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South Africa

Capital city — Pretoria

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Panorama

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Relatives who enter the prison are searched using the following methods

  • electronic devices
  • pat-downs

Every visitor must be searched upon entering and leaving the prison premises.1 This may again take place upon entering or leaving the designated visiting area.2 They may be subject to a pat-down, a metal detector search, and/or an x-ray check for any property being brought into the prison (B-Orders, chapter 10, paragraph 9.1).

  1. Lukas Muntingh, A Guide to the Rights of Inmates as Described in the Correctional Services Act and Regulations, 2017, p. 117. ↩

  2. Foreign & Commonwealth Office, Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, Guidance, South Africa: prisoner pack, p. 7. ↩

  • Two women visiting St Albans Prison were forced to undress and endure humiliating internal searches for contraband.

    i
    01/12/2023
    / IOL

Collective movements are recorded

no

The B-Orders indicate that complaints must be individualised and that they should not be heard in groups. The reasoning behind this policy is that receiving multiple prisoners at the same time may lead to “complaints of the same nature without any substance”.
The Constitution recognises the right to protest, but the Correctional Services Act, Regulations and B-Orders prevent prisoners from exercising this right.1

  1. Institute for crime studies, South African Crime Quarterly: Prison protests in South Africa: a conceptual exploration, 27 September 2022, pp. 31-32. ↩

  • Prisoners started a fire on 7 August at Kutama-Sinthumule Correctional Centre.

    i
    06/09/2023
    / Eyewitness News

The prison service outsources the management of the facilities to private companies, either partially or fully

yes

A contract with a third party may be concluded to design, construct, finance and operate all or part of a correctional centre. The contract period for a public-private partnership (PPP) may not exceed 25 years. The Contractor must appoint a director in each PPP facility. The Director has the same powers, duties and functions as a prison governor (Correctional Services Act 111 of 1998, Sections 103-105).

A Controller from the prison administration is appointed for each contract and must oversee the daily operation of the public-private partnership (Section 106).

There are two PPP correctional centres. Both are classified as maximum security prisons:

  • Mangaung PPP has a capacity of 2,928 prisoners. It was opened in 2001 and is managed by G4S. The full contract between the prison administration and G4S is not disclosed.1

  • Kutama-Sinthumule (Makhado) has a capacity of 3,024 prisoners.2 It was opened in 2002 and is managed by a joint venture, South African Custodial Services (SACS), established by Kensani Corrections and the Geo Group.

Mangaung prison is located adjacently to Grootvlei Maximum, the most overcrowded facility in the region. Available space at Mangaung prompts the immediate transfer of prisoners from Grootvlei.

According to the Judicial Inspectorate for Correctional Services (JICS), Mangaung prison is “a hotspot for dangerous and uncooperative prisoners”. Those belonging to gangs and/or involved in riots and stabbings are often transferred to this facility.3

In October 2022, the South African Police Service (SAPS) informed the prison administration and the JICS that a prisoner had escaped from Mangaung in May 2022. Documents provided by G4S reveal evidence that a fire was staged in the prisoner’s cell with the help of custody officials4 to fake his death and facilitate his escape. The JICS reports delays in investigating the escape, including a slow response in reporting it, and in carrying out the autopsy and DNA tests on the body found in the cell. This incident has led to doubts over G4S’ ability to properly manage the facility.

  1. Judicial Inspectorate for Correctional Services, Annual Report 2021 -2022, pp. 32-34. ↩

  2. Judicial Inspectorate for Correctional Services, “Ticking Time Bomb”, July 2021, pp. 5, 13-16. ↩

  3. Ibid. ↩

  4. A custody official is employed by a contractor or subcontractor in a PPP facility, whereas a correctional official is employed directly by the prison administration. ↩

  • On 27 July, 50 prisoners at Kutama-Sinthumule Correctional Centre (KSCC) submitted a memorandum to prison management and the Department of Correctional Services (DCS). It includes a list of grievances ranging from lack of food and a dysfunctional healthcare system to cases of torture, assault and rape. The signers were targeted by vengeful prison management shortly after.
    Prisoners started a fire at the facility on 7 August.

    i
    06/09/2023
    / Eyewitness News

  • In October, 100 prisoners at Mangaung Prison submitted a memorandum to G4S and the Department of Correctional Services (DCS). They cited unnatural deaths, cases of torture by members of security, and a lack of medical care, professional training, and access to education. The spokesperson for the Correctional Services said that an investigation will look into the issues. The prisoners say that they have been persecuted by surveillance officers since signing the memorandum and since the visit from an inspecting judge of Correctional Services.

    i
    27/11/2023
    / IOL

  • On 2 May, the Department of Correctional Services (DCS) sent Bloemfontein Correctional Contracts (BCC) a 90-day notice to terminate the contract with G4S for the management of Mangaung Prison. The contract with G4S has been extended for a period of three months, starting 26 August, so that a dispute relating to the termination of the contract between DCS and BCC can be resolved. DCS will take over operations management at Mangaung following the contract termination process.

    i
    15/09/2023
    / Sowetan LIVE

Prisoners are free to practice their religion and follow their beliefs

yes

The Constitution (Section 14) and Correctional Services Act 111 of 1998 (Section 15) states that everyone has the right to freedom of conscience, religion, thought, belief and opinion. Prisoners may possess religious literature, and attend religious services and meetings held in the correctional centre (Section 14). Sentenced prisoners under Group A security classification and remand prisoners are authorised to possess religious jewellery.

