Mr Chair, it is very encouraging to note that, in approving this Bill, we are united across political lines in our desire to improve the tools that the police have to detect crime. Given the appalling detection rates such as a mere 15% for property-related crime, they can certainly use all the help they can get.
By providing the extension and enhancement of police databases of prints and photographic images, and for the compulsory taking of these in certain cases, this Bill will ensure that police have access to the biggest possible base for comparative purposes.
By enabling the police to have access to the fingerprints of 31 million citizens and 2,5 million of foreigners, which are retained by the Department of Home Affairs, as well as the 6 million thumbprints in possession of the Department of Transport, the ability to improve the detection rates of all crimes will be substantially increased. This, of course, is based on an assumption that the fingerprint evidence was correctly collected in the first place. However, as this is a definite step in the right direction, let us be positive today and not go down that road.
Whenever police have access to personal information, there is always the very real fear that the potential for abuse exists. The portfolio committee has been very mindful of this fear and we have imposed strict mechanisms for the retention, storage and control of these prints and images.
Firstly, the obligation is imposed on the national commissioner to take all reasonable steps to secure the integrity of the database. In addition, he and the committee of the directors-general of the Departments of Home Affairs, Transport and Correctional Services must, within six months of the commencement of this section, ensure that standard operating procedures regarding access to the databases of the respective departments and implementation of safety measures are developed. This is a very serious obligation, which we believe the commissioner will treat as such.
In addition, the seriousness with which the committee regards any abuse of prints or images stored in any of the databases is reflected in the fact that the penalty we have imposed for any contravention of this legislation, is a maximum of 15 years imprisonment without the option of a fine.
We trust that this will serve as a sufficient deterrent to prevent people from testing just how long the period of imprisonment will be if a court were to take into account the seriousness of our intention in this matter.
The retention of prints on the police database is also strictly regulated so that people who have not been convicted of a crime will not have their details retained on a criminal database. The prints of adults who are convicted of a crime will be retained indefinitely. Children who are convicted will have their prints retained indefinitely, but subject to the provisions relating to the erasure provided for in the Child Justice Act.
With the assistance of the Justice Department's legal advisors, we believe that this Bill is fully in line with the provisions of the Child Justice Act, and that children's rights are adequately protected. In the event that people are found not guilty, their convictions are set aside, or there is a failure to prosecute for any reason, the police are obliged to destroy the prints within 30 days after the officer commanding the division responsible for criminal records has been notified thereof.
An important new development in this Bill, as my colleague the hon Kohler Barnard has referred to, is that the comparison of prints may now also be used for the identification of missing persons and unidentified human remains. This can be an extremely valuable tool in a number of respects. Firstly, by being able to take the fingerprints of people who have lost their memory and comparing them with such a huge database, the police should be able to quickly reunite them with their families.
Secondly, being in a position to quickly identify bodies has two important advantages. If bodies can be identified more quickly, the chances that the perpetrator, in the case of criminal activity, will be more easily and quickly apprehended are significantly increased.
The inability to identify bodies can also have serious implications for the families of the deceased, as they cannot be declared dead. This then means that benefits payable to families, such as insurance policies, cannot be paid out, and estates cannot be wound up. Making it easier for the police to identify these bodies, therefore not only assists in solving possible crimes, but also has very real, practical benefits for the family members.
It is unlikely that we will see an immediate surge in the detection rates as this will be phased in, as my colleague has said. However, if we do not start somewhere, we will never get anywhere. The DA, therefore, is happy today to support this Bill. Thank you.