CSPRI Newsletter, No. 27, August 2008

This newsletter focuses primarily on the latest amendment to the Correctional Services Act, which is written by Amanda Dissel (Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation).

The Correctional Services Amendment Bill (B32 of 2007) was adopted by the Portfolio Committee on Correctional Services (the Portfolio Committee) on 6 May 2008 and by Parliament on 15 May 2008. It awaits signature by the President before becoming law. The Department of Correctional Services (DCS) submitted the proposed amendments in 2007, purportedly to bring the legislation in line with the 2005 White Paper on Corrections. While on the first reading, the amendments deal mainly with changes in terminology and are fairly superficial, some of the amendments are also substantive and go to the heart of the philosophy and services offered by the DCS.

[taken from the Introduction of the article on the Correctional Services Act: a survey of the latest amendments]