Implementation of the National Rural Safety Strategy 25 February 2015

INTRODUCTION NDP Chapter 12 of the NDP states that “Access to justice and the safety of rural and farming communities demand special attention…” It places significant emphasis on the importance of rural communities and makes several recommendations. Amongst others, that the National Rural Safety Plan of the SAPS should be implemented in its entirety. 2

NATIONAL RURAL SAFETY STRATEGY Comprehensive plan with two main goals: 1)Reduce insecurity in rural areas; and 2)Enhance accessibility to policing and service delivery to rural communities. Disbandment of the SANDF Commando structure left a significant gap in the previous Rural Protection Plan (RPP) as the Commando structure formed the cornerstone of the Plan. As rural safety had to be taken over by the SAPS, a new rural safety strategy had to be developed to define the new roles and responsibilities to be played by the police. In order to deal with the new responsibilities, the SAPS put in place the following five mechanisms to replace the SANDF Commando System: 1)The implementation of sector policing; 2)The utilisation of SAPS reservists based on a revised reservist system; 3)A substantial increase in SAPS personnel; 4)Restructuring of specialised investigation units; and 5)The establishment of Crime Combating units for Rural Safety. 3

RURAL POLICE STATIONS In April 2012, the SAPS concluded an accessibility analysis to determine the ideal number and also location of service points across the country. o The analysis found that, of the police stations country wide, the SAPS identified 473 rural police stations, 315 rural/urban mix stations and 403 urban police stations. o The Eastern Cape Province has the largest number of rural police stations (118), followed by the KwaZulu-Natal Province (107) and the Limpopo Province (79). During the 2012/13 financial year, the NRSS was said to be fully implemented in only 108 identified priority police stations across the country with sector policing based on the minimum criteria. No legal definition for rural areas 4

Sector Policing…1/2 The Rural Safety Strategy states that “Sector Policing, as the policing approach, will be pivotal to address rural safety…” Sector policing basically entails the division of a police station area into manageable geographic areas or sectors where police members are allocated to every sector on a dedicated basis in order to familiarise them with the sector and the residents and businesses in the area. Sector policing is especially crucial in a rural context, as sector police members are expected to mobilise and organise the rural communities in the sectors they serve. In 2011, the Portfolio Committee on Police raised serious concerns around the slow pace of implementation of sector policing and pointed out that in stations where it has been implemented, it was not implemented effectively. The Committee requested the SAPS to conduct an extensive review and ‘assessment of the success, problems and lessons learnt around the implementation of sector policing’. 5

Sector Policing…2/2 Based on the analysis, the following conclusions were made: A “one size fits all” sector policing approach cannot be adopted; Sector policing cannot be regarded as the only operational policing approach/tool and police stations should be given discretion to determine which policing approach is the most suitable; Police stations, especially in deep rural areas, cannot implement sector policing to the same standard as in urban areas; Sector policing is not a sustainable policing approach if its successes depend on large numbers of human and physical resources; and Sector policing should be used as a policing approach to encourage community mobilisation, interaction and building a culture of mutual cooperation and trust. Additionally: Discrepancies in the implementation of Sector Policing Resource intensive Performance target changed from full implementation to using the minimum criteria Reservists 6

Performance target for rural safety must be reinstated –Secretariat must monitor implementation Communication and early warning should be developed, but basic communication services not even available. Crime prevention training to be provided to farmers and farm workers jointly. Safety plans for farms should be developed. –Sector Commander. –No support to emerging farmers stated as challenge. Expand. Farm watch structures should be supported by local SAPS to alleviate burden of patrol of vast areas. Business support is needed, especially organised agriculture. The lack of rural development impacts negatively on service delivery: poor condition of roads, power grid, water, sanitation and telephone. Resource allocation must be done fairly. Often lacking in rural areas. 7 CHALLENGES & RECOMMENDATIONS

CONCLUSION The Committee should request the SAPS to provide a clear time-frame for the completion of the NRSS review to incorporate the recommendations of the NDP. It is important to note that the NDP recommends that the NRSS must be implemented in its entirety. The strategy is comprehensive, but it is not being implemented due to significant challenges faced by the SAPS, especially in terms of resources. The SAPS should also indicate the expected completion dates for the following proposed areas for improvement: –Alignment of the NRSS to exiting Government and SAPS Strategies. The SAPS should also indicate which existing strategies are being referred to; –The development of a rural accessibility model; –The development of a Rural Support Strategy; –Rural safety definition and classification of police stations; and –The review of the SAPS Rural Safety Strategy. 8

Nicolette van Zyl-Gous Researcher: PC on Police Thank you