The National Prosecuting Authority’s Strategy for 2020 refers to restorative justice and alternate dispute resolution, according to Senior Public Prosecutor Mark Dyson. Diversion programmes, which fall within these approaches, aim to provide first offenders, who have committed petty crimes, with an opportunity to take responsibility for their actions and go through a process other than through the conventional court procedure.

The offenders are offered the opportunity to participate in diversion programmes after being assessed by prosecutors and may be referred to an outside organisation such as the National Institute for Crime Prevention and the Reintegration of Offenders (NICRO). In addition, prosecutors may also involve offenders in other programmes or activities, according to Dyson. “We can ask offenders to do community service in a diversion manner.

Suitable offenders may have been charged with crimes such as possession of drugs, theft, minor assault and crimen injuria. However, Dyson said that each case is treated on its merits, with a number of criteria taken into account. “A possible candidate for diversion must have a stable background and must be able to report to a service provider. Diversion wouldn’t be suitable for a street child who doesn’t have a guardian, for example.” It may sound like an easy way out for an offender, but Dyson and the service providers said this is not the case. “Some offenders may even find diversion the harsher option.

Offenders have to accept responsibility for an offence in order to participate in a diversion programme. “That is, they must be willing to plead guilty if they did appear in court,” said Dyson. In addition, they must be willing to participate in the programme because their involvement is voluntary. Once they agree to participate, they are part of a rigorous programme and if they do not comply with any requirements the court is informed and the offender will be charged with the original offence. Charges against the offenders who do comply are withdrawn by the court. Contracts explaining the requirements are signed by the offender and the prosecutor, and sometimes also by the service provider and the offender.

NICRO runs several programmes including a youth empowerment scheme programme which teaches life skills, victim offender mediation and family group conferencing, according to the organisation’s Margaret Sibiya. Another programme called The Journey requires offenders to spend a week in the wilderness where they participate in intensive group therapy as well as other activities that enable them to interact with nature and reflect on themselves. The service providers also involve parents or other support structures in the rehabilitation process.

The involvement of parents in diversion programmes is also important for service providers, according to Sibiya. “We often work with parents. We try to empower them to ensure that their kids don’t go back and commit crime again,” she said. There are a number of advantages of diversion, according to Dyson. “Many offenders have been helped through diversion programmes. Offenders who are simply given a fine may end up back on the streets and may not be rehabilitated. In the correct circumstances, the diversion process has benefits for the offender and also for society.”

A previous participant in a NICRO diversion programme, Zwano Mpiyakhe agreed. “Take a child who is 11 years old who steals a lollipop and is sentenced for theft. He might not attend school for two years and may end up a hard core criminal. If he gets a criminal record at such an age, he has nothing to work for because everything has been destroyed. He is likely to be more of a danger to the community than if he had been involved in a diversion programme.”

ZWANO’S STORY

Currently a student studying law and criminology at university, life has not always looked so good for 23-year old Zwano Mpiyakhe.

At the age of 17 and in grade nine at the time, Mpiyakhe was arrested for possession of dagga. Nicro’s diversion programme helped him to change his life around.

“I never thought that I would be able to go to university. Now I walk proud knowing that I’m different from others in my community. I have NICRO, as well as some other people, to thank for that,” Mpiyakhe said. “It is about a self-realisation. It all lies with the individual understanding the implications of crime. It is not about someone saying ‘don’t do crime’. An organisation such as NICRO has a role to play, but it is up to the individual.”

For him the impact of the programme was partly due to understanding the implications of crime on the victims, his family and the economy.

His hope for the future is that programmes that teach life skills will be offered increasingly at a younger age and in schools. “We need to have programmes that address these issues proactively. We have offenders that are eight or nine years old. The current life skills programmes that are offered in schools deal with things like how to brush teeth, but we need to be focusing on issues that relate to the escalating crime.”

Mpiyakhe emphasised that he does not intend to defend criminals when he obtains his law degree, but plans to conduct research on crime-related issues.