Deputy Justice Minister, John Jeffreys, says South Africa’s history of vigilantism is one of the main concerns about making the sexual offences register public.
He’s briefed the Select Committee on Security and Justice on the Sexual Offences and Related Matters Amendment Bill.
Parliament has heard that an overwhelming number of submissions have been received. The Bill has already been processed and passed by the National Assembly.
It’s now up to the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) to decide if it will make changes.
This Bill deals with the crime of incest, categorises the offence of sexual intimidation, and seeks to further regulate the National Register for Sex offenders.
“The concern with making the registry public to everybody is two-fold. One we have a history of vigilantism in our country. And the fear would be that if you have a child that goes missing, or a young woman who goes missing, and it’s known that there is (vigilantism)……across the world it’s very few countries that have their registers open,” says Jeffreys.
Jefferys says an application can be made to check up on a name or details of someone on the register. But this application also comes with conditions.
Various quarters, including the Action Society, have called for the National Register for Sex Offenders (NRSO) to be made public, saying it will assist parents to make informed decisions on who they allow around their children.
More than 35 000 sex offenders included in the NRSO:
The topic of decriminalising sex work also came under scrutiny during Jeffreys’ briefing, with the select committee agreeing that further discussions are needed on it.
“The issue of sex work does fall beyond the ambit of the bill. This should also be a matter that we as the select committee should discuss…dealing with the decriminilisation of sex work,” says committee chair, Shahidabibi Shaikh.
NCOP members will continue with its deliberations on the bill.
