BuaNews (Tshwane)
12 November 2009
Cape Town — President Jacob Zuma has reiterated that at no point in time did he give police officers the right to shoot suspects in situations other than those stipulated by law.
"...at no point in my address to the Station Commissioners did I give police licence to shoot suspects in circumstances other than those provided for by law," Zuma said during his response to questions raised by political parties in the National Assembly on Thursday.
He said it was worth reiterating what he told the station commissioners at their meeting in September.
He said at the time: "As you are aware, we seek to strengthen the hand of the police in dealing with violent criminals.
"We intend to finalise amendments to Section 49 of the Criminal Procedure Act, with a view to taking the amendments to Parliament soon.
"This is a measure aimed specifically at dealing with serious violent crime and dangerous criminals. It is the duty of the police to protect all people against injury or loss of life.
"But when their lives or the lives of innocent civilians are threatened, police sometimes have no choice but to use lethal force to defend themselves and others...
"We expect our police officers to observe the law and respect the rights of innocent citizens, at all times," the President said at the time.
The Criminal Procedure Act deals with the use of force in effecting arrest.
President Zuma said where the law still exhibits gaps that negatively impact on the ability of the police to perform their work effectively, then such gaps in the law must be addressed without delay.
This would include the use of deadly force as provided for and defined in the country's legislation.
He said the Minister of Police had already said that technical amendments to Section 49 would take cognisance of the founding principles of the Constitution.
"The exact detail of the wording of this amendment is being finalised and still has to be submitted to Cabinet for ratification," Zuma said.
He further said police recruits undertake general training, part of which includes equipping them with the skills and knowledge required for them to use deadly force under the circumstances stipulated by law, however he added that the training needed to be improved.
Therefore the proposed amendments that seek to provide more clarity, need to be complemented by training of all police officers on the relevant sections of the legislation, he said.
Section 49 of the Criminal Procedure Act, 1977, refers to "an arrestor", who can be any person who is authorised in terms of the Act to effect an arrest, including a citizen's arrest.
"In light of the work still being undertaken, it's not possible to say what effect the proposed amendment would have, if any, on this provision."
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Police in the US are not trained in how to shoot effectively in close quarters life threat situations. That's a fact, and supported by a mis rate of more than 80% in gunfights.
No doubt that or similar conditions exist in SA.
With an emphasis on training on how to shoot in real life threat situations, plus an emphasis on the responsibilities that go with the job of a peace officer, would do much to make new legislation moot. (See http://www.pointshooting.com/iwin.htm for an article on How 2 Shoot 2 Kill More effectively)
It probably is a money savings ploy.
Giving anyone the authority to act without responsibility, seems to be a bit irresponsible.
Congratulations to Commandant Bheki Cele. That is the right step and action to the right directions. You must enforce law and order with out any fear for Human Rights whatsover. If those in the human rights arena want to bark, they should first tell the criminals,burglars, and armed robbers to desist from attacking peaceful citizens. As the saying goes, "A strong illness needs a powerful cure"
Bheki Cele comes across as an ignorant and incompetent thug, a criminal with power! South African society needs to be healed from the generations of destruction caused by the racist and criminal invaders still occupying African space.
Until fundamental land, economic and social problems are solved favorably for African people, the more police violence will ONLY INCREASE VIOLENCE in South Africa!
South Africa needs LESS VIOLENCE not more violence, from police thugs or from criminals!
All law-abiding citizens in SA would welcome a more efficient police force and a drastic reduction in crime. But Cele is saying irresponsible things here. First get the police force trained and modernized before creating the impression that policemen can shoot left right and centre. If Cele feels strongly about the low value of life, then rather bring back the death penalty and let a proper court decide when a life can be taken away. As things stand now, even if the police manages to arrest a perpetrator, things seem to go very wrong after that. Very few criminals actually get arrested, the judicial system is not streamlined enough and if the criminal eventually gets a jail sentence, he is stuffed into an overcrowded jail where there seems to be very little chance of rehabilitation. This whole thing is much more complex to solve than simply giving a "shoot to kill" instruction. Cele is making the police more vulnerable which will add to their already high levels of stress. Above all, SA cannot afford to become synonymous with a jungle environment.
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Active Discussions: 'Shoot-to-Kill Row