free State is unleashing to maximise the capacity of the South African Police Service in combating crime in the province, through a provincial policing plan which is in line with the national plan. This plan entails the following critical action areas. The first is combating organised crime. The second is combating crime against women and children. Thirdly, the aim is to combat serious violent crimes. In the fourth place, the aim is to combat provincial priority crimes. In the fifth place, the aim is to enhance budget and resource management. Other aims are enhancing human resource management, enhancing basic service delivery to all communities, and enhancing transformation.
Having enumerated these programme areas, allow me to join the MEC from Gauteng to once again challenge the Western Cape delegate to tell us what it is that he is doing to combat taxi violence that is rife in the Western Cape. [Interjections.] What is it that he and his government are doing to ensure that there is no crime in Gugulethu and Nyanga, and that there is no crime in the entire Western Cape? [Interjections.] We want to benefit from that.
Whilst energy and resources continue to be harnessed against crime, the problem of the colour line remains an issue to be resolved by this country, particularly in the police service. This relates to the mind-sets and attitudes within the police service, the composition of the management structure, and their common commitment and loyalty to the country's ideal of a nonracial, transparent and efficient police service.
Whilst we appreciate the difficulties underpinning the transformation process in the police service, it should, however, be noted that the implementation of affirmative action is taking place at a very slow pace and this matter must receive attention. I would like to refer the Minister to a case at Bloemspruit Police Station next to Bloemfontein, where a junior black official arrested a senior white official for corruption, and this official was simply released on the directive of an area commissioner who happened to be white. I am not playing cheap politics here, I am relating a fact. [Interjections.] I am saying ... [Time expired.] [Applause.] [Interjections.]