NICRO, the South African National Institute for Crime Prevention and the Reintegration of Offenders is a national non-government organisation providing comprehensive crime prevention services in South Africa.

NICRO is committed to the prevention and reduction of crime and creating safer communities. The success of the organisation’s programmes is based on the promotion of a culture of accountability, responsibility and restorative justice.

Services are built on a community development method with programmes training and involving local community members to share the responsibility of addressing crime prevention and crime reduction, and empowering communities with the skills to drive the process of sustaining their own self-help projects.

NICRO has ongoing and significant influence on local, provincial and national structures and plays an essential role by contributing substantially towards policy and legislation in South Africa. All projects are in line with government policy and geared towards the changing needs of its beneficiaries and South African communities.

NICRO is actively committed to respect the growth, dignity and equality of every individual, especially focussing on those issues which cause crime. To this end NICRO strives at all times towards:

• Promoting restorative justice (restoring the balance affected by crime rather than practising retributive justice) and people-centred development
• Preventing and reducing crime through ongoing, accessible and effective service delivery
• Contributing meaningfully towards streamlining the criminal justice system (a key focus), policymaking and legislation in South Africa
• Involving the organisation in the investigation into and the improvement of the rights of arrested, charged and convicted persons as well as the victims of crime
• Networking, developing and strengthening strategic partnerships and increasing organisational capacity through collaborative efforts with business and government, as well as ensuring the active involvement of members of the community, community groups and civil society
• Strengthening community capacity
• Focussing on under-resourced areas and providing needs-directed services where they are required most
• Adopting a best practice, well rounded approach in all that we do.

NICRO renders core services in terms of four major projects:

1. The Diversion Programme involves the channelling of high-risk young people and those who have committed a crime, away from the criminal justice system into programmes that make them accountable for their actions, responsible for attempting to repair the resultant damage and offers them significant development opportunities to turn their lives around.
2. The Community Victim Support Programme provides comprehensive support services to all witnesses and victims of crime, violence and abuse as well as those at risk of victimisation. Services simultaneously facilitate the recovery process; reduce the fear of recurring crime and enable survivors to regain control of their lives. The Community Victim Support Programme incorporates specific programmes for abused women and victims of domestic violence. Women comprise the vast majority of the Community Victim Support Programme’s clients.
3. The Economic Opportunities Project offers economic opportunities to NICRO clients and other marginalised, vulnerable individuals through entrepreneurial training whilst encouraging and supporting micro enterprise initiatives in the informal sector.
4. The Offender Reintegration Programme was designed and implemented to assist and support former offenders and their families. Once former offenders take on the challenge of changing the course of their lives, an enabling environment supporting their efforts towards constructive living is crucial. Without such opportunities, former offenders have little chance at success and may return to a life of crime. This Programme strengthens the capacity of former offenders to make amends and assists them to become responsible and productive citizens. This, in turn, contributes significantly to the reduction of crime in South Africa.

The four programmes detailed above are undertaken in most provinces. Plans are progressing well for all nine provinces to render services in terms of all programmes.

NICRO offers projects and programmes in each of the nine provinces involving urban, peri-urban and rural areas. Historically NICRO has been more urban than rural based, but the organisation now actively focuses on under-resourced and impoverished communities as well as rural areas, and the growth of needs-directed services where they are required most.

Beneficiary communities are characterised by under- or undeveloped infrastructure, poor housing and a severe lack of amenities and recreational opportunities. The number of single parent families is also significantly high. Social problems include illiteracy, substance abuse, gang violence, very high incidents of crime, the abuse of women and children, and a high rate of teenage pregnancies. High unemployment rates, poverty and ill health are commonplace. Estimates are that fewer than 45% of the people in the geographical areas served by NICRO are permanently employed.

NICRO programmes target socially vulnerable groups: youth offenders, high-risk young people, victims of crime and violence, abused women and former offenders. Approximately 90% of beneficiaries are from impoverished, formerly disadvantaged communities while about 60% are female.

Diversion programmes are the cores to a successful comprehensive Juvenile Justice System. These programmes, initiated by NICRO, strive to channel and divert young people away from criminal behaviour and tendencies into programmes that make them accountable and responsible for their actions, and where possible, repairing the damage by their crimes.

Withdrawal of their cases by a state prosecutor on condition that they complete the diversion programmes, give the young person a chance to restore the balance in society and in many instances teach them skills that will ensure that they do not have to re-offend again.

The programmes are educative and thought-provoking. Diversion programmes

further provide social, interpersonal, leadership, life-skills and community service.

