Hesselink, A.E. 2015. Contemporary Criminological Issues CMY3706. Pretoria: University of South Africa.
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THEME 5 CMY3706
Contemporary Criminological Issu es C MY3 7 0 6
INCIDENCE OF VIOLENT CRIME
PROBLEMS WITH COMPARISONS OF CRIME IN DIFFERENT COUNTRIEs
Definitions differ from one country to the next.
Law enforcement differs considerably. A well-trained and efficient police force, more offences
will be recorded.
Not all offences are detected by the police.
Different countries have different methods of reporting offences.
Developed countries have a higher reporting rate than developing countries.
Different countries have very different methods of compiling crime statistics, and not all
countries keep equally precise statistics (some deliberately conceal their crime statistics).
Different data may be used, for example offences reported to the police, or number of
prosecutions, or number of convictions, or victim surveys.
The sophistication of crime-recording systems varies from country to country.
Countries that experience high levels of violence:
Countries in the process of political and economic transformation
Countries with multicultural populations
Countries characterised by civil unrest.
Countries with a large juvenile population
Sexual crimes
The Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act 32 of 2007:
Chapter 2: Sexual offences
Part 1 – rape and compelled rape
Part 2 – sexual assault, compelled sexual assault and compelled self-sexual assault
Part 3 – persons 18 years or older: compelling or causing persons 18 years or older to
witness sexual offences
Part 4 – incest, bestiality and sexual acts with a corpse
Chapter 3: Sexual offences against children
Part 1 – consensual sexual acts with certain children
Part 2 – sexual exploitation and sexual grooming of children, child pornography
Chapter 4: Sexual offences against persons who are mentally disabled
Chapter 5: Services for victims of sexual offences and compulsory HIV testing of alleged sex
offenders
Chapter 6: National register for sex offenders
Chapter 7: General provisions
Part 1 – miscellaneous offences: obligation to report commission of sexual offences against
children or persons who are mentally disabled and attempt, conspiracy, incitement or inducing
another person to commit a sexual offence
Part 2 – defences and sentencing, inability of children under 12 years and persons who are
mentally disabled to consent to sexual acts, and extra-territorial jurisdiction
Part 3 – national policy framework
, Hesselink, A.E. 2015. Contemporary Criminological Issues CMY3706. Pretoria: University of South Africa.
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THEME 5 CMY3706
Part 4 – national instructions and directives, regulations and repeal and
amendment of laws
Part 5 – transitional provisions
Part 6 – transitional provisions relating to trafficking in persons for sexual purposes
Some of the root causes of rape and sexual assault were victim-centred, perpetrator-centred
and environment-related:
o Victim-centred factors, with particular reference to women, included age vulnerability,
poverty, exploitation, physical disability, mental health, and the use and abuse of drugs
and alcohol.
o Perpetrator-centred factors: operating at individual, family, community and societal
levels and spanned biological factors such as genotype, androgen levels, and
neurological factors; childhood experiences and exposure to violence; poverty and
social disadvantage; social groups and peers, emphasised heterosexuality; and so on.
FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO VIOLENT CRIME
The period of Political transition:
transition Characterised by instability and violence.
Restructuring of the criminal-justice system, the abolition of certain laws, and the
endorsement of new ones
Weakened criminal-justice functions.
A violent past Offences against the apartheid policy were classified as crimes.
The state's security forces committed crimes to eliminate the government's political
opponents.
Those engaged in "the struggle” justified certain forms of violence – viewed as legitimate
weapons against the system.
This resulted in a society in which the use of violence to achieve political and personal
goals became widespread.
A culture of During apartheid:
violence Many families suffered political and institutional violence.
Lives were disrupted by mass removals.
The family unit was weakened and parents lost control over their children.
Often, the father figure was absent from the home.
Young people getting involved in the "struggle", bred a culture of violence and distrust
of authority.
Violence in schools is caused by societal cultures that promote, tolerate and require
violence.
In South Africa, this phenomenon is known as the "culture of violence". (Resolving
problems and conflict through violence).
Violent and aggressive school pupils are modelling what they are directly witnessing.
Rapid Crime rates are higher in cities than in rural areas.
urbanisation Population density leads to competition for limited resources, which, contributes
to greater stress and increased conflict.
Factors associated with urbanization: overcrowding, unemployment and
increased consumer demands.
High levels of gang activity and the easy availability of firearms.
Rapid urbanization
Caused by the end of influx control
Increase in unemployment and poverty.
Urbanisation, has occurred in 17 years, instead of 50 years.
The rate of urbanisation is worsened by urban migration from the whole of
Africa.
, Hesselink, A.E. 2015. Contemporary Criminological Issues CMY3706. Pretoria: University of South Africa.
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THEME 5 CMY3706
Higher levels of urban unemployment.
Conducive to the incidence of crime.
Urban unemployment is usually more serious than rural unemployment.
In the rural areas, the basic foodstuffs required for survival are readily available
and an extended-family system provides some support.
