Председатель комитета по полиции призывает пересмотреть процедуру освобождения под залог при преступлениях бандитов

Police committee chair Ian Cameron calls for bail rethink in gang-related matters Updated | By Faith Modise The Chairperson of Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Police, Ian Cameron, said South Africa may need to reconsider its approach to bail for certain gang-related offences, as communities continue to grapple with violent crime. Cameron added that the repeated offenders being released on bail and allegedly returning to criminal activity is fueling frustration in communities affected by gang violence. “There is definite merit in having to relook the bail process,” Cameron said. His comments come as Parliament prepares to begin its inquiry into gang-related violence, with the process set to start with a gang violence summit involving affected communities, victims, civil society organisations, neighbourhood watches and community patrollers. The inquiry follows a National Assembly resolution mandating Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Police to investigate gang violence, initially with a focus on the Western Cape. He reiterated that authorities should consider an accused person’s criminal history. “We also need to see who opposed bail. What was done to ensure and to check up and to check in on the specific accused? What were all the previous offences? Were there previous cases that were withdrawn? If so, why?” Cameron said. He argued that simply looking at an individual bail application may not be enough when dealing with alleged repeat gang offenders. Speaking to Jacaranda NewsWatch, further said that Parliament should consider whether bail should remain an option for certain gang-related offences. He said the problem is not confined to one province, pointing to areas including Reiger Park, Eldorado Park, parts of Durban and Nelson Mandela Bay. The lawmaker also described the scale of gang violence in some parts of the country as resembling a “small-scale war.” For Cameron, tackling gang violence requires more than putting police officers on the streets. He said that the government needs to place greater emphasis on intelligence-led investigations, prosecutions, and convictions. “We’ve seen Operation Prosper, the SANDF being deployed, but we haven’t seen any remarkable or any really definite decrease in gang-related murders,” he expanded. “In fact, in some places, we’ve seen an increase.” Cameron argued that the government has focused too heavily on visible policing while failing to emphasize intelligence and prosecution-led investigations. In March, Cameron told a parliamentary media briefing that a fundamental shift in policing strategy was needed, including a stronger focus on successful prosecutions and targeting high-level criminal actors. INQUIRY TO ALLOW COMMUNITIES TO SPEAK UP The upcoming summit is intended to give people living with gang violence an opportunity to put their experiences and proposed solutions directly before Parliament. Cameron said the committee does not want the process to become a “talk shop”. Instead, he said, the summit should ensure that the formal inquiry is informed by the experiences of communities on the ground. He said the impact of gang violence must also be understood beyond statistics. The committee is expected to consider a range of possible interventions, including policing capacity, corruption within the police service, investigative powers and the court process. ALSO READ: MORE ON JACARANDA FM Show's Stories - Instagram CEO reveals what happens when you accidentally like old postsIf you have ever done a deep dive on an ex’s Insta profile and accidentall… The Drive with Rob & Roz 2 days, 5 hours ago - Win R25,000 with Hi-Lo on The Drive with Rob and RozPlay along on The Drive with Rob & Roz from 16:00-19:00 and you can st… The Drive with Rob & Roz 2 days, 9 hours ago