Hawks fly in the face of Justice, Mail & Guardian, April 2016

By | 12th May 2016

In the benchmark Constitutional Court judgment of Glenister II, the majority held that “our law demands a body outside executive control to deal effectively with corruption”. This body is meant to be the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI), known as the Hawks.

We say “meant to be” because practice seemingly reveals the disconerting use of the Hawks as a political tool to further partisan and personal agendas of those who wield the real power in our democracy.

Established under Chapter 6A of the South African Police Services Act 68 of 1995, the essential job description of the Hawks is to “prevent, combat and investigate national priority offences, in particular serious organised crime, serious commercial crime and serious corruption”.

The investigation into the establishment and activities of the National Research Group, called by some the “rogue spy unit”, in the South African Revenue Services (Sars) during Pravin Gordhan’s tenure as commissioner, worryingly appears to fall outside this mandate. …

Click here to read the full article: http://mg.co.za/article/2016-05-20-hawks-fly-in-the-face-of-justice

Click download the PDF version of the article, or click on the pictures below for larger versions:

Hawks-Fly-In-The-Face-Of-Justice-1 Hawks-Fly-In-The-Face-Of-Justice-2