During 2003, the Criminal Justice Initiative of the Open Society Foundation in South Africa embarked on a programme aimed at strengthening civilian oversight of policing. How did they go about this? How far has it been successful? This report, by the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation (CSVR), explores the role and function of the primary local level civilian oversight structures of the Metropolitan or Municipal Police Departments (MPDs) and argues that several key changes are necessary for enhancing the performance of civilian oversight.
Metropolitan or municipal police agencies are a relatively new feature in South Africa and have a mandate that includes crime prevention, traffic and by-law enforcement. However, as much as police agencies can assist and protect the public, this will not be without its problems. Media reports of misconduct, brutality and corruption on the part of MPD officials serve to highlight the kinds of challenges that can accompany the activity of policing. If these challenges are not met they will undermine the extent to which citizens trust and cooperate with the police agency in addressing crime and safety problems. Citizens expect that the police work effectively and that they treat people with respect. They need to be held primarily accountable for their performance and their conduct. Civilian oversight of the police has been a key feature of democracies around the world for decades.
In a democracy police are held accountable to multiple structures at different levels. However, the most direct oversight role is performed at city level. Each of the Metropolitan Councils exercises civilian oversight through committees.
- The primary committee in this regard is the ‘Public Safety’ committee consisting solely of elected local councillors from the various political parties represented in the council.
- A second committee called a ‘Civilian Oversight Committee’ is provided for in the legislation establishing the MPDs.
- ‘Public Safety’ committees were found to play a role in overseeing all public safety structures and not only the MPDs. The amount of time spent considering issues to do with the MPDs varies from council to council.
- These committees generally do not track key performance indicators of the MPD over time and tend not to focus systems for receiving and handling public complaints against the police.
- The Civilian Oversight Committees are in most instances in the process of attempting to define their role. However, because of their very broad legal mandate and public apathy, this has so far proven a difficult task.
Civilian oversight of MPDs at local level can be strengthened by following several key recommendations. These include:
- Developing training and other resources to enhance the understanding and practice of civilian oversight of police agencies at local level.
- Ensuring that independent evaluations are conducted on key aspects of MPD performance and conduct.
- Ensuring that local level oversight committees include a focus on the policies, procedures and systems of MPDs to receive and deal with public complaints of police misconduct.
- Inviting feedback from various stakeholders as to their perceptions and experiences of the MPDs.
- Assisting in clarifying the role of the Civilian Oversight Committees and then capacitating them to play this role.
