While women wait … (1)

Monitoring the Domestic Violence Act

The Consortium on Violence Against Women has been monitoring the implementation of the Domestic Violence Act since April 2000 through the content analysis of court dockets, observations and tracking of court cases, and in-depth interviews with police and court personnel. The first report is being compiled and will be completed at the end of May. The findings below draw on what police and court personnel have revealed in interviews. These preliminary findings focus on some of the difficulties that arise when legislation that increases duties on court and police personnel is enacted without providing supportive and additional services to ensure smooth and effective implementation.

The Consortium on Violence Against Women comprises the Institute of Criminology (UCT), the Community Law Centre (UWC), Rape Crisis Cape Town, and a health consultant. It was established in 1999 to conduct research on the implementation of the Domestic Violence Act and to monitor the granting of bail in sexual offences cases. The magisterial districts targeted for these projects include Mitchell’s Plain, Cape Town, and George.

Lack of support services

The Domestic Violence Act is structured in such a way that responsibilities for implementation are shared across sectors, namely the policing sector and courts (see Crime Index Volume 3 Number 5 1999). The interviewees in all three magisterial districts acknowledged and provided examples of the usefulness of close working relationships between the two sectors. The courts and police stations that have close working relationships tend to provide a more effective service than those who do not. For instance, the service of a protection order is more likely to be done speedily at a police station where certain personnel are assigned sole responsibility for dealing with domestic violence cases. The clerk of the court is able to refer a complainant directly to a specific officer and inform the officer that s/he has made that referral.

However, domestic violence spills into other sectors as well, and without the support from those sectors the extent to which the law can be implemented is hindered. In one interview, a police officer illustrated this problem with a case example:

"In May we had a domestic violence case and the complainant was taken to a shelter. But they can only stay at the shelter for three months. It is four months since we helped the complainant and her case has not yet been dealt with by the courts. It has not been finalised. This woman is out of the shelter and has moved into the home where the respondent is because she has nowhere else to go. Both she and the respondent have protection orders against each other. She is not allowed into the house — but where is she supposed to go? Now, if they have a fight, which party does the police arrest? Who has breached the order?"

The lack of support services such as shelters makes it difficult for the police and the courts to ensure that the legislation is implemented effectively. When support services are lacking it also limits the options that are available to ensure the safety of complainants. According to a magistrate who was interviewed:

"Although the Act prescribes a maximum penalty of five years, with a husband and wife you can’t take the husband away, send him away for five years. Then the wife is without financial support."

Lack of resources

The safety of complainants is further compromised when those who are assigned set responsibilities in terms of the Act do not have the means of carrying out their duties. Interviewees stressed the fact that the implementation of this legislation is impossible when they have few or no resources.

Police stations have limited vehicles, some do not have fax machines and photocopiers. The courts do not have enough people to manage the caseloads that they are dealing with and to keep up with the administrative responsibilities that come with the implementation of this legislation. In addition, many communities are not organised in a way that facilitates the smooth implementation of the legislation.

"The respondent is not always there and we have to go back several times. Sometimes we do not have the capacity to go out and serve the order immediately and it is delayed. Sometimes the delay can be for a day or two. In some areas, places are difficult to locate because the addresses are not clearly marked. That also leads to a delay. There are times it is delayed until the deponent comes back to the station and can then accompany the police to show the residence of the respondent." (SAPS member)

In addition to having to deal with disorganisation and a lack of resources, both the police and the courts are in need of intensive training that clarifies their role in the implementation of this legislation. They seem to have received little or no training and those who have been trained are not necessarily the ones working directly with this legislation. As a result there is a great deal of confusion surrounding the implementation of the Act.

Attempts at being creative

Despite the reality that implementation is difficult when resources and support services are lacking, some places have come up with creative means of dealing with some of the hurdles. One particular police station deals with the shortage of vans by allocating a set time during a shift when the van will be used to serve protection orders. Another station has a good working relationship with a social worker who, when needed, provides counselling in domestic violence cases.

The struggle that service providers face is that, while there are times that they can deal with the short term situation in a creative way, there are long term consequences that make the problem unmanageable. Many people in the policing and court sectors feel that they are performing a juggling act and not really addressing the root of the problem.

"One also has to be careful, because sometimes the person standing in front of you can’t really go to jail, because they also have a maintenance case against them. And if they don’t pay maintenance, the family will suffer financially. These are very difficult decisions and almost like a balancing act that one has to do." (Prosecutor)

"The criminal justice system is clogged with a number of serious crimes and when faced with a complex social problem such as domestic violence, jail is not always the best way of dealing with the person, nor are arrests." (Magistrate)

A sense of helplessness

The overwhelming impression gained from the interviews is that they provided a much-needed opportunity for interviewees to vent their frustrations with the system as well as with those who use the legal system.

Both police and court personnel expressed a sense of being expected to do something with no guidance, support or resources to do so. It appears as though the trauma of dealing with domestic violence has created a feeling of helplessness among those who are expected to provide protection against violence.

"Sometimes it feels like a no-win situation. No matter what you do, no-one is going to be satisfied."

The consequence of feeling helpless is that there is little investment in doing the job properly, and there is a tendency to blame others — either the complainant or another sector — when things are not going smoothly. At different points the police and the courts felt that the other was responsible for the problems with the implementation of the Act. The reality seems to be that each sector is struggling to fulfil the tasks expected of them in the legislation.

Penny Parenzee
Institute of Criminology
University of Cape Town