NCJ Number
144376
Date Published
1991
Length
12 pages
Annotation
This paper attempts to gauge the extent to which policing by consent, or consensus about policing, can be achieved in South Africa where formal racial discrimination is being abolished and demographic, economic, and political projections are raising questions about the possibility of moving away from a polarized society.
Abstract
Substantial changes occurred in South Africa's police structure and practice after 1990 when some political liberalization occurred. President De Klerk legalized political organizations of the left, made cuts in security force budgets, and appointed a judicial commission to investigate covert actions of the police. The process of developing a new constitution resulted in regional liaison forums between the police and the African National Congress. These forums helped the South African Police define new relationships with black townships. By April 1991, however, patterns of violence in some townships had become so prominent that progress toward constitutional negotiation became difficult. The National Peace Accord was signed in September 1991 by all major groups in South Africa to establish an infrastructure for reporting and investigating political violence. Police officers may still have the tendency to continue the old style of authoritarian policing because the seeds sown by apartheid have generated a sizable marginalized population and indigenous ordering structures and processes have been established that often clash with formal policing. As South Africa moves toward democratization, the process of redefining police roles and duties in black townships will be complex. 41 references