NCJ Number
144662
Journal
Criminology Australia Volume: 4 Issue: 4 Dated: (April/May 1993) Pages: 2-8
Date Published
1993
Length
7 pages
Annotation
The author discusses the causes and main areas of violence in South Africa, the administration of justice, policing, and the activities of the Commonwealth Observer Mission (COMSA).
Abstract
Violence in South Africa is deeply rooted in the apartheid system, and it has worsened since reforms were initiated by President deKlerk in 1990, because of uncertainty about the future, rampant unemployment among blacks. Organized crime, political rivalry, and electioneering have fed on the underlying discontent. State- sponsored violence continues to be a significant problem. The role of COMSA is to collaborate with the United Nations and other international and national organizations to facilitate peace, under the 1991 National Peace Accord. COMSA's activities have focused on the two most violent regions of South Africa: the Pretoria-Witwatersrand-Vaal area and Natal. The South African Police Force is small 85,000 plus 11,000 assistants considering the size of the country's population. Transformation of the force from a military model to a service model will at best take a long time, and it will not happen at all without sufficient international pressure. 4 photographs