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a complaint about the VUKA! ad

Wednesday, May 19th, 2010

I received a letter from ASA (Advertising Standards Authority of SA) yesterday enclosing a complaint from one viewer who had watched the VUKA! ad last month….

Some of you may know that The DNA Project was the recipient of a VUKA! Commercial entitled ‘Leaving Something Behind’ – which was produced and donated to The DNA PROJECT by the media industry in Cape Town last year. It gives little warning to the audience of what they were about to see, suffice to say it is a very powerful piece. For those who have seen the commercial on their computer screen, the impact is a thousand fold when seen on a big screen. You can literally sense people draw breath as the opening scene begins, and when the minute segment has ended you can tell that people are visibly moved by this hard hitting production which highlights what we live with in SA and how we need to be reminded every now and again that crime is not OK. The VUKA Commercial won a place in the top 30% category and is being flighted by DSTV free of charge on its various channels for the duration of 2010. [ the VUKA! Awards ("Wake Up" in Nguni) were introduced in 1999 as a platform to reward and nurture South Africa's filmmaking talent while providing vital exposure to social causes and charities via Public Service Announcements (PSAs) as the competition genre. M-Net and the DSTV platform flights an average of 60 free charity commercials every year, with the top 30% of VUKA! Awards PSA entries being broadcast on M-Net and selected DStv channels. The on-going exposure of critical social issues via the M-net and selected DSTV platform has resulted in resources being directed towards needy causes whose messages are broadcast into over one million homes in South Africa, the African continent and Indian Ocean Islands.]

The complainants objections to the ad were that it was too explicit and graphic to be shown during family time [it is always shown after 8pm]. She went on to say that the advert is absolutely disgusting and in bad taste and too vulgar to show at any time of the day.

I have been asked to respond so that ASA may adjudicate on the objection and determine whether in fact the ad is appropriate for public viewing.

Interestingly, this is the first complaint and only the second negative response I have received about the advert. Every other response has been positive – yes, it has disturbed people, it has made them go ‘cold’ on viewing, but the conclusion has always been that unfortunately it is necessary, as this IS what we live with in this country and the ad shows that there IS something we can do about it.

I have no objection to people expressing their opinions and I believe that I too have the right to express mine – we obviously will not always agree with one another. However, I think the complainant has missed the point of the ad – it is not designed to disgust people, it is designed to snap people out of their complacency and acceptance of our crime riddled society. And I think it does just that. But I do think the message in the end is powerful – in our favour. It states that ‘no matter what they (the criminals) take, they always leave something behind’, and it is for that reason that we feel we have the upper hand at the end of the one minute ad.

The VUKA! ads are all based on emotive and hard hitting issues that effect our society, and it is pointless to wrap them in tissue paper and pretend they don’t exist. I know how it feels to have a family member brutally murdered, and there are too many others out there who have suffered at the hands of crime, whether by being a victim of rape, assault, hijacking or having lost a loved one at the hands of a criminal in SA. And this ad is NOTHING compared to how that feels. This is easy to watch compared to watching people suffering day in and day out due to crime.

I ask that you now watch the ad, and please, add your comment below as to what you think about it and whether you think it ought to be pulled or whether it ought to stay. Your input is valuable and I am interested to know whether I stand alone in how I feel, or perhaps whether I may have missed the point too?

Click here to view the ad: ‘Leaving Something Behind’ -

with thanks
Vanessa

Posted in Crime Scenes, DNA Project, Events, Latest News, Press, Uncategorized | 10 Comments »

Forensic DNA Crimeline

Friday, July 31st, 2009

1980 – American geneticists discover a region of DNA that does not hold any genetic information and which is extremely variable between individuals. Ray White describes first polymorphic.

1984 – Alec Jeffreys discovers a method of identifying individuals from DNA – Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP). He dubs it ‘DNA Fingerprinting’.

1985 – Police in the UK first use forensic DNA profiling.

1986 – Kary Mullis discovers Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) method of replicating particular regions of a DNA molecule.

1987 – In the UK. the first criminal case in which DNA was used provided a vivid demonstration of the method’s potential — not only for convicting the guilty but also for exonerating the innocent. It also demonstrated for the first time that a DNA fingerprint could be used to find a perpetrator from within a population.

1988 – FBI starts DNA casework.

1995 – The world’s first national DNA database commences operations in the UK on 10 April 1995.

1998 – FBI launches CODIS database.

1998 – In South Africa, DNA Profiles begin to be entered into the National DNA Crminal Intelligence Database.

1998 – SA opt to use the STR system (Short Tandem Repeats) for DNA Profiling.

