Some of you may have already heard about the drama that unfolded at yesterday’s DNA Conference in Pretoria.  The Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee, Ms Sindi Chikunga, pulled out at the last minute and we were left ‘standing at the altar’ as to what she was going to say in respect of an update on the progress of the DNA Bill. The organisers of the conference had gone to great lengths to accommodate not only her request to present at the conference, but had shuffled the entire programme around, again to accommodate her request to hear certain relevant presentations pertaining to Forensic DNA.  Highly respected and renown representatives from 5 different continents were present, and to say that I was deeply embarrassed by the failure of the Chairperson to arrive, let alone provide a reason for her no-show, is an understatement. I was asked to stand up in her place to give an update of the DNA Bill from our perspective as well as the reason why we urgently need this Bill to be passed in South Africa and for those of you who were there, there was no sugar coating insofar as me communicating to the audience how infuriated I was that this had happened.  Whatever the reason for the sudden exit from the programme, I think that the least she could have done was to have asked someone to stand up in her place and provide an apology for her absence and make up, for all we care, some excuse as to why she could not be there. Her failure to have done this smacks of bad manners and comes across as arrogant and the audience took note of this too. Whilst there may well be a legitimate reason for her absence, this needed to be communicated, particularly in this forum, where all eyes where on her — those of  the public, the presenters, the Forensics Lab, the press and the many humanitarian organisations in attendance. I doubt that the lasting impression Ms Chikunga wanted was that she is simply above us and could not care about this DNA Bill (and for the record I personally believe she does care) — but the word out there following this omission, is  I’m afraid, otherwise.

Be that as it may, the Parliamentary Researcher was present at not only the DNA Workshop which preceded the DNA Conference this week, but at both days of the conference and has assured me that she has taken copious amounts of notes and will be conveying pertinent information back to the Portfolio Committee as to what has been presented. And that brings me to the second reason why I felt so upset yesterday — this Conference provided an incredible opportunity for not only the Chairperson but the entire Portfolio Committee (who were also invited but only one member arrived) to learn about the successful use of Forensic DNA throughout the world. The presenters were world class, from both overseas and South Africa, and each talk only went further to verify the incredible potential of this technology as a crime fighting tool, particularly in South Africa where crime is rampant. So much could have been learned and understood from simply listening to the various talks, and more still from the opportunity to ask questions, interface and integrate with these experts — but this opportunity has sadly been lost.

I refuse to be worn down by the apparent lack of political will to move on with this Bill, but I think it is time that the Portfolio Committee communicated their intentions insofar as:

1. when they intend to start reviewing phase 2 of the Bill;

2. When they intend to go on their tour overseas and whether this trip has been approved by Parliament, and if not why?

Members of Parliament are after all accountable to us, the citizens who voted them in there in the first place. And it’s all very well to stand up for something when they want our votes. But it is now, when it really counts, that their real mettle shows, and I hope that they have the transparency and integrity to give us feedback as suggested above. How difficult could that be? And I believe that a continued failure to be forthcoming in this regard, does not cast them in the best possible light. But that is their choice.

I will sign off on that note, and will report back on some of the fascinating talks presented yesterday and today, during the course of next week.

Have a good weekend.

Vanessa

I have just arrived in Pretoria at the venue where the 2nd Annual African DNA Forensics conference is being held tomorrow through to Friday. I have been invited to present at the Conference together with a variety of speakers ranging from International DNA Forensic Experts as well as local Forensic Scientists. See the following link for the final program: Programme 2nd Annual African DNA Forensics conference 28-29 October 2010

You will notice that at 10.am tomorrow morning, we expect to see a small delegation of Members of the Parliament of the Portfolio Committee on Police (who are reviewing the DNA Bill)  including the Chairperson of the Committee, Ms Sindi Chikunga. Ms Chikunga has requested to present a talk which she has entitled “An Update on the progress of the development of the “DNA Bill” in South Africa.”

