President Ramaphosa has signed into law three new pieces of legislation that is aimed at strengthening efforts to end gender-based violence and crime in SA.
The laws aim to change the landscape in terms of how government departments, law enforcement and courts deal with cases of violent crime in SA – especially violence against women and the vulnerable.
The Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act Amendment Bill:
The bill amends Chapter 6 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act to:
- Expand the scope of the National Register for Sex Offenders (NRSO) to include the particulars of all sex offenders and not only sex offenders against children and persons who are mentally disabled;
- Expand the list of persons who are to be protected to include other vulnerable persons, namely, certain young women, persons with physical, mental or intellectual disabilities and persons over 60 years of age who, for example, receive community-based care and support services;
- Increase the periods for which a sex offender’s particulars must remain on the NRSO before they can be removed from the Register to 20 years.
The bill’s prime goal is to improve the country’s prevention of sex crimes, particularly of paedophilia. It also proposes to expand the ambit of the crime of incest and introduces a new offence of sexual intimidation.
The Criminal and Related Matters Amendment Bill:
The Criminal and Related Matters Amendment Bill aims to address Gender-Based Violence and offences committed against vulnerable persons and provides for additional procedures to reduce secondary victimization of vulnerable persons in court proceedings.
The Domestic Violence Amendment Bill:
The amended legislation includes new definitions, such as ‘controlling behaviour’ and ‘coercive behaviour’, and expands existing definitions, such as “domestic violence”, to include spiritual abuse, elder abuse, coercive behaviour, controlling behaviour, and/or exposing/subjecting children to certain of listed behaviours.
The bill also introduces online applications for protection orders against acts of domestic violence and imposes obligations on functionaries in the Departments of Health and Social Development to provide certain services to victims of domestic violence.
Sources: BusinessTech, Talk Africa
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