• To prevent the child from being kept in prison and or police cells and to keep the child out of the mainstream criminal justice system.
• Young people should experience Diversion, as a turning point in their life within the context of their developmental and ecological needs, so that a positive attitude to society’s legal and authority structures can be developed.
• Diversion aims to shift from a retributive oriented approach to a restorative justice approach
• To increase appropriate early intervention programmes and decrease prosecution and sentencing.
• To make offenders responsible and accountable for their actions
• to provide and opportunity for reparation
• To identify underlying problems motivating offending behaviour
• To prevent first-time or petty offenders from receiving a criminal record and being labelled as criminals, as this may become a self-fulfilling prophecy

• To provide educational and rehabilitative programmes to the benefit of all parties concerned
• To lessen the case load of the formal justice system
• To present developmental programmes for the families in order to empower and enable them to take responsibility for their own lives and behaviour.
• To gain the support and involvement of the communities to motivate them to take responsibility for the children and to receive them back in the community.
• To ensure that each child in conflict with the Law will be assessed and attended to with an appropriate individual developmental plan.
• To involve the parents in the programmes to enable them to support their children in taking responsibility for their behaviour.

• first offenders
• must admit guilt
• take responsibility
• willingness to repair damage caused by crime
• fixed address
• presence of parent/guardian
• armed robbery, murder and rape offenders are excluded
• age: up to 18/21 years
• voluntarily

These criteria are also in Part 7 of the Public Prosecutor’s Policy document.

After arrest the child should be:

1. assessed by a probation officer in terms of section 4B of the Probation Services Amendment Act.
2. After assessment the probation officer will recommend to the public prosecutor whether a case can be diverted and whether the child can be released in the care of his/her parents/guardian or if bail should be determined by the court.
3. The public prosecutor use Part 7 of the Public Prosecutor’s Policy Document as a guideline whether a case should be diverted or not.
4. If satisfied that the child meets the criteria laid down in Part 7 of the Prosecutor Policy – the case can be diverted to the NICRO diversion programme.
5. The prosecutor will inform the court of his/her decision to divert the case and the court will postpone the case for 8 weeks for the child to complete the diversion programmes.
6. After postponement- the young offender and his parent goes to the nearest NICRO office for assessment and determination of a suitable diversion programme.
7. After the NICRO assessment the child will be informed of the date of comment of his/her programme and what the programme(s) is he/she will attend.

ASSESSMENT: Assessment is done by the probation officer in terms of section 4b of the Probation Services Amendment Act 35 of 2002.

NICRO staff also do an assessment to determine the best programmes and types of intervention for the specific child.

NICRO have four national diversion programmes:

• YOUTH EMPOWERMENT SCHEME (YES)

The YES programme is a 8 week intensive life-skills programme. Life-skills courses are conducted during week-ends/weekdays. During these courses attention is given to: self image, decision-making, assertive behaviour, parent-child relationship, consequences of a criminal record etc. The parents or guardians participate in the first and last sessions. The programme can be used as a pre-trial diversion or as part of a postponed sentence.

• COMMUNITY SERVICE

By involving young people in conflict with the law in community service for a specific

amount of hours assure that they are diverted away from the criminal justice system and take responsibility for their actions. Community service allows young people to serve a certain number of hours in the community, directly or indirectly related to their crime. NICRO monitors the performance of the client and reports to the prosecutor.

• FAMILY GROUP CONFERENCE (FGC)

The aim of the FGC is to involve young people in conflict with the law in group conferences, together with their members, the victim and the other role-players develop a plan of action and reach consensus on the plan discussed. When the victim and offender meet in a mediation process the impact of what has happened can be discussed and a negotiated agreement can be reached. The agreement includes how "to put right". The FGC gives the youth the opportunity to restore the balance caused by the crime.

• JOURNEY

The journey programme is a long term hard-hitting diversion programme using

concepts of rites of passage. Youth are faced with strong challenges, in order to alter their past and work towards a better future. An aspect of the journey is a wilderness experience. The focus is on young people, demanding that they repair the damage and take responsibility for their actions, in co-operation with their family, community and victim, where possible.

• AFTER-CARE SERVICES

After the completion of the programme, support and guidance are given, either by a NICRO social worker, or a mentor, to assure and enable the youth and the family to reach their set goals. After-care services are rendered for a period of 3 to 9 months, according to the needs of the youth and the family. Youth are encouraged to participate in community upliftment programmes.