So – not only are some members of the Portfolio Committee going to be attending the conference to further learn about the value of DNA in a criminal context, but we are going to learn, from the ‘horses mouth’ so to speak, exactly what their intentions are with regard to the progress of the 2nd phase of the Bill. This is one presentation I am not going to miss and I shall be back tomorrow, to report with interest, on what was said……

Until then,

Vanessa

It always amazes me how DNA and a DNA Database makes perfect sense to everyone else, expect the handful of people who can ACTUALLY make a difference! I attended a DNA workshop in Cape Town this last week, where leading International DNA Forensic Scientists gave lectures on the basics of Forensic DNA and how it is applied in a criminal context -  it was an expensive workshop but I was invited to attend at no cost due to our NGO status. The workshop organisers also offered to host the entire Portfolio Committee and Parliamentary Researcher responsible for reviewing the DNA Bill, FREE of charge to the DNA workshop so that they could all benefit from understanding the basic concepts of DNA, DNA Databases, the ethical considerations around a DNA Database and the importance of legislation to regulate this area. Only the Chairperson and two other members of parliament accepted the invitation, as well as the Parliamentary Researcher -  but… not even ONE of these 4 people bothered to pitch up.

Apart from the fact that this is simply bad manners, this illustrates that there appears to be absolutely no political will whatsoever to want to make a difference, and yet, do you think they will all clamber at the opportunity to go on the all ‘expenses paid’ overseas trip to the UK and Canada next year? Let’s wait and see. Meanwhile, a real opportunity to actually learn something of value has just passed by….

Vanessa

The following article appeared in the City Press on City Press on Sunday, 17 October 2010

By Fadela Slamdien, West Cape News

A machine able to match a suspect’s DNA with crime scene samples within four hours has been developed by UK and US-based scientists. The machine, developed by Andrew Hopwood from the Forensic Science Service in the UK and Frederic Zenhausern from the University of Arizona, is able to compare crime scene samples to cells harvested from the inside of a suspect’s cheek.However, this breakthrough technology may make little difference to the turnaround time for samples at South Africa’s two SAPS Forensics Science Laboratories, which currently is 60 days, according to Colonel Luhein Frazenberg from the SAPS Biology lab who last month presented at the Interpol DNA User’s Conference in France.

The microfluidic platform is inserted into the instrument for STR profiling of suspects in police custody.

Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa this week said South Africa’s forensic backlog has decreased by almost 20 percent, with the backlog in the biology unit under which DNA analysis falls, decreasing by 33 percent due to a re-evaluation of skills, equipment and human resources.

But Vanessa Lynch, executive director of the DNA project (an initiative which aims to be a “public voice” on the challenges facing DNA forensics in South Africa) said despite the very sophisticated forensics technology in existence, a number of obstacles prevented the successful and efficient prosecution of criminal cases and had a negative impact on the criminal justice system.

These included a shortage of qualified forensic specialists, lack of DNA awareness at the crime scene, and inadequate and outdated legislation.

She said part of the problem was that the first people to usually arrive at a crime scene were not qualified to collect DNA evidence and often contaminated or destroyed evidence.

“A crime scene investigator has only one chance to collect proper evidence at a crime scene, and this job is regularly thwarted by the destruction of a crime scene due to the negligence and /or ignorance of all or some of the public, emergency services, private security guards and first responding police officers, who arrive at the crime scene before the crime scene investigator,” said Lynch.

The absence of a formal training path in Forensic DNA Analysis was another impediment. There was previously no tertiary training in South Africa for forensic DNA analysts, she said. As a result the DNA Project has developed a postgraduate honours course in forensic DNA analysis which it now offers free of charge to all tertiary institutions willing to offer the course as part of their curriculum.

Karen Ehlers, lecturer in the department of Genetics at the University of the Free State, which launched the honours course at their university this year, said there was a need for training in the field and the SAPS training programme which trains BSc. graduates was not cost effective at R450 000 per person.

“This has an implication for training at the FSL (SAPS Forensic Science Lab), since all of these people have different training backgrounds. The SAPS have to spend a lot of time and money training the new personnel, only to lose some of them afterwards who realized that this is not the career for them. A degree in forensic genetics will ensure that people applying for posts as DNA forensic analysts will have a better understanding of a career in forensic genetics. SAPS will also have to spend less time training these DNA analysts,” she said.

