Submissions — The Embrace Project

Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act Amendment Bill

THE BELOW LETTER WAS SUBMITTED TO THE PRESIDENT, MINISTER OF JUSTICE AND CORRECTIONAL SERVICES AND THE PARLIAMENTARY PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON JUSTICE AND CORRECTIONAL SERVICES ON 22 OCTOBER 2021.

Criminal and Related Matters Amendment Bill

SUBMITTED TO THE PARLIAMENTARY PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON JUSTICE AND CORRECTIONAL SERVICES ON 9 OCTOBER 2020.

The purpose of the Amendment Bill is to provide for intermediaries who assist vulnerable persons to testify in criminal proceedings; to allow for the giving of evidence remotely, over audiovisual link, in civil proceedings; to extend considerations required prior to the granting of bail, as well as extend provisions triggering the cancellation of bail granted; to extend the categories of convictions which require that a victim be informed when parole is being considered for the convicted accused, and to allow the victim to make representations in respect of the parole consideration; and to increase minimum sentences for sexual offences.

We have recommended that the judiciary undergo compulsory sensitisation training in order to properly understand the nature of sexual offences (especially) and to hand down appropriate sentences; that the laws of evidence applicable to victims of sexual violence be reformed; that correctional services facilities be overhauled as they release more violent members of society back into society; and, most importantly, that the minimum sentence for rape, compelled rape and sexual exploitation be increased to life imprisonment and not a minimum of between 15 and 25 years imprisonment as the Amendment Bill currently has it.

The Domestic Violence Amendment Bill

SUBMITTED TO THE PARLIAMENTARY PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON JUSTICE AND CORRECTIONAL SERVICES ON 9 OCTOBER 2020.

The Domestic Violence Amendment Bill aims to increase the ambit of the Domestic Violence Act by recognising additional forms of domestic violence (and additional protections needed therefor); by recognising the culture of silence around violence; as well as recognising the role of technology in both assisting in the protection of victims and the perpetration of violence. Protection orders may be applied for online and electronic communications service providers and hosts may be ordered to disable a respondent's access to communication.

The primary recommendation that The Embrace Project makes to the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Justice and Correctional Services is the need to provide for sensitisation training for the institutions identified in the Amendment Bill in order to effectively implement the provisions.

Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act Amendment Bill

SUBMITTED TO THE PARLIAMENTARY PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON JUSTICE AND CORRECTIONAL SERVICES ON 9 OCTOBER 2020.

The Amendment Bill has added a new sexual offence called "sexual intimidation", expanded on incest, as well as on the categories of vulnerable persons identified in the original Act. It has also included a few more provisions on the National Register of Sex Offenders, but failed to make the Register public, even though in the memorandum to the Amendment Bill it states that one of the objectives of the Amendment Bill is to make the Register public.

We have recommended that certain particulars of sex offenders on the Register be made publically available on the Department of Justice and Correctional Services' website. We have also recommended that "consent" be defined in the Act and that the Act recognise "coercive circumstances" in which consent can never be considered to be voluntarily given. We have also recommended the criminalisation of the viewing (and not just possession, production and supply) of child pornography and pornography involving the mentally disabled. We have recommended the expansion of vulnerable persons to include migrants, refugees, asylum seekers and sex workers. We recommended the decriminalisation, or legalisation, of the sale of sex with the purchase of sex to remain criminalised. We also recommended that the offence of sexual exploitation be extended to vulnerable groups such as migrants, refugees and asylum seekers. We have also recommended that the legislature consider the inclusion of preventative measures for the commission of sexual offences in legislation, and not just punitive measures. The Act already provides for sensitisation training and the monitoring of law enforcement agencies - none of which have been effectively implemented as secondary victimisation is still perpetuated by the criminal justice system.