Chairperson, Sheila referred to those red things in your hair, and I just want to say they make you look very attractive and beautiful, and I hope this doesn't make me guilty of sexual harassment. [Laughter.]
The chairperson of the portfolio committee and Sheila, to some extent, have highlighted details of the Bill, and I therefore do not want to repeat what they have said. I only wish to deal with the Bill briefly and make some general comments.
With the introduction of this Bill, we've come to the end of a very long and difficult journey. No one worked harder during the past few years than the chairperson of the portfolio committee, who made an excellent speech today. We wish to thank you for that and also the staff who worked so hard, and even Johnny de Lange for a long period - thank you very much.
This Bill for the first time provides South Africa with a single comprehensive piece of legislation dealing with sexual offences. This is a great and historic event in the life of our criminal justice system. The point is that for decades a very large gap existed in our criminal law dealing with offences of a sexual nature. This lacuna meant for instance that the criminal offence of rape only applied to the rape of a woman by a man. This has caused considerable misery, especially where men have been raped by other men. Before today, this was not rape. Now it is, thanks to this Bill. The Bill finally closes the gap by expanding the definition of rape to include all forms of sexual penetration without consent, irrespective of gender.
We are especially grateful for the creation of the national register for sex offenders, which will fill another gap in our law, and this will hopefully in practice result in more protection for children against abuse.
In conclusion, I want to highlight one of the portfolio committee's main recommendations on the implementation of the Bill, namely that the department should launch a project that is aimed at the promotion and facilitation of training on the legislation and its implications. The department has to submit a detailed proposal on such a project to the committee, after consultation with all the relevant stakeholders. This is, in our opinion, a vital recommendation. All too often this House passes legislation that looks very good on paper, but sometimes these laws are almost unimplementable or are so difficult to implement and to understand that their objectives are never realised or are only partially realised.
The IFP supports the recommendation and calls on the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development to present its proposals to Parliament as soon as possible. The IFP supports the Bill.