Media Statement
Department of Justice and Constitutional Development welcomes report by the Public Protector into systemic administrative deficiencies relating to Gender Based Violence within the South African Justice System
04 June 2024
On 12 June 2020 Altecia Kortje and her 7-year-old daughter, Raynecia, were tragically murdered in Belhar in the Western Cape.
News media reported at the time that Ms Kortje had allegedly murdered by her former partner1 and that she had apparently approached the Bellville Magistrates Court (BMC) to apply for a domestic violence protection order, but was turned away by the court officials.
In view of the seriousness of the allegations, the Deputy Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, Mr John Jeffery, requested the Public Protector to investigate the matter and to ascertain whether there was any failure on the part of the court officials to assist Ms Kortje.
In March 2021, the Office of the Public Protector concluded its BMC investigation and found that the evidence obtained from the investigation did not support the allegation that Ms Kortje was turned away or not assisted by the BMC when she went there to apply for the protection order on 8 June 2020.
There was thus no improper conduct or maladministration on the part of the BMC.
Flowing from the investigation, the then Acting Public Protector agreed with the Deputy Minister that the BMC investigation had raised serious concerns regarding how women are treated by officials when seeking assistance within the court system, in particular on matters that relate to gender-based violence as well as the difficulties faced by women with obtaining assistance in maintenance matters.
Based on these considerations the Public Protector decided to conduct a systemic investigation into the issues raised.
The Department welcomes the report and the accompanying remedial action issued by the Public Protector in the follow-up Report on Systemic Administrative Deficiencies relating to Gender-Based Violence within Justice System which was received by the Deputy Minister earlier today.
“The ability of the justice system to serve and support women who come to seek justice services or assistance from the courts is an absolute priority for us and we must continuously seek ways in which it can be improved,” said Deputy Minister Jeffery.
It was also for this reason that the Department crafted three new laws to deal with gender-based violence and to bring about improvements in the system to better protect and support survivors of GBV. These include measures such as, for example, electronic protection orders. The NPA’s Thuthuzela Care Centers have also expanded their mandate to include assistance to all GBV survivors.
We welcome the detailed remedial action stated by the Public Protector pertaining to, amongst others, human resource capacity, training, records management, court accessibility, language constraints and the complexity of forms, and specifically the deadlines within which these are to be met.
“We want to commend the Public Protector for this very useful investigation, which focuses not only on the Department of Justice, but also on the SAPS and the Department of Social Development as key stakeholders in the justice system.
The implementation of the proposed remedial action is vital. The justice system has to be responsive to the needs of those seeking assistance. These are matters which affect the daily lives of women in a very real way, therefore we must ensure that the system is made less cumbersome and more user-friendly.
On Saturday it will be 4 years to the day that Altecia Kortje came to Bellville Magistrates Court for a protection order – this report honours her memory and the memories of so many other women who have lost their lives to gender-based violence. The Public Protector’s Report will help the justice system to better protect women against GBV and to save lives,” said Deputy Minister Jeffery.
Enquiries:
Mr. Chrispin Phiri
Spokesperson: Ministry of Justice and Correctional Services
081 781 2261
Issued by the Ministry of Justice and Correctional Services
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1 Note: Ryan Smith, who was Altecia’s former partner and the father of Raynecia, was later found guilty of their murders and sentenced to life imprisonment by the Western Cape High Court.
