Justice and constitutional development minister Jeff Radebe announced, on Tuesday, last week, that specialist sexual offences courts are to be reinstated in South Africa to address crimes against women and children.
Incidents of rape and sexual assault led to this country having the highest figures in the world in terms of this crimes.
Radebe said a total of 57 courts will be established over the next three years, and that 22 of these courts will be running by the end of this year.
A ministerial task team that investigated the matter advised that sexual offences courts be re-established.
It has also recommended specific infrastructure to be installed in these courts, including:
• A two-way closed-circuit television system (CCTV) to enable a child to identify the accused from the testifying room, when required to do so.
• A separate monitor for the presiding officer to ensure increased visibility of the image and control of the system.
• A large-screen monitor for the other members of the court, as prescribed by the national guidelines for CCTV and related court equipment.
• A monitor in the testifying room to allow the victim to identify the accused, when required to do so.
iThemba Rape and Support Centre is very excited about the developments.
“We wholeheartedly support and applaud Justice Minister Jeff Radebe for taking action as the statistics of sexual offences in South Africa is horrific and one of the highest in the world,” said Natasha Zaayman, manager of the iThemba Rape and Trauma Support Centre.
Zaayman said when they look at the effectiveness of the courts that were put in place with the World Cup, they hope that these Sexual Offences Courts will be handled in the same manner, as it will give hope to the victims and survivors of these crimes that their cases will be dealt with fast and effectively.
“The lead time from when the offence is reported until an arrest or conviction is shocking and often the reason why many of these cases fall by the wayside,” she said.
iThemba truly hopes that the implementation of these courts will be effective and fast, as South Africa is in dire need of help and needs urgent attention.
Sharing the excitement is the Sexual Assault Clinic, which specialises in children’s cases.
“It’s high time the courts come back, as children suffered and were intimidated when testifying, and the two-way closed-circuit television system (CCTV) will enable a child to identify the accused from the testifying room,” said forensic nurse and co-founder of the Sexual Assault Clinic, Christa Rollin.
Rollin said the normal courts took too long to solve cases, as there were also other crimes cases on the court roll.
“With these courts the process is going to run smoothly, as people handling the cases will also be specialists in their fields and the victims will have a lot of support surrounding them,” said Rollin.
In the normal court processes, she added, children could not receive proper therapy soon, as it would influence the case.