In urban areas, the family system is sometimes replaced by a peer-group system
with its associated, extravagant, youthful lifestyle.
Prolonged unemployment:
May result in family tension, arguments and fights.
A lack of the necesseties to survive may force people to steal food
May lead to an increase in the exploitation of children, prostitution, drug abuse
and other criminal activities.
Unemployed men tend to develop a negative self-image – often develop a
macho image and lifestyle, which includes alcohol or drug abuse.
Associate with friends who live the same lifestyle and use violence and abuse
to achieve their aims.
They develop the attitude that women are inferior and are only there to fulfil
men's sexual needs.
Relative deprivation
Generates growing needs and the aspiration for a different lifestyle.
In order to afford this, people large amounts of money, despite the fact that they
sometimes lack even the means to buy basic foodstuffs.
Government cannot meet the demand for low-cost housing.
This leads to the development of large squatter camps.
Difficult to police such areas, there are no proper streets, no streetlights and
no clearly demarcated street blocks with easily identifiable addresses.
Shacks:
Difficult to safeguard against housebreaking, theft and robbery (soft targets).
Overcrowded shacks where adults and children live together without any
privacy create very poor conditions for the socialisation of children.
They are exposed to marital conflict and sexual intercourse, which may impact
negatively on their socialisation.
Most children are raped by other children and that they may do this because
they imitate adult sexual behaviour
Vigilantism People often fear crime and feel insecure
Some people lose confidence in the law enforcement structures.
This may cause them to create their own structures to ensure their safety and security –
vigilante groups.
When vigilantes "arrest" suspects, the suspect is guilty and should be punished".
During the "arrest" and punishment, vigilantes will often assault the "suspect".
HIV/AIDS The HIV levels are very high in South Africa.
Increasing numbers of people are dying.
Many police officers and other officials serving the criminal-justice system also contract
the disease and may become demoralised and medically unfit.
Many children have to grow up with either single parents or no parents at all.
Households headed by children are common, because elder brothers and sisters are
often the only family members who are left to take care of younger children. This affects
the socialisation of children
, Hesselink, A.E. 2015. Contemporary Criminological Issues CMY3706. Pretoria: University of South Africa.
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Certain beliefs about HIV/AIDS can contribute to the rape of children. Some people
believe that they can be cured of HIV/AIDS by having intercourse with a virgin or an
uninfected person.
Conditions The availability of resources attractive to organised criminals (e.g. diamonds, gold,
conducive to ivory, drugs)
the growth in
The existence of markets for contraband goods, especially illegal firearms and
organised
crime drugs
Poorly patrolled borders
Opportunities for money laundering
The sophisticated and well-developed communication and transport network with its
internal links (e.g. the ease of communication via the internet, as well as air travel)
A weak Aim of the criminal-justice system: process criminal cases and offenders speedily
criminal-justice and effectively, and to punish those convicted.
system A functional system can help to deter potential offenders.
South Africa's criminal-justice system is not performing optimally at present.
On average, fewer than 9% of recorded crimes result in the conviction.
Only an estimated 10 to 20% of criminals are usually responsible for 80% of all serious
crimes.
An effective criminal-justice system should be able to apprehend, convict and punish
most of the core group of repeat offenders.
Dysfunctional Single-parent homes, "broken homes" and conflict-ridden homes are more likely to
families and produce violent and aggressive, antisocial and delinquent children.
parents There is a strong link between violent and aggressive children and parental domestic
violence, conflict and discord between parents/partners, and abusive parents and
siblings.
The cycle of Perpetrators of violent, aggressive and abusive behaviour and actions have themselves
violence and been the victims of family violence during their childhoods
abuse
Highly violent offenders were subjected to more severe and frequent physical and
psychological abuse and punitive parenting during their childhood.
Children who are exposed to violence (i.e. being direct victims, directly witnessing
or having direct involvement) also exhibit violent and aggressive behaviour and
tendencies at a later stage.
Thus, individuals grow up to be abusive and violent because they were abused
themselves, a tendency also referred to as the "cycle of violence"
In schools, weapons, drugs and alcohol are easily available.
Aggressive and violent behaviour by parents, caregivers, and other adults have an
effect on learners' behaviour, academic performance, social attitudes and responses to
threats of violence and other types of behaviour.
Peer group Peer relations contribute to a child's social and emotional development.
influence and During adolescence, there is an increase in susceptibility to peer influence and a
associations
decline in susceptibility to parental influence.
Peer influence is a strong predictor of criminality.
There is a link between peer rejection and involvement in criminal activities.
Factors such as argumentative, inattentive and aggressive behaviour, poor social skills
and social withdrawal are significant aspects that are linked to peer rejection.
Socio- Social problems such as poverty and unemployment are associated with the
economic increase in crime.
conditions Most violent crimes take place in urban areas.
associated with
violent crime Without a job, people become bored and see more opportunity for committing crime.
Factors such as unemployment, poverty, boredom, the need to hurt others, and seeking
attention through committing crime are all linked.
