Juveniles in transition: The situation in South Africa

Abstract

Postapartheid South Africa exemplifies the limitations of using incarceration as a crime control strategy with particular reference to its youth. South Africa has the largest prison population in Africa, and yet it is known as an “exceptionally, possibly uniquely, violent society” (Altbeker in A country at war with itself: South Africa’s crisis of crime. Jonathan Ball, Cape Town, South Africa, 2007). Crime’s grip on South Africa is in a large part rooted in the government’s insufficient response to dealing with the root causes of crime, including the transition needs of ex-offenders, particularly vulnerable youth. But civil society organizations (CSOs) are attempting to address shortcomings in government’s response to crime. The chapter outlines the South African context, and then highlights the myriad of problems faced by South African youth and the governmental response, before examining a case study of a CSO that provide reintegration services for youth in Cape Town, where the realities of life after incarceration in an impoverished community are described. The Taxonomy for Transition Programming 2.0 is referred to at key points throughout the chapter to highlight how it applies and could inform transition planning for incarcerated youth in the South African context.