2000 – In the UK, the Forensic Science Service announces that the number of DNA profiles of suspects and convicted criminals on the national DNA database has reached one million or roughly one third of the estimated criminally active population.

2006 – The world’s first fully auto-mated system for high-volume forensic DNA analysis and profiling goes live in Arcadia, Tshwane, South Africa in August 2006, putting the Biology Unit of the SAPS Forensic Science Laboratory at the forefront of global DNA analysis technology.

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Are we taking Physical Evidence Seriously?

Monday, May 19th, 2008

Much criticism relating to delays in processing DNA and DNA backlogs has been levelled at the police’s forensic science laboratory in recent years. It is, however, encouraging that South African Police Service statistics show that while backlogs were substantial from 2004 to 2006, the situation has since improved.

Despite this, the Criminal Record and Forensic Science Service (CRFSS) in the SAPS still faces several challenges, notably the high cost of training, low salaries, high staff turnover in the CRFSS and problems relating to evidence collection at crime scenes.”

Bilkis Omar, Institute for Security Studies
SA CRIME QUARTERLY No 23 • MARCH 2008 29

The Criminal Record and Forensic Science Service (CRFSS) was established in May

2005 as a division of the SAPS falling under the deputy national commissioner of crime

intelligence and crime detection. Previously known as the Forensic Science Laboratory and the Criminal Record Centre, it fell under the detective service. Now a division on its own, it provides ‘an even more integrated approach to the analysis of exhibits and the presentation of expert evidence; [and] expensive and scarce resources such as the photographic laboratory and crime scene equipment are also shared’ (SAPS 2006).

Overview and components of the CRFSS

The purpose of the CRFSS is ‘to render criminal record and forensic science services to the SAPS in order to effectively prevent and combat crime’ (SAPS 2007a). The allocated operational budget for the CRFSS for 2006/07 was R156 687 000 and an extra R36m has been allocated for equipment (Du Toit 2007). The main facility is located in Silverton in Pretoria, with an additional biology unit in Arcadia. The laboratory in Cape Town has most of the forensic functions, while the laboratories in Durban and Port Elizabeth provide chemistry and ballistics analysis.

The CRFSS is headed by a divisional commissioner, and includes three components: the Criminal Record Centre (CRC), Technology and Technical Management (TTM), and the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) (see Diagram 1).
The functions of the CRFSS are:

• The application of forensic science in respect of crime prevention and crime detection [FSL]

• The management of criminal records and the application of sophisticated techniques to recover physical evidence from crime scenes [CRC]

• The facilitation of technology development in the SAPS and the rendering of support services to the division [TTM] (SAPS 2007a)
Forensic Science Laboratory

The Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) comprises the biology, chemistry, scientific analysis, ballistics, ‘questioned document’ and explosives units.

The full article can be viewed at: http://www.issafrica.org/

Posted in Crime Scenes, DNA Project, Press, Uncategorized | No Comments »

Open Society Foundation (SA) supports the DNA Project

Thursday, January 31st, 2008

Open Society Foundation for South Africa

Open Society Foundation for South Africa http://www.osf.org.za/ has confirmed that its Board has approved a request to grant the DNA Project a Development Grant to enable it to develop an organisational plan for the DNA Project in preparation for the submission of a full proposal to the OSF-SA board in March 2008.

Vanessa Lynch, Founder and Director of the DNA Project, was contacted by the OSF-SA following her appearance on the SA actuality programme, Carte Blanche, which covered the endeavours of the DNA Project. The OSF-SA, which is committed to promoting the values, institutions and practices of an open, non-racial and non-sexist, democratic, civil society, works for a vigorous and autonomous civil society in which the rule of law and divergent opinions are respected. Recognising that the objectives of the DNA Project promoted justice in SA, it requested a meeting with Vanessa Lynch last year. A proposal for a development grant was thereafter submitted to the OSF-SA by the DNA Project, which was approved by the Board of OSF-SA in December 2008. The purpose of the development grant is to enable the DNA Project to prepare a full proposal to the OSF-SA for funding for the various objectives of the DNA Project.

“We feel very honoured that such a highly regarded organisation, as the OSF-SA, has recognised the good work that the DNA Project is doing. In particular, we are very privileged to be given an opportunity to take the DNA Project to the next level, thereby ensuring that its objectives are more fully realised”, commented Vanessa Lynch.

The Open Society Foundation was founded by George Soros in April 1993 to promote the ideal of an open society in South Africa; an ideal which includes democracy, a market economy, a strong civil society, respect for minorities and tolerance for divergent opinions. In its work the foundation will encourage new approaches and ideas which will contribute to the creating of an open society in South Africa.