Question NW1807 to the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services
17 July 2023 - NW1807
Madokwe, Ms P to ask the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services
Given that a documentary from around 2016 exposed human rights abuses and the improper management of a G4S-run youth detention facility in the United Kingdom (UK), whereupon the UK government terminated G4S’s contract with a different G4Srun facility after it was revealed that prisoners had taken control of the facility, and in view of a protest by local prisoners citing the same in South Africa a few years later, what (a) are the reasons that his department did not review its contract with G4S then, as its UK counterparts and (b) consequences did G4S management and officials face for the allegations made by South African prisoners in its facilities?
Reply:
a) The Department has not entered into any contracts with the mentioned service provider, however the mentioned company is a sub-contractor of the Bloemfontein Correctional Contracts (Pty) Ltd (BCC) which operates the Mangaung Correctional Centre (MCC) as a Public Private Partnership (PPP) Correctional Centre under sections 103 – 112 of the Correctional Services Act 111 of 1998, as amended (CSA).
Since the inception of the Concession Contract between Department of Correctional Services (DCS) and the Bloemfontein Correctional Services Contract (BCC), the department has closely monitored the contract in terms of all obligations through a DCS Controller who is permanently employed to oversee all operations in relation thereto as well as note any deviations to the contract for action. G4S’s contractual obligations from UK have no bearing on the agreement between DCS and BCC.
b) All allegations were dealt with in terms of the concession contract, in the event that BCC and its sub-contractors have failed to comply with any contractual obligations relevant penalties have been instituted.
END