But the most pressing issue for the DNA Project is the introduction of new legislation that would create a Convicted Offender Index on the DNA database in South Africa, allowing police to obtain the DNA profile from previously convicted offenders. The legislation would also allow police to collect DNA samples from all persons arrested for a suspected offense as well as prescribe that all evidence collected from a crime scene be processed for DNA profiling.

Internationally, the DNA profiles of convicted criminals are included in the country’s National DNA Databases. South Africa has about 123 000 profiles on its current database, whereas the US has about eight million and the UK about six million.

To address these and other challenges within forensic investigations, the government drafted the Criminal Law Amendment Bill (DNA Bill) in 2008 which is still under review. – Fadela Slamdien, West Cape News

http://westcapenews.com/?p=2326

The Change a Life Cycle documentary, which features the recent cycle event in Malawi, will be shown on SuperSport Five today, 20 Oct 2010 at 2pm and tomorrow, 21 Oct 2010 at 4pm.  This really is something not to be missed and showcases the journey these cyclists embark upon to raise the funds which support our project. The DNA Project is featured half way through this documentary when Vanessa Lynch talks about the DNA CSI Awareness Campaign we have started in South Africa to educate first responders and the public on the importance of DNA evidence preservation.



20-Oct-2010
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21-Oct-2010
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SuperSport Five

Some of you may have heard me talk about Chris Asplen in my previous entries. Chris is an expert in forensic technologies, particularly DNA, and has consulted with the governments of many countries, testified before numerous state and city legislative bodies, presented at over 100 national and international conferences and appeared on various national and international news and information broadcasts such as CNN and 60 Minutes.

Chris has just emailed me about the work he is now doing in Africa. It is common cause that nowhere in the world is forensic DNA technology more needed than on the continent of Africa – and unfortunately, nowhere is it less available.  It is this issue that Chris is trying to change through his non-profit organization called DNA4Africa.

I am seeing Chris again next week where we are both presenting at the 2nd Annual African DNA Forensic conference in Pretoria. Chris would like to talk about our DNA CSI campaign and possibly exploring the use of this campaign on a  broader basis for some of the humanitarian issues they address. This is definitely something we can look at it, and it also highlights the fact that DNA is not only used for criminal intelligence but also for DVI – which is Disaster Victim Identification, which was you may recall,  high on the agenda at the Interpol Conference last month. Not only that, but the absolutely horrific problem we have in Africa of human trafficking and worse still, trafficking in body parts, is also investigated through the use of DNA.

Chris says that the nearly exponential increased use of forensic DNA technology over the past 15 years and across the globe has been, for the most part, in the context of criminal justice applications: prosecutors proving cases with a more definitive piece of evidence, police solving unsolvable crimes, the innocent being freed after wrongful convictions.   Changes to and the elimination of statute of limitations, John Doe warrants, cold case units, close match searches, convicted and arrestee databases have all developed in the context of traditional criminal justice applications.  But broader “humanitarian” and “human rights” crimes and crises have not reaped the benefits of DNA technology that criminal justice systems throughout the world have experienced.  More appropriately put, victims of mass, government sponsored rape, sexual slavery, human trafficking and other atrocities have gone unprotected – unvindicated – by the most powerful crime fighting weapon available.

Chris has sent me a few examples of how DNA can be used in Africa:

Human Trafficking

The recent earthquake in Haiti lead to great potential for the trafficking of lost and stolen children.  On February 1, 2010, the Spanish government offered the Haitian authorities DNA-Prokids as a tool to help fight against child trafficking, a reliable means of reuniting families separated following the earthquake, and as a means of identifying illegal adoptions.  Kits were provided to take DNA samples from 6,000 parents or other family members that had reported a missing child, homeless children found living in the street, as well as children who were relocated to camps for their protection.  Onsite training will be provided to the International Red Cross and representatives from UNICEF who will help facilitate the sample collections. The samples will be couriered to The University of North Texas Center for Human Identity (UNTCH) and Granada for rapid DNA analysis and the development of the appropriate databases to facilitate DNA profile comparisons. The goal is to provide reliable genetic evidence for family reunification when possible, prevent illegal adoptions and child trafficking, and help prevent child abuse and exploitation.  Given the epidemic nature of human trafficking in Africa, DNA could play a major role in the fight to stem the tide of human trafficking.Body Part Trafficking:

DNA is used to fight the poaching of endangered species harvested for traditional “medicinal” purposes. Thailand’s government uses DNA technology to fight the trafficking of poached Tigers by comparing the DNA of captured tiger carcasses to the location of origin.  DNA testing has also been used to track elephant ivory back to its origins in Zambia where officials had previously denied the existence of poaching in that country.  But a recent report from the Mozambique Human Rights League studied the problem of human body part trafficking for “medicinal” purposes from Mozambique into South Africa and found examples of murder and abuse that were nothing less than horribly grotesque.  DNA testing could prove to be a major deterrent to those dealing in the murder of innocent victims for the collection of body parts in Africa.

