Sexual Offences Act: NPA has neglected its duties
Evidence has emerged that shows that the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) has been aware of flaws in legislation regarding sexual offences as early as 2010.
The flaws in the legislation were highlighted in a recent ruling in the Western Cape High Court which held that 29 sexual offences provided for in the Sexual Offences Act may not constitute offences because of a lack of specific penalty guidelines.
The Eastern Cape Herald has reported that advocate Pieter Botha had raised this issue with the NPA in not one, but two cases in 2010. In the first case, the NPA reportedly responded by withdrawing the case. In the second, in the Mossel Bay Regional Court, the magistrate agreed with him. It is the Mossel Bay matter that was appealed against, and which led to last Friday's judgment.
This shows either gross incompetence or wilful obstruction of action against sexual offenders. Convictions since the passing of the Act in 2008 are already possibly in jeopardy, but if the NPA had acted to remedy the potential defect as soon as it came to their attention, two years of uncertain convictions could have been avoided. This amounts to an unforgivable dereliction of duty.
Last year, when we discovered at a parliamentary briefing on the NPA's Annual Report that the NPA was failing to keep statistics on sexual offences, I stated that the National Director of Public Prosecutions, Adv. Menzi Simelane, was not serious about sexual offences. This latest revelation shows that it does not appear that many in the NPA are.
I will be asking questions about who the prosecutors were in these two cases, whether they informed their superiors, and if so, why this issue was not brought to Parliament to be rectified.
In the meantime, the NPA has said that they will urgently take this matter on appeal, and we trust that they will take all measures possible to expedite the hearing of this matter.
We await a report from the state law advisers this week in our portfolio committee as to what amendments need to be made to the Act to rectify this untenable situation. The DA is of the view that amendments must be passed as a matter of urgency to specify penalty guidelines for these offences.
Every day that uncertainty remains allows sexual offenders to continue with their nefarious activities without fear of retribution, contributes to the vulnerability of victims and places victims in a more vulnerable position than they already are.
Statement issued by Debbie Schafer MP, DA Shadow Deputy Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, May 20 2012
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