Prescribed forms as referred to in the draft child justice bill:

• police caution without conditions
• police caution with conditions
• family time order
• compulsory school attendance order
• prohibition from visiting, frequenting or appearing at a specified place
• good behaviour order
• supervision and guidance order
• reporting order
• positive peer association order

For the period April 2003 to March 2004 period 16534 children were referred to the NICRO diversion programmes. A comparison to the 2003 diversion statistic indicates a 8% decrease of 1411 children in the NICRO diversion figures.

The decrease in diversion services is due to a decease in staff capacity and the decision to stop handling high volumes of diversion clients but involving other organisations in delivering these diversion options to children. NICRO strives to deliver individual services to all children in the NICRO diversion programmes and strives to ensure that the best interest of the child as intended by the Child Justice Bill is observed. Better individual services to a child to address the specific issues of the child on an individual basis instead of groups of children with various problems will ensure better services. The belief that more and more children are going to be diverted annually to these diversion programmes is still upheld and is evident in the number of non-government organisations participating in rendering these diversion options to children.

Provincial Service Delivery

The Gauteng province rendered 31.34% of all diversion services nationally.

The other eight province delivering diversion services are:

Western Cape (17.18%);

KwaZulu Natal (14.69%);

Eastern Cape(13.25%);

Free State (10.46%);

Northern Cape (4.26%);

Mpumalanga (3.58%);

North West (3.47%)

Limpopo Province (1.78%).

Gender of children involved in the diversion programs

Female participants continue to represent only one quarter of all children included in diversion programmes and confirms a national and international trend, also amongst adult offenders.

Race of children involved in the diversion programs

The annual number of African children increased from 61% to 70%

The annual number of Coloured children decreased from 30% to 21%

The annual number of Asian children increased from 2% to 3%

The annual number of White children increased from 5% to 6%

Offence profile of cases

The annual number of victimless crimes decreased from 26% to 17%

The annual number of property crimes increased from 61% to 66%

The annual number of crimes against the person increased from 12% to 17%

Crime against the person include assault, assault to do grievous bodily harm, murder, armed robbery.

Property crimes include shoplifting, theft, and housebreaking, fraud, arson and motor vehicle theft

Victimless crimes include possession of dagga, possession of firearms, driving under the influence of alcohol, perjury, gambling and dealing in alcohol.

The NICRO Youth Empowerment -life skills programme (55.87%) is still the most favoured diversion programme and is facilitated in all nine provinces. The Pre-Trail Community service programme was utilised in all nine provinces where 2315 (14%) children were referred to the programme.

Most of the children in NICRO’s diversion programmes were at school where 80% or 13164 children were scholars, 2675 (16.18%) were unemployed and 666 (4%) were employed.

The courts referred 14499 (78.48%) of young offenders to NICRO’s diversion programmes while 1355 (8.72%) were referred by schools.

NICRO served 91% of 17961 children diverted by the National Prosecuting Authority during the period April 2003 to March 2004. An average of 1500 children are diverted per month by the National Prosecuting authority which is indicative of prosecutors’ changing attitude towards diversion and the success of the Sexual Offences and Community Affairs (SOCA) Unit’s National Training of prosecutors’ Programme in 2003 where NICRO played a pivotal role in training these prosecutors.

NICRO’s court referrals amounted to 14499 (3175 from probation officers, 9307 from prosecutors; 1442 from magistrates, 575 sentenced) which indicates NICRO is still the largest diversion service provider.

31January 2004 the Department of Correctional Services reported 2293 children under the age of 18 awaiting trial in South African prisons. A total of 3968 children were in prison of which 1675 children were serving sentence.

A total of 3902 children were in prison nationally on 31 September 2003.

UNSENTENCED (AWAITING-TRIAL) CHILDREN(YOUNGER THAN 18 YEARS) IN CUSTODY PER CRIME CATEGORY : 31 January 2004

The January 2004 figure shows an increase of 66 children in the national figure of children incarcerated.

NICRO’s diversion figures indicate an increase in the number of property crimes from 61% to 66%. The 31 January 2004 Department of Correctional Services Stats shows a steady increase in the number of children awaiting trail and sentenced for economic offences from 1593 to 1612 children to the 31 September 2003 stats.

There is also a national increase in the number of violent offences committed by children.

NICRO diverted 2777 children for violent offences. 23 Murder cases were handled by service deliverers nationally while 11 of these cases were in Gauteng, 6 in the Free State and 4 in the Western Cape. The Eastern Cape and Northern Cape both diverted one murder case each.