  • Female prisoners at Johannesburg Correctional Centre report that they are required to participate in Bible study, regardless of their religion.

    i
    12/09/2023
    / The Conversation

The prison service offers activities to prisoners

yes

Recreational activities must be provided in all correctional centres (Regulations to the Correctional Services Act, Regulation 11).
Access to activities depends on security classification. Untried prisoners are not entitled to rehabilitation or development services such as social work, educational or psychological services.1 Access to other activities in remand centres centres is also severely limited.2 The Department of Correctional Services and the Judicial Inspectorate for Correctional Services report a lack of rehabilitation programmes. The prison administration attributes this to the shortage of staff. Correctional officials sometimes manage programmes, despite not having received proper training.3

  1. Lukas Muntingh, A Guide to the Rights of Inmates as Described in the Correctional Services Act and Regulations, 2017, pp. 21, 35. ↩

  2. South African Human Rights Commission, National Preventive Mechanism, Annual Report 2019-2020, p. 28. ↩

  3. Department of Correctional Services, Operations Management Framework Phase II, Operations Design Report, February 2021, pp. 24-27. ↩

  • The Department of Correctional Services (DCS) offers 13 reintegration programmes and a “long list” of skill development programmes. Prisoners’ access to these programmes is determined by their correctional sentence plans.

    i
    21/10/2023
    / IOL

Incarcerated women must be allowed to participate in activities, training and work. Programmes that take into consideration the specific needs of women must be provided (Correctional Services Act 111 of 1998, Section 41.7). In practice, different sources indicate that activities are highly gendered and much more limited than in men’s facilities. Activities may include sewing, flower arranging or handicrafts. Work may include hairdressing or styling. Business courses and manual work such as woodwork are generally reserved for male prisoners.

  • At Johannesburg Correctional Centre, the activities and reintegration programmes offered to women are gendered. They focus primarily on domestic skills. Access to professional training focusing on, for example, entrepreneurship or digital skills, is limited.

    i
    12/09/2023
    / The Conversation

Prisoners with HIV or tuberculosis receive adequate medical treatment. TB HIV Care partners with the prison administration to provide HIV care and treatment including antiretroviral therapy (ART) initiation and viral load suppression.1 The JICS reports that treatment for chronic diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure is provided for prisoners at Ebongweni Super-Maximum.2
For non-emergency cases, civil society actors report that medical care often comes in the form of a prescription for paracetamol.

  1. TB HIV Care, Annual Report 2021, p. 39. ↩

  2. Judicial Inspectorate for Correctional Services, “The Moral Fiber is Nowhere to be Found: Unannounced oversight visit to Ebongweni Super-Maximum Correctional Centre”, 11-12 May 2021, p. 35. ↩

  • The Department of Correctional Services launched a campaign for diphtheria vaccination at Pollsmoor Prison. One prisoner died of the illness on 5 November 2023. Eight prisoners then tested positive.

    i
    13/11/2023
    / IOL

Prisoners have access to computers

in some facilities

Access to a computer is not always guaranteed as stations are limited and time allocated is insufficient. This notably affects prisoners pursuing distance learning tertiary education.1

Prisoners registered as students are authorised to possess a personal computer. However, this provision is not upheld in practice and has been challenged in the courts, including in Hennie and Others v Minister (2015), and Pretorius and Others v Minister (2018), which ruled in favour of prisoners’ right to use personal computers.1

  1. Judicial Inspectorate for Correctional Services, Annual Report 2021 -2022, p. 52. ↩ ↩

  • In the case of Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development and Others v Ntuli (2023), the Supreme Court cancelled and invalidated on 8 November 2023 the policy dated 8 February 2007 prohibiting the use of personal computers in cells. The Ministry of Justice and Correctional Services and the National Commissioner of Correctional Services have 12 months to consult with the Judicial Inspectorate for Correctional Services (JICS) and revise the policy to permit the use of personal computers in cells so prisoners can study.

    Prisoners who need a computer to study are allowed to use a personal computer without a modem in their cell, as long as they are registered as students at a recognised educational institution in South Africa.

    i
    09/11/2023
    / Supreme Court of Appeal

Number of prisoners who have been granted a presidential pardon or amnesty during the year

-

The last series of amnesties was given in 2020 to alleviate overcrowding and fight the spread of COVID-19.

  • The President approved, on 11 August 2023, 24 months of remission for prisoners convicted for non-violent and non-sexual crimes. Prisoners considered low-risk and convicted for sexual offences, for tampering with essential infrastructure, to a life sentence, or declared dangerous criminals are eligible to a 12-month remission. Approximately 9,488 incarcerated prisoners and 15,000 prisoners under correctional supervision and parole will be released. This process will be overseen by a joint technical task team over the next ten months. Victims will be allowed to make representations during the prisoners’ consideration for release. This decision will also result in the deportation of 3,064 foreign nationals serving short-term sentences.

    i
    11/08/2023
    / Government of South Africa