CHAPTER 9

THE NMMM CRIME REDUCTION STRATEGY

Published in Monograph No 103, November 2004

City Safety
Nelson Mandela Metro Municipality's Crime Reduction Strategy

Sibusiso Masuku and Traggy Maepa

Background

On 15 March 2002 the NMMM authorised the ISS to draft a crime reduction strategy for the metro. A ‘final draft’ document was submitted to the metro in March 2004. The safety and security business unit was tasked with reviewing the document, adapting it to local municipal requirements and conditions, costing the strategies, and submitting it to the council for discussion. The comments of the business unit were:

• In general the integrated crime reduction strategy as prepared by the ISS provides a basic framework for crime reduction in the NMMM, but it should be realigned to meet the latest local demands and requirements as outlined by the revised IDP of the metro. It should also address the issue of crime prevention from a municipal perspective.
  
  

• Some of the issues not specifically covered in the document were the theft of municipal infrastructure, corruption within the municipality and the losses suffered as a result thereof. Another factor that was not covered was the utilisation of technology such as CCTV cameras to prevent/reduce crime in the metro.
  
  

• Although mentioned in the report, the utilisation of Community Based Volunteers to prevent crime is also not unpacked in the strategies.
  
  

• The question was also raised whether a separate vision and mission are required for the Crime Prevention Strategy. The Vision 2020 of the metro as well as the mission of the safety and security business unit adequately cater for crime prevention and should be utilised for the purposes of the Crime Prevention Strategy.
  
  

• Overall the document provides useful details on crime trends, perceptions of crimes as well as numerous strategies to reduce crime. Most of these, coupled to additional strategies, should be used to prevent crime in the metro.

The strategy below is the reworked version that takes into account the comments of the safety and security business unit.

Vision 2020

The Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Area practices social justice in a culture of public participation guided by an efficient, accountable, non-racial, non-sexist and sustainable municipality that focuses on sustainable environmental, social and economic development, improving the quality of life of its communities in a secured, safe and tourist friendly environment.

Mission statement

The safety and security business unit of the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Municipality contributes to social, physical and economic development by providing an integrated, efficient, cost effective, transparent service for its community. This service is rendered by well trained, motivated, responsible and accountable personnel, thus creating a safe and secure environment in its area.

Objectives

Since the metro’s IDP guides all municipal activities, it is prudent to consider the relevant objectives specified in the IDP in order to ensure that this strategy complies with them.

Integrated Development Plan: objectives towards Vision 2020

• To endeavour to be the safest and most secure metropolitan municipality in the country.

• To provide integrated and strong law enforcement.

• To participate in community safety and security.

• To provide adequate fire, traffic and emergency services.

• To integrate the provision of disaster, emergency and policing services.

• To establish safety and security partnerships and joint programmes with other formal and community structures.

• To provide strong policing measures against theft and vandalism of municipal and government assets.

Crime prevention objectives

• To prevent crime in the NMMM area.

• To reduce crime in the metro.

• To reduce public fear of crime.

• To promote public awareness of how to enhance personal safety.

• To promote public knowledge and involvement in community safety structures and projects.

• To reduce the effect of crime on victims.

Strategies

The NMMM crime reduction strategy hopes to reduce crime in the metropolitan area by targeting its services and funding towards several core strategies. These strategies aim to:

1. Develop effective partnerships and improve working relationships with key role players.

2. Support effective policing and law enforcement.

3. Prevent crime through the deployment of Community Based Volunteers at crime hotspots.

4. Stamp out the theft of municipal infrastructure and resources.

5. Supplement visible policing efforts with technological aids such as CCTV.

6. Provide effective bylaw enforcement services.

7. Co-ordinate, provide and enhance targeted crime prevention through social development projects.

8. Co-ordinate, provide and enhance targeted crime prevention through environmental design projects.

These strategies, and the activities they comprise, are detailed below.

