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11 March 2005
Western Cape police have turned the corner on violent crime, such as murder
The article in the Cape Times by reporter Babalo Ndenze ('Western Cape murder rate grows over 10-year period', February 22) makes for interesting reading for those of your readers who are familiar with the process of the compilation of crime statistics.
It quotes researchers from the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) as saying that the murder rate in the Western Cape has steadily been increasing for the last 10 years since the advent of democracy.
Amnesty Claims Outdated, Say Experts
Amnesty International owes the country an explanation after claiming that South African companies are dumping vast quantities of illegal weapons in African conflict zones, says Institute for Security Studies (ISS) researcher Ben Coetzee.
09 March 2005
South Africa: 'Arrests Worsen Prison Crowding'
The arrest of more than 11000 people in Gauteng's two policing regions in a crackdown last month would worsen overcrowding in prisons as courts take longer to process cases, a crime researcher said at the weekend...
...'Although no one can blame police for doing their job, no consideration is taken on where these offenders will be housed,' Institute for Security Studies senior researcher Makubetse Sekhonyane said.
Why South Africa does not criticise Mugabe
South Africa is seen as the key international player in efforts to find a way out of Zimbabwe's political impasse, but in the run-up to parliamentary elections it is coming under increased pressure from all sides...
...But Chris Maroleng, from South Africa's Institute of Security Studies, says that is too simplistic, because the ANC and Zanu-PF were never allies during the struggle against colonialism; each backed rival parties in the other country.
08 March 2005
ISS Again Nominated as Top 300 National Company
As the leading business and investment annual publication, now entering its fifth highly successful year, the National Edition forms a comprehensive and indispensable record of South African business and industry. This leading business-to-business publication has been sponsored and distributed nationally and internationally by the Department of Trade anc Industry, through its offices in 42 countries around the world.
The Institute's nomination follows extensive research by Top 300 Companies into over 9 000 of South Africa's leading organisations in both the private and public sectors, including listed and unlisted companies, municipalities, government departments, institutions, agencies and other bodies, spread across 150 economic sectors.
Nominations of the country's Top 300 National Companies are made according to a set of strict entry criteria, formulated in consultation with respected and credible business organisations and academic institutions. While all nominated organisations are required to meet a basic entry criterion of over R50-million annual turnover, a wide range of other criteria are also taken into account, including growth, transformation, employment equity, corporate social investment, quality of products or services, as well as achievements within its field, ensuring that the nominated organisations are the top performers within each particuar business sector.
07 March 2005
Move will diminish Scorpions
Eight civil society bodies urged President Thabo Mbeki and the cabinet on Sunday not to let the directorate of special operations (DSO), commonly known as the Scorpions, to fall under the police's control...
...The civil society group consists of, among others, the SA NGO Coalition, the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation, the Institute for Democracy in SA, the Institute for Security Studies and the Open Democracy Advice Centre.
Boom Gates Don't Keep You Safe From Crime
Fearing crime, many families have turned their homes into bastions - but boomed roads and walled-off suburbs don't necessarily curb crime, a symposium heard this week...
...Boyane Tshehla, a senior researcher with the Institute for Security Studies, told The Sunday Independent that it was 'criminologically suspect' whether or not booms and closed suburbs reduced crime.
FF+ names its Zim observer
Cape Town - The Freedom Front Plus has named Gauteng member of parliament and labour spokesperson Willie Spies to act as an observer on behalf of the South African parliament during the elections in Zimbabwe...
...Spies referred to a report quoting Dallaire as saying at a conference hosted by the South African Institute for Security Studies in Pretoria, that the lack of international political will to intervene was the main reason for the catastrophic events 11 years ago.
Mbeki's Mediation Plans Under Strain in Cote d'Ivoire
In their complex and protracted mediation efforts in Africa, South African negotiators have long since learned not to believe everything they read on the news pages. But they dare not ignore the finance pages...
...Richard Cornwell of the Institute for Security Studies said the latest incursions appear to have been launched by militiamen backed by the government of Laurent Gbagbo.
Things Are Looking Greatly Better in Darfur !
"Things are looking greatly better in Darfur" - African Union Chair and Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, following discussion of the crisis with National Islamic Front President Omer Beshir, February 16, 2005...
...Darfur, Dallaire argued at the Institute for Security Studies in Pretoria, is a 'perfect example' of a 'lack of political will to prevent crises developing.' This lack of 'political will' characterizes both governments and nongovernmental organizations, as well as the UN; and the refusal to speak months ago about the basic truths defining the security crisis in Darfur has done much to lead to the current catastrophe. Dallaire's assessment of the AU mandate should have been clear to all in October 2004:
SADC to Have Intelligence Unit
The regional early warning system - an intelligence information gathering unit - is to be established this year at the SADC secretariat. SADC executive secretary, Dr Prega Ramsamy said on Wednesday that he has been given the green light to start the unit.
A researcher with the South African based Institute for Security Studies, Gina van Schalkwyk said recently that countries are likely to starve the unit of information and only give what they want the unit to know.
South Africa: Firearms Pour in Ahead of Amnesty Deadline
As the end of the government's amnesty on illegal firearms draws near, guns and ammunition have been pouring into police stations across the country...
...According to a report for the Institute for Security Studies's Crime Quarterly, written by Sarah Meek and Noel Stott, when guns reported stolen are calculated as a ratio of those legally owned, South Africa has a theft ratio of 1:150. This means that for every 150 licensed firearms, one is stolen.
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