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KRM220 – SECTION B
KRM220: STUDY UNIT 1 – INTRO TO POLITICAL OFFENCES
Define the concept “politics”:
• Derived from Greek word “politikos” which means citizen
• Contested word bc people attach diff meanings to the word
• Social meaning = orderly organization of citizens in a society, subject to good, fair and
responsible gov
• Politics is a dialogue, not a monologue. People have diff views and don’t always agree on things.
Conflicting ideological point of view (PoV) about the nature of political crime:
• There are contradictory PoV about whether or not a phenomenon is a political crime (e.g. there
are 2 ways to view terrorism:)
• 2 conflicting perspectives around terrorism:
o Perspective of victims (either the gov or individuals themselves) -> terrorism is a political
crime bc ppl are murdered and injured purposefully, and public & private property is
damaged and destroyed on purpose
o Perspective of the offender (the terrorists) -> terrorists are freedom fighters who have
an ideological objective and wish to replace a specific political system with another that
they regard as fair and valid
“political offences” are a complex concept that is difficult to define:
• 4 reasons/factors why it is difficult to define a political crime
• (1) There are diverse forms of emergence
o There are diverse forms of emergence/conduct which may not always fall under a
specific category of crime. Such a crime then ends up being labelled as a political offence
o E.g. terrorism, assassinations, hijacking, hostage taking, torture, uprisings, high treason,
sabotage, the enforcement of admissions, detention without trial, kleptocracy (self-
enrichment thru bribery, theft, and fraud)
• (2) Focus of definitions – focus varies from one definition to another
o Some definitions focus on crimes against the state (e.g. sabotage, political revolt, high
treason)
o Some definitions focus on crimes by the state (e.g. kleptocracy, banning freedom of the
press, detention without trial, assassinations of political opponents)
o Some definitions try to generalize the concept by focusing on crimes against AND by the
state
• (3) explicit ideologically founded definitions
o Those who adopt a Marxist perspective believe that politicians and the gov act in the
interests of the capitalist at the expense of the poor. Therefore, any conduct that
exploits people can be defined as crime, regardless of whether the conduct is intended
or allowed blatantly
o Intended -> legislation (‘legi’) discriminating against people on the basis of race, gender,
religion, and sexual orientation
o Allowed blatantly -> ignoring violence caused by the police, failure to enforce legislation
against industrial pollution of the environment, ignoring the safety of workers in mining
industries, dumping harmful waste in 3rd world countries by 1st world countries
• (4) the power to define – lies in the hands of the political ruler
o The political ruler of the time has the power to define specific conduct as crime thru
legislation
, o ANC is the current ruling party, so they have power to pass specific legi in parliament cus
they have the majority vote – even if other political parties do not agree
o The gov has the power and authority to enforce their PoV on society
Classification systems – classifying the different types of political offences:
(1) The typology of Roebeck and Weber:
• There are specific elements that need to be evident in order for political crime to take place.
These elements are:
• Internal interference by the gov
o E.g. campaign against Nelson Mandela and Steve Biko during Apartheid
• External interference by the gov
o E.g. when one country interferes militarily with the political conflicts in another country
• Intervention against a gov
o Various liberation movements during Apartheid such as AWB and ANC
• Spying on civilians
o E.g. bugging equipment in the offices of political opponents
• Evasion and conspiracy by the gov
o E.g. cover up of the circumstances in which Biko died, cover up of BLM cases in USA
• Evasion, collusion, conspiracy against the gov
o E.g. Evasions of military services
• Local confrontation
o Repression of political gatherings by the opposition
(2) Ingraham’s classification:
• there are 3 characteristics that classify an offence as political. These are:
• acts of treason that threaten the safety of the country in the face of an external enemy
• defiance of the political authority and legitimacy of the gov
o e.g. actions that threaten the safety of political leaders and the gov)
• obstruction of official functions
o e.g. acts that prevent officials from carrying out their tasks for the benefit of society
o e.g. Est. of a secret anti-gov defense force to act against the gov, or tax evasion such as
SARS rogue unit
define the concept “political crime”:
• no specific category exists for ‘political crime’ in the SAPS Crime Administrative System
• political crime is also referred to as state crimes or crimes by the state to the detriment of its
people
• Ross insists that crimes by the state should be outlined as cover-ups, disinformation,
unaccountability, corruption, violation of a law, and those practices that are perceived by the
majority of the population as illegal or socially harmful
• Examples of political crimes that had a significant impact on humanity:
o The Holocaust during Hitler’s reign
o The 1970s Ugandan killing spree under Idi Amin Dada
o Apartheid laws
o The political repression, economic downfall, land grabbing, and politically motivated
murders committed in Zimbabwe during the Robert Mugabe era
o The South Sudanese Civil War where ongoing conflict in South Sudan has killed and
displaced thousands of people bc of the political conflict between forces of the gov and
the opposition forces
, • There are state and non-state orgs that attempt to strengthen capacity of gov and civil society to
counter and reduce various forms of political crime (E.g. the Rule of Law Index can be used)
The Rule of Law Index:
• Seeks to est. mechanisms that limit the unrestrained power of the state
• Can be used to measure the extent to which govs (their officials and agents) are held
accountable for upholding the law of the land
• Upholds the notion that the single most important litmus test for whether the rule of law is
obeyed is that those who govern are subject to the law
• Based on principle that no one is above the law. The ones in power must be held accountable
under the same laws as the ordinary people.
• The following factors are indicators of good governance. Political crimes thrive in countries that
lack these indicators:
o The powers of the gov are limited by checks
o Power is distributed among the organs of the gov
o The gov has formal processes for independent auditing and review of its agencies
o The executive branch of the gov provides the latest and accurate info to the legislature
and the judiciary is subject to such procedures as may be reasonably necessary to
protect sensitive info
o The gov provides up-to-date and accurate info to the public and the media
o Individuals who report official misconduct are protected from retaliation
• The lack of effective mechanisms to measure and demand accountability makes societies more
susceptible to political crime
• One of the causes of political crime is that those in senior positions (such as politicians or
officials) ignore the basic tenet of the public service – which is being ‘a servant to the people’
(ironic how the same politicians invoke this principle to win the vote)
Batho Pele principles:
• These are a set of principles, developed by the first democratically elected administration in SA,
to guide the conduct of all its officials. It is an instructive document that establishes sound ideals
that could be expected in a democratic and progressive country.
• Batho Pele -> Sesotho word meaning ‘people first’
• Had the letter and spirit of these principles been taken to heart by all public officials, corruption
would be less rife
• The 8 Batho Pele principles were developed to serve as acceptable policy and legislative
framework regarding service delivery in the public service. These principles are aligned with
constitutional ideals
• (1) consultation
o many ways to consult users of services such as -> conducting customer surveys,
interviews with individual users, consultation with groups, and holding meetings with
consumer representative bodies, NGOs and CBOs.
o more than one method of consultation may be necessary
o Consultation is a powerful tool that enriches and shapes government policies such as the
Integrated Development Plans (IDPs) and its implementation in local government sphere
• (2) setting service standards
o Reinforces the need to constantly measure the extent to which citizens are satisfied with
the service or products they receive from gov departments
o Plays a role in the development of service delivery improvement plans (which citizens
should be involved in) to ensure a better life for all South Africans
o Precise and measurable standards are required to enable users to judge for themselves
whether or not they are receiving what was promised
o Such standards should be benchmarked against those used internationally
• (3) increasing access
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