Other violent crimes diverted included 18 culpable homicide cases; 25 armed robbery cases and a staggering 1113 children for assault to do grievious bodily harm cases.

The Department of Correctional Services in September 2003 reported that 1664 children were incarcerated compared to the 1680 children of January 2004 for aggressive offences. This is also reflected in NICRO’s national figures where a 5% increase in violent crime is indicated in the April 2003-September 2004 stats.

This shows that South Africa’s youth is getting more violent where 5 children under the age of 13 were incarcerated 31 January 2004 for violent offences, 62 children were aged 14; 199 were aged 15, 501 was 16 years old and 913 were 17 year old.

111 of South Africa’s children were found in possession of guns.

The need for sexual offences programmes for young offenders is reflected in the increase in the number of children awaiting trial and sentenced for sexual offences. September 2003 there were 260 children awaiting trail and 229 children serving sentence for sexual offences. January 2004 there were 511 children in prison for sexual offences of which 302 were awaiting trail and 209 were serving sentence.

In the light of recent comments on sexual offences programmes it is important for NICRO to develop a national sexual offenders programme. NICRO Gauteng developed and piloted a sexual offenders programme in 2004. An impact evaluation of the programme would be pre-mature but the dire need for a sexual offenders programme is reflected in the number of children referred to NICRO for sexual offences. NICRO handled 158 rape cases, 98 indecent assault cases and 22 sexual harassment cases in 2003/4. In the Gauteng province 101 rape cases were handled by service deliverers. The need for specific sexual offences’ programmes in the rural areas are reflected in the number of referrals from courts for sexual offences. In the Limpopo province 16 cases of rape were referred to the NICRO life skills programmes in the absence of a sexual offences programme.

The majority of young offenders were channelled into the Youth Empowerment Scheme and Pre Trial Community Service option, with the YES programme constituting some 56 % of NICRO’s beneficiaries

An additional 4661 individuals were reached through interactive workshops, 1783 of whom were youth at risk and another 216 of whom were involved in volunteer training programmes.

Culture profile: African 71.09%; Coloured 20.62; White 5.56%; Asian 2.66%

Gender Profile : male 75%; female 25%

Offence profile : property crimes: 66%

Crimes against the person –17%

Victim less crime –17%

Caseload by diversion option:

Youth Empowerment Scheme- 9238

Pre Trail Community Service 2315

Family Group Conferencing 217

Victim Offender Mediation 100

Journey 1421

SAYStOP 46

The aim of NICRO’s Offender Reintegration Programme is to facilitate the successful reintegration into society of offenders released from prison while simultaneously assisting the families of incarcerated persons through the provision of an integrated, comprehensive developmental and social service.

This Programme is driven by the need to ensure the accountability by ex-offenders to themselves, their victims, their families and to their community. Only once they have accepted this responsibility and made a commitment to righting what they did wrong, can they be assisted to change the course of their lives and become constructive, contributing members of society. Once ex-offenders take on this challenge, an enabling environment supporting their efforts towards constructive living is crucial. Without these opportunities, ex-offenders have little chance at success and may return to a life of crime.

The innovative Offender Reintegration Programme supports ex-offenders to achieve successful reintegration every step of the way: before their release from prison, immediately after release during the 4-6 month "stepping out" period and up to a year afterwards. Effective counselling and support is thus provided on both sides of the prison wall.

Intensive services and intervention are aimed at both the ex-offender and his/her family members. Rigorous work is also done within the community to strengthen and build community resources and support systems.

2. OR COMPRISES THE FOLLOWING FIVE COMPONENTS:

• The Esther Lategan Study Fund (providing bursaries for imprisoned TEP participants as well as the children of imprisoned persons)
• The Creative Arts Competition
• The NICRO Bus Service (in the Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal)
• Working for Water (not implemented in during this reporting phase)
• The Tough Enough Programme (TEP)

THE ESTHER LATEGAN STUDY FUND

• Adult Bursaries

The Offender Reintegration Programme offers Tough Enough Programme Participants the opportunity of studying with assistance from the Esther Lategan Study Fund while serving their prison term. The aim is to assist prisoners in acquiring or improving their academic and technical qualifications, thus enhancing their chances of obtaining employment and improving their socio-economic status following release.

• Education Bursaries for Children of Prisoners

School-going children of imprisoned persons and parents who are in conflict with the law are one of the most vulnerable sectors of our society. Not only do they have to deal with the resultant psychological trauma when a parent is imprisoned, but the incarceration of a breadwinner results in an unstable family unit and a loss of household income. More often than not the children of an imprisoned parent, or parents, no longer have access to the financial means to continue their education.

