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14 July 2006
ISS Today: Banks Flout the Law on Cyber Crime – Lawyer
South African banking institutions are flouting the national law on cyber crime (the Electronic Communication Transaction (ECT) Act) by refusing to assume liability for money stolen off their client�s Internet bank accounts, a lawyer and information technology (IT) expert has said. The banks argue that this is a complex matter in which investigations have to be initially conducted to establish where the security breach had taken place, either from the bank�s side or the client�s side. The banks suggest that they employ the best security measures available endorsed by international standards and ultimately the onus is on clients to ensure the safety of their Internet banking details.
Zimbabwe's Mugabe Said to Seek SADC Endorsement of Mkapa Mediation Role
Interview with Chris Maroleng
Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe is expected to ask the Southern African Development Community to endorse his nomination of Tanzanian ex-president Benjamin Mkapa as mediator in proposed discussions with Britain.
Gauteng police - new strategy declares war on criminals
... Also saying the new strategy sounded promising, Antoinette Louw of the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) said it would be good for people to see there was, in fact, a plan in place for Gauteng, considering the amount of crime the province had endured.
ISS questions decision to split Scorpion branches
It is impossible to split the law enforcement division from the prosecutorial arm of the Directorate of Special Operations (DSO) or the Scorpions. This is the view of researchers at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS).
13 July 2006
ISS Today: The Political Reform Process in Egypt
There is a tenuous link between (apparent) human rights records and levels of democracy (1). In the aftermath of 9/11 it can be argued that countries such as the United States and Britain are becoming less democratic. Countries in the Middle East and Northern Africa, some of which have questionable human rights records, are increasingly at pains to present as becoming more democratic.
New Gauteng crime plan holds promise
... Antoinette Louw, senior research fellow of the crime and justice programme at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS), told the Mail & Guardian Online on Wednesday that the new plan is a 'good thing and a positive step'.
12 July 2006
ISS Today: Behind the Shootout (UN Review Conference on the UNPoA)
The illegal automatic firearms wielded by criminals in Sunday's Jeppestown, Johannesburg, shootout have thrown a frightening spotlight on the hundreds of thousands of illegal weapons in circulation in South Africa... After the shootout following a robbery at a Pick 'n Pay outlet, which left four policemen and eight suspected robbers dead, police found a cache of 13 weapons in the house where the shootout took place. Many were automatic... Recent high-profile violent crimes, including the airport heist in March and the apparent assassination of a police reservist in Johannesburg last week, have also involved AK-47s and other automatic weapons.
'Gate Crusader' Highlights Issue of Property Crime
... Although booms appear effective deterrents against opportunistic, petty criminals, the Institute for Security Studies' (ISS) Boyane Tshehla, notes that there is little evidence to suggest they deter more organised, serious felons.
ISS Programme Highlights: 12 July
Staff members of the Arms Management Programme travelled to the New York for the final week of the Review Conference on small arms and light weapons. The programme also co-hosted a panel discussion in Johannesburg on the Review Conference with the United Nations Information Centre and the Ceasefire Campaign.
The African Security Analysis Programme hosted and briefed colleagues from the ICPAT programme (ISS office in Addis Ababa), as well as Capt Denis Fabre and Col Arnaud Rives from the French Directorate of Security Affairs. Other activities included meeting Prof Korwa Adar to discuss civilian protection, briefing Dr Hennie Cronje and Prof Andre de Villiers from the Africa Leadership Development Institute regarding Southern Sudan and the current conflict in Darfur, and attending election observer training with the Department of Foreign Affairs in preparation for the monitoring of the forthcoming DRC elections. A British military training team will visit the programme this week and the programme will host a seminar on peace in Sudan and present a lecture at the SANDF legal seminar on peacekeeping.
The Crime and Justice Progamme is continuing with the logistical arrangements for the ICC symposium in August and will meet with Chris Stone, former director of the Vera Institute in the US, who is in South Africa with a team of international development experts working with Treasury on issues of economic growth. Staff will be meeting Director Schutte and Director Venter from the SAPS Provincial Commissioner’s office for the ACCU project. The Programme will also host a seminar on the Khampepe Commission report on the location of the Scorpions on 13 July at the ISS Pretoria office.
The Defence Sector Programme hosted David Chuter and a French military delegation, which included Col Arnaud Rives, Director of Strategic Affairs and Head of the African Affairs Bureau in the Ministry of Defence. The programme received a visit from South Africa Defence Intelligence seeking an understanding of what research is done on terrorism in the NGO sector and will visit Addis Ababa for the joint ISS/CPRD workshop on Security Sector Reform in the Horn of Africa.
The Southern African Human Security Programme is preparing for a conference, in conjunction with the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, on civil society and governance in Southern Africa.
The Training for Peace Programme continued to provide technical support to IGAD for the IGAD, AU and International Partners Assessment and Reconnaissance Mission to Somalia (4-9 July). The mission was successfully completed, but the fears of the assessment came true when violence resumed between the Islamic Courts and a warlord in Mogadishu on the last day of the mission’s visit to Puntland.
Members of the Cape Town office met with Christina Nomdo to discuss ideas on developing a tool kit and on training South African NGO’s to monitor service delivery. The programme is also currently pursuing research to undertake a study comparing the laws of Tanzania with provisions of the SADC Protocol. In the meanwhile the programme has agreed to undertake the South Africa part of the Corruption & HIV/Aids project, and trying to arrange a meeting in Botswana with the SADC Secretariat.
The Nairobi office will attend the launch of the Kenya National Action Plan as well as one-day seminar prior to the launch on 13 July. The programme will also host a meeting between the ICPAT programme and the National Counter-Terrorism Centre in Kenya, and will in the same week visit the EAPCCO and Lusaka Agreement Task Force.
11 July 2006
South Africa: Stony Silence
... Peter Gastrow from the Institute for Security Studies said a "fundamental reassessment" needed to be done of the police's public relations skills.
ISS Today: Timing of German Arms Deal Bribes Revelation Queried
Fresh allegations of underhand dealings in the controversial multi-billion (US) dollar South African arms deal have gained momentum with revelations in the past weeks edition of German news magazine Der Spiegel that German authorities are in the possession of a letter naming a South African politician who allegedly received a R140 million (US$ 20 million) kickback in return for a lucrative ship building contract.
10 July 2006
ISS Today: Burundi: Ceasefire Negotiations Delayed to 13 July
Negotiations between the Burundian government and the remaining rebel group, the Forces nationals de liberation (FNL) have been postponed until 13 July after the parties failed to agree a permanent truce, mediators said.
Family grave reveals murder, police believe
... 'Triads', as they are also known, have been a factor of Chinese culture for the past two centuries and not all are criminal. According to a study of the phenomenon in South Africa, Triad Societies and Chinese Organised Crime in South Africa (2001), by Peter Gastrow of the Institute for Security Studies, organised criminal tong activity in South Africa arose in the mid-80s, with seven major tongs in operation by 2001.
Kids tell how adults use them in crime
Almost half (47 percent) the children awaiting trial in secure care facilities in the Western Cape and Gauteng are there because adults allegedly enlisted them in crime, a study report indicates. The Institute for Security Studies research, released this week, looked at how adults use children to commit crimes.
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