Crime prevention is not the responsibility of any one department or organisation - it is everybody’s business. Activities that contribute towards crime prevention are the responsibility of different organisations. Effective crime reduction therefore requires that all stakeholders take part. In the initial planning stages, all key stakeholders should be involved. Thereafter, partners should only be drawn into the process on an ongoing basis when they are required on particular projects. While organised partners and institutions are crucial for project implementation, it is equally important to include members of the affected communities.

Activity 1

Identify key stakeholders and outline their roles and potential projects they could be involved in by:

• conducting a crime reduction stakeholder analysis;

• collecting and analysing information on what key stakeholders are doing;

• outlining areas of co-operation and project plans with each selected stakeholder.

Activity 2 Develop a project based partnership agreement with the following key stakeholders by:

• drafting co-operation agreements and project plans with SAPS at area and station level;

• drafting a co-operation agreement and project plans with Stepping Stones (at the Integrated Justice Centre);

• drafting a co-operation agreement with the Department of Education at district level;

• drafting co-operation agreements and project plans with school principals and governing committees;

• drafting a co-operation agreement and project plan with the Department of Social Development;

• drafting co-operation agreements and project plans with other municipal departments.

Effective policing and law enforcement are essential for developing respect for the law, regulating conflict and building public confidence in the criminal justice system. Law enforcement therefore has an important role to play in reducing crime in the NMMM; by dispensing justice to offenders and deterring potential offenders. The responsibility for law enforcement does not just rest with the SAPS - it is also the job of all metro officials responsible for traffic and bylaw enforcement.

Activities

• ensuring municipal representation and involvement in all community police forums;

• ensuring municipal involvement in sector policing;

• supporting and facilitating information sharing within the criminal justice system, and in particular with the SAPS;

• contributing to profile registers of common offenders for identified priority crimes and drug dealers, to enable a proactive approach to dealing with these crimes;

• contributing to rehabilitation programmes for common offenders;

• supporting visible policing operations to address fear of crime by deploying police officials on the basis of crime analysis;

• improving public communication on the street and at people’s homes;

• improving street level law enforcement;

• supporting special courts for prosecution of priority crimes in the metro;

• supporting gun-free society initiatives.

Since November 2002, the NMMM has recruited, trained and deployed 400 Community Based Crime Prevention Volunteers in the metro. The training covered crime issues as well as fire fighting, disaster management, and traffic control. They were also informed about the functions of peace officers and metro security officers. During their deployment, the volunteers helped recover stolen vehicles, unlicensed firearms and managed to prevent a planned cash robbery at Dora Nginza Hospital . SAPS statistics show a considerable decrease in crime in areas where the volunteers were deployed.

This project is not only aimed at crime reduction but at developing skills to enable many unemployed persons to find work. The volunteers receive a monetary incentive to assist them to provide food for their families.

Four regional offices manned by volunteers were established in order to bring municipal services closer to the communities. Members of the public can report crime as well as general problems relating to municipal services at these offices. In response, the volunteers would either be deployed in the areas affected by crime, or the relevant metro structures would be contacted to attend to the problem.

Activities

• Recruit additional volunteers to maintain the number of available volunteers at 400 (an additional 200 to be recruited);
  
  

• Train volunteers in disaster management, Peace Officers course, basic fire fighting, Security Officers GR D&E, self defence, crowd control and human rights;
  
  

• Deploy the volunteers to:

  • ° assist SAPS with sector policing;

  • ° assist traffic officers with roadblocks and parking control;

  • ° assist with safer schools projects;

  • ° assist the Department of Home Affairs with crowd control and anti
    
    

• corruption initiaves.

Statistics provided by the metro’s Security Services Division indicate that municipal property remains an easy target for theft by unscrupulous criminals. Various factors create conditions that are conducive to theft and/or fraud in the municipality, such as the remote location of depots, staff shortages, etc.

The metro aims to reduce and eradicate the criminal element involved in the theft/misappropriation of municipal property and assets in order to ensure a sustainable service to the ratepayers and the community at large.