School ordinarily presents interesting challenges. It requires a routine, it requires adult or parental support and it requires discipline to succeed. Some circumstances make these seemingly ordinary challenges extraordinary. Having a parent in prison, more especially the breadwinner, creates an exceptional challenge. Tension in the home is frequently very high and the family is threatened with disintegration. The lack of finances exacerbates these problems. With a small bursary from NICRO, one stabilising factor in the child’s life can be maintained - that of schooling. In addition to this the family receives vital intervention and support services.

Prisoners serving sentences and awaiting trial prisoners are made aware of the support available to their families from NICRO and are offered the opportunity of seeking bursaries for their children as well as for their own studies.

The objectives of the project are to:

• Provide families with the necessary financial support in order that their children may continue their education
• Strengthen the family unit and keep families in tact
• Assist families to develop effective mechanisms to care for and sustain their children and themselves
• Prepare and implement a plan to maintain family development.

In addition to receiving educational bursaries for a period of two successive years for school-going children, NICRO now provides these vulnerable families with highly significant intervention services, including enabling psycho-social support and counselling.

The purpose of the Creative Arts Competition is to encourage, support and reward a variety of creative endeavours by men and women held in South African prisons and young offender institutions. The specific objectives of the project are to:

• Provide an avenue for incarcerated persons to express themselves freely;
• Promote the healing process through the medium of the arts and help prisoners embark on a useful, constructive life;
• Recognise and encourage the acquisition of basic and key skills as well as social and life skills, which can be achieved more readily through the arts;
• Provide an avenue through which incarcerated persons can achieve a sense of personal achievement and accomplishment;
• Encourage, promote and support individual creative and artistic talent;
• Encourage innovation;
• Offer prisoners serving sentences the chance of selling their artworks in the open market;
• Encourage further skills acquisition, entrepreneurship and economic self-sufficient.

• Calligraphy,
• Leatherwork,
• Matchstick construction,
• Needlework,
• Painting,
• Poetry and prose (in any of the official languages),
• Pottery and
• Wood crafting.

NICRO Western Cape and NICRO Kwa-Zulu Natal also run an affordable bus service to encourage contact between offenders and their families. In the Western Cape the bus service ensured that 4,561 family members of offenders in eight prisons in the province had contact with their loved ones. This service has proved invaluable and goes a long way towards facilitating the reintegration of offenders upon their release.

The aim of the Project is to facilitate successful reintegration through the provision of contract employment in addition to maximising economic opportunities for offenders beyond that of temporary employment. Clients are exposed to career path planning as well as NICRO’s Business Awareness Workshops, a process through which potential entrepreneurs are identified. Suitable candidates are then referred to NICRO’s Economic Opportunities Project for more intensive intervention and business skills training. The Project also incorporates more practical or vocational skills training components and educational opportunities such as literacy classes.

One of the greatest challenges facing anyone who has broken the law is once again becoming a constructive, contributing citizen. In the past, hundreds of offenders came to NICRO after their release from prison, needing help to find a way of moving forward in the tough world of "the outside". The Tough Enough Programme grew from the challenge NICRO put to these offenders: "Are you tough enough to face the challenge of living a constructive life?"

Despite being relatively new and having only been implemented in April 2000, the Tough Enough Programme (one of five components of the Offender Reintegration Programme) has become the main focus of NICRO’s offender reintegration work.

This intensive 9-12 month intervention programme challenges offenders to take full responsibility for their actions, make amends and hold themselves accountable for their future and that of their families.

• Provide the necessary intervention and support to voluntary participants within prisons in order that they are able to identify and meet the challenges they face, and prepare for their release and subsequent reintegration into society
• Assist them with the development of life plans and strategies which will facilitate their successful reintegration
• Promote the acquisition of life skills and assist with the establishment of the necessary support mechanisms for participants following release
• Successful reintegration
• Prevent re-offending.

Based on the following premise (taken from the Social Exclusion Unit):

TEP comprises six specific phases, each of which will be detailed briefly.

• Phase One – Selection and Recruitment

• Phase Two - Setting the Challenge

• 27 Volunteers in the programme throughout the eight provinces.
• 26 Programme Staff

1. Relationships with family and individuals
2. Impact on individual skills and characteristics
3. Dealing with stigmatisation

• Some feedback from clients in the Free State Province: