DA calls for police
brutality commission of inquiry
DA
spokesperson on police Dianne Kohler Barnard says the latest incident, where a
woman was beaten by an off-duty cop, proves a “major crisis”.
The DA has
called for a commission of inquiry into police brutality following another
video, released by eNCA on Friday, showing an off-duty policeman assaulting a
woman in Smithfield in the Free State.
The video
shows the plain clothes officer hitting the woman and kicking her in the head.
On-looking police officers at the scene did not arrest the man. eNCA reported
that the woman did not lay formal charges.
Barnard said
President Jacob Zuma and police minister, Nathi Mthwethwa can “no longer bury
their heads in the sand”.
“We reiterate
our call for a Commission of Inquiry, focusing on, but not be limited to:
§ The root
causes of the problem;
§ The actions
of senior leaders within and outside the police service which may or may not
have encouraged this culture of brutality with impunity within our police
service; and
§ What can be
done to eradicate this culture of brutality that has crept into the police
service.”
Broader
approach
Mthethwa’s spokesperson, Zweli Mnisi said the DA was merely repeating “rhetoric”. He said police brutality could not be looked at “in isolation” and called for a broader approach to solve the problem, including addressing systemic challenges in the police.
Mthethwa’s spokesperson, Zweli Mnisi said the DA was merely repeating “rhetoric”. He said police brutality could not be looked at “in isolation” and called for a broader approach to solve the problem, including addressing systemic challenges in the police.
“You can’t
look at police brutality in isolation. We empowered the IPID to say, the police
mustn’t be a law unto themselves. We have never condoned brutality. There is no
law that says you can get away with murder. But we have to ask what the inquiry
will achieve”, he said.
In a speech
delivered in the Free State on Friday, Mthethwa said the South African Police
Act would be reviewed in Parliament.
Mnisi said
the act was enacted in 1998 and said changes were needed to bring it in line
with the changes that have occurred since.
Issues to be
reviewed included training of officers and station demarcation. Under the new
legislation, it is envisioned that citizens will be able to report crimes at
any police station, regardless of where the incident occurred.
“Oversight
over the police would also be reviewed,” he said.
“If police
brutality happens, we must measure it by what action has been taken. We have to
look at the systemic challenges in the police. For example, we visited Vietnam
two years ago. There we found officers with degrees in policing. Perhaps our 24
months of training in South Africa is not enough.”
“Last year,
we lost 93 police officers who died, not because they were drunk, but because
of their work. But police deaths do not get the same attention because they
don’t sell papers,” Mnisi said.
