On the 24 June 2009, Mr Jeff Radebe, MP Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, in his Budget Vote Speech, stated that there is a constitutional obligation on all spheres of government and all organs of state within each sphere to cooperate in mutual trust and good faith and collectively fight crime.
The Minister went on to say that one of his primary challenges, will be to seek to
restore mutual trust and good faith between the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) and the other law enforcement agencies. Criminals should not escape because of the infighting between law enforcement agencies. To this end, he envisages taking this matter up in the Criminal Justice Cluster so that they can come up with concrete and workable solutions to create a spirit of cooperation in the fight against crime.
In particular, the Minister had the following to say regarding the important Draft DNA Bill that is awaiting finalisation by Parliament:
“The Honourable Members will also be reminded of the work of the Cluster in ensuring the efficiency of the Criminal Justice System. A lot of work has been done in the Review of the Criminal Justice System in conducting initial research of the changes required. The results of this research will be made available very soon. My Department, together with the Cluster, will as required, commence implementing some of the recommendations arising form the Review. In this regard, we will also push ahead with the processing of the Bill dealing with the collection and analysis of fingerprints and DNA. This Bill is currently before Parliament. “
The Deputy Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, Mr Andries Nel, MP, supported the Minister’s statements in his Budget Vote speech on the same day, by stating that:
“Significant strides have been made in developing legislation in respect of a number of important areas, including the protection of vulnerable groups, in particular, women and children. The Department intends finalising four very important outstanding pieces of legislation this year. These are the Traditional Courts Bill, the Criminal Law (Forensic Procedures) Amendment Bill and the Superior Courts Bill together with a Constitution Amendment Bill.
In light of the above statements, it is anticipated that the DNA Bill will be re-introduced to Parliament in early August this year.
Click on the below links to read the full Budget Vote Speech of both the Minister and Deputy Minister of Justice & Constitutional Judgement.
http://www.dnaproject.co.za/trigger/uploads//20090624_dmin_Budget2009DM.pdf
http://www.dnaproject.co.za/trigger/uploads//20090624_min_Budget2009.pdf
