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= Organised Crime in South Africa =

Pre-Apartheid Organised Crime
Organised crime has existed in South Africa for decades but has taken on many different forms and significance based on the social, economic and political activities that were happening at the time. Organised crime groups date back to the 1800s both internationally and locally. Local crime groups in the 1800s share similar ideological views to the current organised crime groups of today. Although crime groups in the early to mid-1900s were largely marginalised and criminalised based on their race, the policing laws by the government only focused on black majorities having their pass documents and ensuring illegal liquor was not kept. Additionally, as anti-apartheid activists began to increase their activity in the 1980s, the South African Police (SAP) focused their time on stopping this and not the current crimes affecting South African locals at the time. The organised crime rate and crime rates increased greatly during the 1980s due to South Africa’s political unrest, in particular the increase of international crime groups infiltrating the local crime group networks.

Post Apartheid Organised Crime
Organised crime group levels have gradually increased due to political transition, the breakdown of the criminal justice system and the effects of political violence. This transition to a democracy has meant that organised crime groups have merged or re-structured, there is an increase in the corruption on officials by these organised crime groups and international crime groups have been able to forge greater links to local crimes groups. The major activities done in South African organised crime groups are drug trafficking, vehicle related, commercial crimes or a combination of these. In reference to the drug trafficking, it is the location of South Africa that makes it a very important. It lies in easy reach to the far and middle east, the Americas and Europe. The weak security measures and border control at various small airports and ports makes South Africa an easy location to traffic drugs. Within the country itself, drug trafficking operates through the many mini buses that continuously run on inter-city routes. The rise in drug trafficking has meant a rise in turf wars between the various organised crime groups. This in turn enforces the existence of illegal weapon possession in order for these turf wars to be won.

Prison Gangs
Prison gangs in South Africa have been active for 80 years. South Africa is particularly known for having a very strong prison gang system and they have a particular function, origin and impact on the prison community and social organisation. The prison gangs are predominantly, not exclusively, made of black South Africans and coloured South Africans in maximum security prisons. It is not to say that prison gangs do not exist outside of a maximum security prison but rather that their existence is more prevalent and noticeable. The infamous numbers gangs, are the most popular and known gang. There are also groups such as Air Force and the Big 5. Amongst these gangs there is a fight for domination over the social order. The gangs within the South African prison resort to violence, intimidation of both the informal and formal social actors in order to maintain control. There are distinct gang codes and symbols that represent a form of communication, which is unique to each prison gang.

Prison gangs will often lose gang members to deaths, transfers or members finishing their sentenced time in prison. Recruitment in order to maintain control in numbers. In particular, the 26s have a certain procedure that makes a recruit an official member. It is important to note the very imaginary qualities of the recruitment process that have been passed through the years. A fantastical idea of becoming a member of a prison gang is created in order for the recruits to establish a real bond to the other members.

Being in a prison gang does not mean that all links to the outside world are severed. Contacts and information is still passed between members on the outside the prison and those within the prison.

Nigerian Organised Crime Groups
The end of apartheid of Apartheid in 1994, ended the  isolation South Africa had with the world. In turn, this allowed an influx of international organised crime groups within the country. The crime activities of the Nigerian organised crime groups are largely based on drug trafficking. The most commonly found drugs according to the South African Police are cocaine, heroin, dagga, mandrax, ecstasy and LSD. Another large way in which Nigerians are involved in organised crime is the fee fraud scheme. The scam involves the payment of fees in accordance to the scenario created by the crime syndicate. The money is then sent into a the Nigerian crime groups bank account of which then the deal does not materialise. These illegal deals are often reported but nothing is ever done due to the corruption within the law enforcing body and the criminal justice system.