Tracking and Prosecuting Genocidal Violence

When a natural disaster like an earthquake occurs anywhere in the world, emergency personnel from across the globe can be on the ground in within 24 hours with body sniffing dogs and other equipment to search for survivors and save lives.  Now imagine that disaster is yet another allegation of the mass rape of 300 women and children in Congo.  Our response should be the immediate presence of aid workers and crime scene experts working with victims to collect potential DNA evidence and the rapid analysis of those samples.  In doing so, the response and cry to the rest of the world would be “THIS IS HAPPENING!” – and we can prove it with science.  It is time to take rape off the table as a weapon of war and there is no better way to do it than to vigilantly and aggressively leverage the power of DNA quickly and efficiently.

Election related violence in Kenya resulted in the rape of hundreds of women in that county. The Nairobi Women’s Hospital collected samples from many of the victims and many of those samples were sent to Bode Technology Group for DNA testing. Bode however still awaits funding to actually perform the DNA analysis. Once profiles are obtained, DNA testing could support the allegation of rape made by victims as well as to help exonerate the innocent from false charges. And this isn’t just about the testing but, as in every case in which forensic DNA is used, this is also about victim empowerment. It is an opportunity for women to understand that they do not stand alone with their stories and their allegations.  That like other woman and children in other countries, there is proof, scientific proof of their victimization.

The re-association of orphans with surviving family members of the Rwandan Genocide:

Just as the ICMP provided necessary national healing after the conflict in the Balkans, a similar database can be developed from volunteers who lost family members by death and separation during the Rwandan genocide.  By comparing the DNA profiles of children left orphaned by the genocide to volunteers looking for family members, Rwanda can take a large step towards healing and reconciliation.

What is DNA 4 Africa?

DNA 4 Africa, is a non-profit, multipurpose organization to help Africa maximize the potential of forensic DNA.  Joining with other non-profits organizations, governments and private sector partners, DNA 4 Africa will advocate for the broader use of DNA to protect victims from the genocidal violence, government sponsored rape and other atrocities so prevalent in Africa. It will educate governments about the benefits of DNA as well as about the internationally recognized standards – both technical and legal – to ensure the proper and safe use of DNA and DNA databases.  It will develop educational programs on the identification preservation and collection of DNA evidence for aid workers, health care workers, police and others “on the ground” in areas of conflict.  Finally, DNA 4 Africa will work with charitable foundations, government agencies and private enterprises to raise funds to pay for forensic DNA testing when opportunities arise.

For generations our response to the scourge of genocide and other forms of mass violence and sexual abuse has been, “Never again.” And for generations it has happened again – and again.  It doesn’t take an overly active imagination to conceive the horror of a mother listening to the sounds of soldiers raping and killing from house to house and hut to hut, knowing that she and her baby are next.   Nor is it a stretch to picture the grotesque horror of a young boy literally carved up for his body parts under the misguided notion that they contain medicinal properties for the highest bidder.  As with every other context in which forensic DNA technology is used, DNA is not a magic bullet. It is however an undeniably powerful weapon. Whether or not and how quickly the international community brings this weapon to that fight is a choice we make.  The technology is proven and the logistics are doable.  Most importantly, the goal is achievable – to leverage the power of DNA to save lives in Africa as we do in so many other places in the world.

It sounds like a great cause, and I think a greater awareness throughout Africa of the potential of this technology, can only but help our mission to create DNA awareness. It may also illustrate to our own government that DNA technology is used to fight for HUMAN RIGHTS throughout the world, as opposed to being an abuse of human rights! Now isn’t that ironic…

Vanessa