Automated access to information for crime reduction

Abstract

This research investigates the role of policy on crime reduction by establishing whether it is inhibiting or enabling e-governance. e-Governance is necessary to automate access by the Department of South African Police Services (SAPS) to information held by the Department of Home Affairs (DoHA). Automated Access to information is needed by SAPS to enhance the identification of perpetrators as a strategy for crime reduction. The study explored this process through a qualitative data collection and analysis methodology that utilized a case study of both departments to understand their policy practices with regards to access by SAPS, to information held by DoHA. The findings revealed that even though the departments are mostly in compliance with access to information policy, this does not enable SAPS to effectively address crime reduction. It was further revealed that the egovernance policy has not been regularly evaluated and adapted to the current identification needs of other departments and has therefore resulted in egovernance not being implemented to enable automated access by SAPS to information held by DoHA. Access to information and e-governance policies should be modified and adapted to identify emergency departments to take the urgency of their identification requests into account while the perceived benefits of e-governance being developed at DoHA should also be viewed in terms of the benefits to the rest of the departments taking into account their urgency levels.