Chinese Organised Crime Groups
The 1990s was the first time in which Chinese organised crime groups were recognised as working in South Africa. These groups were mainly responsible for the illegal transportation of shark fins and abalone. Abalone is considered to be a delicacy and an aphrodisiac in China, and explains the reason as to why it is the main commodity of Chinese organised crime group in South Africa. These groups also illegally transport in rhino and elephant horn (ivory), contraband goods and drugs. The South African Police have been able to identify four main organised crime groups originating from Hong Kong. These groups are: two 14K groups, Wo Shing Wo and Sun Yee On operating across South Africa from Cape Town, Pretoria, Johannesburg and Port Alfred. However, it has been identified that their main base of operations is in Johannesburg. The main group in the trafficking of narcotics from China to South Africa is Sun Yee On with. The Chinese organised groups are the leaders in the trade of abalone, with local South African crime groups often selling abalone to them.

General Trends
The organised crime threat analysis (OCTA) are the recommended strategies when combating organised crime. It involves four strategies to use:


 * 1) International Relations and Harmonization of Legislation: The strategy refers to to ensuring that all police officials, at all levels within the police hierarchy, have knowledge about the laws pertaining to organised crime. Often what occurs in South Africa is that the police at the ground level do not have the necessary knowledge of the law to uphold it and many instances of organised crimes is not followed up on. Certain legislation's that go unnoticed are the ones that involve quick searches, inquiries into peoples backgrounds and the ability to hinder certain crime group actors. For example, the creation of Regional Intelligence Liaison Office (RILO) was created to create a platform to look at transnational organised crime and the international laws that pertain it. This is necessary in combating organised crime because South Africa has organised crime groups from various countries acting within their borders.
 * 2) Police Model: The police model begins with the police working with the community in order to stop organised crime activities. The police model for South African Police needs to work on preventing opportunities for organised crime groups, detecting recurring criminal activities, investigating the crime activities further and then documenting it for future police officers to follow up on. South African communities have Community Policing Forums (CFPs) which involve local members of the community. However, these structures are not used proactively to help police organised crime.
 * 3) Organised Crime Risk Analysis: The creation of Organised Crime Risk Analysis (OCRA) allows the South African Police to constantly be updated on the problem of organised crime. Any new developments would be recorded by the this system. The system of OCRA prioritizes how large the gang is, how long it has been active, the impact their activities have on the community and the economy, the seriousness of the criminal activities, the communities attitudes towards the criminal groups and the effectiveness of police activities in stopping the organised crime group.
 * 4) Intelligence: The intelligence cycle is very important to attaining information about the organised crime group activities. It involves collecting, evaluating, analyzing and putting the information into action. In South Africa, intelligence is collected on a national level, but this information is not distributed to the local police force.
 * 5) Training, Development, Education: There is not sufficient focus on organised crime groups in the South African Police. There are detective departments that manage all kinds of crime but not specifically oganised crime group activities. Professional skill and knowledge needs to be obtained in order to successfully hinder organised crime group activities.

Rhino Horn Poaching
Organised crime groups find opportunities for wildlife poaching when the law enforcement is inadequate, which blurs the lines between what is legal and illegal. Often the organised crime groups hire and use the communities surrounding a game reserve or park, as their means to acquire rhino horns. Often these communities have a history with the wildlife, that stems back to generations of their families hunting them. Before, the actions of hunting were not illegal but the laws have not been made clear enough that killing rhino or any form of wildlife is illegal. Attempts have been made to legalize rhino poaching in the hopes that it will stop organised crime groups from benefiting from it illegally. However, the organised crime groups often control the middlemen of the rhino trade and so create a monopoly. The organised crime groups will purchase the legal rhino horns with the intention of selling them again illegally. The attempts to rid organised crime groups from participating in illegal rhino horn poaching have been difficult and flawed. Anti-poaching movements have not been enough to stop rhino horn poaching by organised crime groups. The anti-poaching policies have rather led to a steady increase in the rhino poaching, with extinction risks of rhinos are to occur between 2020 and 2050.

There are two ways in which to combat the organised crime groups in rhino horn poaching:


 * 1) Disrupting the organised crime group network. Because the majority of rhino horn trade is transnational, a joint database that collects all information about the rhino horn trade needs to be established. This can overcome the gap in some countries knowledge about this particular illegal activity.
 * 2) Establishing alternative economies. The organised crime groups use the local communities in order to carry out the rhino poaching activities. By creating economical activities for these communities, poaching rhino horns becomes less of an option in order to survive economically.