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Crime with Rural Communities, Challenges and Policing
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Speeches and Media Releases
 Safety Liaison and Transport

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 EASTERN CAPE PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT

SPEECH BY MEC FOR SAFETY, LIAISON AND TRANSPORT TO THE NCOP

ON  CRIME WITH RURAL COMMUNITIES, CHALLENGES AND POLICING

ON  8 JUNE 2000



The central aim of transformation is to improve the conditions and services of people, especially the poor.  Far decades the apartheid 
government deliberately neglected to ensuring effective  policing and the safety of the majority of its citizens especially rural 
communities.

According to the 1996 Census 63,4 % of the total population of the Eastern Cape live in rural areas.

Crimes that are prevalent in the rural areas are stocktheft, witchcraft and sporadic incidents of rape and murder.  It must also be 
mentioned in some cases stocktheft leads to faction fight which often results in revenge killings.

The location and staffing of police stations is a major problem when one considers the numerous villages and localities that fall under the 
control of the police.  The geographic situation in some cases make police stations inaccessible to the people they are suppose to serve as 
ten kilometers in an urban area cannot be compared to ten kilometers in a rural area.

There has also been no effective and deliberate strategy by the police to redistribute resources (both human and material) to make policing 
in the rural areas a practical reality.

Due to the above communities in rural areas to develop a strategy to do self policing in conjunction with traditional leaders of respective 
areas.  Some of these strategies are not always in line with the spirit of the constitution.

The lack of an integral approach by the role players that make up a rural community e.g. also in some cases is a contributing factor that 
cause divisions and violent attitudes to each other.  Poverty and unemployment should not be seen in isolation to the safety and security 
of the citizenry of the rural community.

The elections of 1994 brought about the beginning of institutional reform of policing organs.

Key strategies of the new government to ensure a legitimate and accountable police service was the legislative establishment of community 
police forums at each police station and the National Crime Prevention Strategy which aimed to address crime in an integrated fashion.

Despite the establishment of CPF’s in rural areas, access to these meetings for communities have been problematic due to the lack of 
transparent and other logistical issue like telephones and faxes etc.  However CPFs have improved the quality of policing in rural areas as 
the Provincial winner of the Samba Bank competition was Mount Fletcher which is a rural police station.

The biggest challenge for safety and security in relation to the rural communities is to have sustainable programmes that seeks the 
involvement of all departments with local government taking a lead role.

MUNICIPAL POLICING

This province has not done much work in this field.  The Umtata TLC had made an application to the MEC for Safety and Liaison to establish 
a municipal police.  Our offices have requested the Umtata TLC to do a presentation to the Provincial Commissioner and the MEC on the 
viability in relation to financial costs to sustain a municipal police and further how do they see it functioning.

ROLE OF COUNCILLORS AND PUBLIC REPRESENTATIVE

Chapter 11 section 199(8) and 208 lay basis for civilian oversight of the police.Chapter 7 of the police act of 1995 further refers to the 
establishment of community police forums and functions in relation to monitoring of the police service by public representatives and 
councillors through participation of these structures.

South Africa has since 1994 has opted for a community driven approach to government.  In other words government would embody community 
participation and therefore put a greater responsibility on both the electorate and their representatives.

The participation of councillors and public representatives on CPFs would ensure that ordinary people participate in developing policies 
that will affect their day to day lives with regard to improved policing.

Through constituency offices and report backs at community meetings, public representatives and councillors can keep people informed and 
ensure effective participation by members of their constituencies.

It must be emphasised that participation or community police structures by public representatives and particularly councillors will enhance 
the partnerships between the police and local government as outlined in the white paper on Safety and Security and further expedite the 
transformation process of the SAPS.

According to the Provincial Commissioner’s office of the 197 police stations in the Eastern Cape, 163 are situated in the rural areas.  Of 
the 10442 police members (only police members at station level) 5604 are placed in rural areas.

DENNIS NEER

MEC - SAFETY LIAISON & TRANSPORT : EASTERN CAPE

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