Activities

• Investigate and finalise a whistleblower policy for the municipality;

• Conduct a full risk analysis focusing on thefts and losses;

• Implement a random search policy at all entrances and exits to municipal property;

• Conduct spot-checks on scrap metal dealers;

• Increase the visibility of security officers in identified problem areas and the vicinity of municipal buildings and infrastructure in general.

The constant shortage of staff and resources necessitates the utilisation of alternatives such as CCTV systems to prevent and combat crime. In consultation with the portfolio councillor and business unit manager for safety and security, it was decided to prioritise CCTV once again, as a capital budget item, based on principles such as:

• the requirement of the IDP in respect of crime prevention, coupled with the fact that a metro police service is not a feasible option;

• the increase in major economic and industrial investments, such as Coega, Madiba Bay and the Freedom Statue;

• the increase in the hosting of international sporting events;

• the increase in foreign tourists, especially developments in the beachfront area;

• the increased in traffic flow and congestion in certain areas;

• the enlarged area of municipal control;

• the escalation in certain crimes such as vehicle and truck thefts and the illegal trading in non-ferrous metal, which has been declared a priority crime for the Swartkops police station area.

The above factors must be weighed against the fact that municipal personnel numbers have not increased in proportion to the city’s growth, making it difficult to cope with the many responsibilities facing the metro. As a result, technology should be used to assist where possible.

Activities

• Appoint consulting engineers to investigate and propose a CCTV system for the NMMM;

• Implement a CCTV system in phases over the next four years to help prevent crime.

The municipality is armed with many bylaws and regulations that can be effectively used for crime prevention. Enforcing these laws sends a clear message to the public about how the city works, and about the rule of law. Some bylaws have been used effectively by municipalities for crime reduction, such as environmental health and land-use bylaws that have helped to manage illegal squatting and target unlawful business activities that could be fronts for more serious crime. However, the formulation and enforcement of these bylaws is the responsibility of various municipal departments, and co-ordination will therefore be important to the successful use of the bylaws for crime prevention.

Activity 1

Raise awareness and enforce bylaws with crime prevention goals in mind, by:

• rationalising and consolidating all existing bylaws, and assessing the need for developing new bylaws;

• familiarising and training existing municipal enforcement officials on bylaws;

• conducting a communication strategy within council about bylaw enforcement;

• embarking on a public education campaign about bylaw enforcement;

• supporting other metro business units responsible for bylaw enforcement by providing legal process services in the form of books and processing prosecutions;

• identifying the most effective bylaws for crime prevention and enforcing these in most affected areas;

• operating the municipal court to deal with all municipal prosecutions.

Activity 2

Increase bylaw enforcement personnel with a view of establishing a Municipal Police Service (MPS) by:

• increasing enforcement personnel;

• developing training schedules that include crime prevention activities for all municipal enforcement personnel;

• commissioning a feasibility study for the establishment of a MPS.

Crime prevention through social development or social crime prevention is an approach that focuses on the social, economic and cultural processes that contribute to crime and victimisation. This approach tackles individual, family and community risk factors that lead to crime and victimisation. For some of these programmes and projects, the metro will need to work jointly with other stakeholders such as the Departments of Education and Social Development, as well as non-governmental organisations.

Activity 1

Conduct public education and awareness campaigns that could include:

• supporting the production and distribution of rape awareness pamphlets and workshops in high schools and among 12-15 year old children in primary schools;
  
  

• supporting education on rape and violence for school children through theatre and other recreational activities;
  
  

• collecting information on child abuse and neglect and passing it on to the SAPS Child Protection Unit and the Department of Social Development;

• supporting awareness campaigns on risks of buying stolen goods;
  
  

• providing safety tips and advice to residents on how to secure their homes and the value of reporting their absence from their homes to neighbours and/or the police;
  
  

• providing basic information on where robbery occurs, how it happens and what is most likely to be taken;
  
  

• conducting awareness campaign on the effects and harm of drugs and alcohol abuse in schools.

