The Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (Popcru) has rejected Correctional Services Minister Pieter Groenewald’s call to reintroduce corporal punishment in South African prisons, calling it a dangerous step backwards for human rights and justice reform.
Groenewald suggested the return of corporal punishment during a parliamentary budget debate, claiming it could address prison overcrowding caused by inmates who cannot afford bail. Over 60 000 people are in custody awaiting trial, with more than 2000 unable to pay bail amounts of less than R1000.
“We reject in the strongest terms the notion of using violence as a tool of correction,” said Popcru spokesperson Richard Mamabolo, according to Jacaranda FM News.
Constitutional Rights, which abolished corporal punishment under threat
Mamabolo warned that the proposal undermines decades of legal progress, particularly the Constitutional Court ruling in State v Williams and Others (1995), which abolished corporal punishment in South Africa.
“Groenewald proposes not only a reversal of legal progress but an erosion of a rights-based society,” he said.
Popcru argues that the justice system should uphold rehabilitation and reintegration, not corporal punishment.
The union emphasised that correctional centres are not institutions for revenge or dehumanisation, but places meant for safe custody and positive transformation of offenders.
Rising Costs and Overcrowding
Groenewald told Parliament that overcrowding continues to place severe pressure on prison infrastructure and budgets. He revealed that the state spends more than R11 million daily to accommodate 24 000 foreign nationals in prisons.
The union called for long-term solutions that address socioeconomic inequalities and the backlog in court processes rather than reverting to corporal punishment.
Mamabolo stated, bringing back corporal punishment is unconstitutional, dangerous and a direct violation of human rights.
Should the state prioritise cost-cutting and crowd control, or defend constitutional principles even in the face of growing pressure on the justice system?
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