ArticlesMediaCorrectional ServicesSex Behind the Bars'He may be fucking his cellmate every night' but if you ask him: 'Have you had a homosexual experience in prison?' he will truthfully, as far as he is concerned answer, NO'. This is a warning that Stephen Donaldson, a Stop Prison Rape activist, once gave researchers of prison sex. Sexual practices among male prisoners show that sex acts in… Read More CSVROctober 25, 2002
ArticlesMediaPolicingLethal Force Ruling Provides Greater Clarity, but Questions RemainAs might have been predicted there has been a high level of controversy around last week's Constitutional Court judgment, dealing with the use of lethal force in effecting arrest, in the case of s v Walter's. In the judgment the court struck down Section 49(2) of the Criminal Procedure Act, a legal provision created by the apartheid government to give… Read More CSVRMay 28, 2002
ArticlesMediaPolicingWhen Is It OK to Kill?Should there be any circumstances where a person is lawfully able to kill another human being? Killing to defend someone is clearly legally justified in South Africa. In 1995 in the case of S v Makwanyane, the Constitutional Court stated that the approach taken in law is to balance 'the rights of the aggressor against the rights of the victim,… Read More CSVRApril 17, 2002
ArticlesMediaRacismRacism in the SAPS Must Be Stamped OutOnce again Racism will receive unprecedented attention at the World Conference Against Racism in Durban later this month. This concerted effort of different countries to meet for the purpose of having such discussions is indicative of the fact that racism is a worldwide problem. For South Africa, the host country, it is important to examine how successful our own country… Read More CSVRAugust 10, 2001
ArticlesMediaGender-based ViolenceAn Uncomfortable, Unspeakable Truth"I don't know if you've seen Yizo Yizo?" asks Morris (not his real name), a recently released ex-prisoner who has spent close to three decades in South African prisons. He is explaining to us how inmates can tell which of the newcomers have been coerced into "Cape Town". "Cape Town" is a term used in prison lingo to refer to… Read More CSVRMay 25, 2001
ArticlesMediaCorrectional Services, Gender-based Violence, Violence PreventionBreaking the CycleThe BBC programme "Cage of Dreams" screened on Special Assignment on Tuesday 22 May 2001 illustrates the extent to which violence has become an institutional culture within prisons. The prison authorities have done little more than contain the levels of violence. More creative measures need to be introduced. Department of Correctional Services statistics indicate that 2980 assaults on prisoners, by… Read More CSVRMay 23, 2001