Activity 2

Improve services for youth and children such as:

• initiating children and youth councillor programmes to encourage youth participation in local government;
  
  

• facilitating the establishment of youth sports, cultural and recreational clubs;
  
  

• lobbing and supporting the training of young people to participate as tour guides to assist the business tourism strategy;
  
  

• supporting the establishment of a youth information centre to provide information on crime, victim support, health issues and related services, and to function as a referral service for other relevant municipal services;
  
  

• supporting after-care, homework support and recreational programmes to p rovide a protected and supportive environment for pupils at lower primary schools.

Activity 3

Enhance victim support services by:

• conducting an audit of victim empowerment facilities and programmes in the metro;

• identifying individuals and organisations who can offer victim empowerment programmes and develop a referral directory;

• aligning SAPS victim empowerment services with municipal initiatives, and creating one-stop service centres;

• recruiting and providing training to volunteers for victim empowerment services;

• setting up a network of victim support groups to provide emotional and physical support, information, and resources to victims of crime;

• supporting the implementation of a rape victim empowerment training programme targeted at teachers, police officials and court officials, especially prosecutors and municipal staff in one-stop service centres.

Activity 4

Provide support to the Department of Education and Safer Schools programmes by:

• encouraging and supporting schools to develop school surveillance systems for collecting data on offending and victimisation in schools;
  
  

• supporting the implementation of school surveillance systems;
  
  

• supporting schools to develop systems of identifying children with behavioural problems;
  
  

• encouraging and supporting the training of teachers to identify children with behavioural problems and signs of victimisation (bullying, sexual and physical abuse);
  
  

• supporting schools to compile registers of children who are at risk of being offenders;
  
  

• encouraging and supporting Safer Schools programmes;
  
  

• encouraging and supporting ‘Adopt a Cop’ projects at schools.

Activity 5

Provide support to Department of Social Development by:

• encouraging the department to conduct an audit of existing diversion facilities and programmes;

• assisting the department to identify groups and individuals who can supervise and provide temporary custody for diverted children.

Activity 6

Reduce drug and alcohol abuse by:

• compiling a database of all bars, taverns and shebeens in the metro;

• comparing the database results with municipal land-use records as well as liquor licences;

• enforcing land-use and emergency bylaws required for operating an entertainment business;

• conducting joint operations against illegal hotels and shebeens.

The physical environment plays an important role in either providing or inhibiting opportunities for crime, and in shaping public perceptions of safety. Therefore, planning and design measures can be used in the NMMM to reduce opportunities for particular types of crime and to enhance public perceptions of safety in those areas where people feel most vulnerable.

Activity 1

Improve the design and management of the built environment by:

• identifying areas where the basic crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED) principles are lacking and thus contribute to crime;
  
  

• recommending the installation and maintenance of street lights in identified areas;
  
  

• recommending the cutting of long grass and trimming of trees to improve visibility in open spaces that are identified as problems in terms of crime and perceptions of safety;
  
  

• encouraging and supervising the renovation, refurbishment and maintenance of buildings in the central business district (CBD);
  
  

• encouraging relevant metro business units to locate the owners of unmaintained and abandoned flats in the CBD and issue warnings and fines;
  
  

• recommending the improvement of access to and from informal settlements;
  
  

• recommending the closure of pathways, thoroughfares and passages often utilised by criminals;
  
  

• ensuring that CPTED principles are factored into the planning and design of new public and residential areas.

Activity 2

Support and monitor the activities of the land and housing business unit by:

• identifying illegal occupants of land and enforcing relevant bylaws;

• monitoring processes of demolishing informal settlements and the relocation of people to houses;

• enforcing land-use bylaws to prevent illegal squatting;

• encouraging street and house numbering across the whole metro;

• encouraging the demolition of dilapidated, abandoned and unmaintained houses.