The managerial role of women in the South African Police Service : the case of Johannesburg SAPS

Abstract

Since 1994, South Africa has a new democratic dispensation. This new- Democracy in South Africa has the aim to change the lives of ever)- citizen in South Africa. A new, Constitution and the Bill of Rights have been adopted to ensure that discrimination policies of the past are to be addressed. The Government of South Africa committed itself to gender equality and this commitment has to transpire to all public institutions. It is therefore. important that public institutions should engage in a process of ongoing change and investigate their own controlled styles in support of gender justice. In the South African Police. before 1994. women were not considered as an essential part of the workforce and they were not employed in senior management positions. The new South African Police Service adopted community policing as a new style of policing and embarked on a strong sense of service delivery to the community. South Africa has a diverse community and to enable the SAPS to deliver a proper service to the community they serve, the human-resource component should reflect this: incorporating men and women as equal partners. The managers of the SAPS have therefore to change accordingly and with that the whole organisation and its members. When times change, it requires a change in attitudes and perceptions. The aim of this study was to engender a new consciousness in the SAPS and the society about the role of policewomen as competent managers in a male-dominated profession and not for superiority of any of the genders. In any society women play a critical role: therefore the respect for the rights of women in society brings capability and builds capacity. Semi-structured interview schedules were used to conduct interviews with female police station managers as well as their subordinates at different stations to obtain the necessary information. A literature re vie^ was done to obtain information and views from other authors on the topic of policewomen. Limited research has been done on policewomen or on women in management positions in SAPS. Chapter one provides an orientation to the study. Legislation by Government as well as policies and directives from the SAPS were discussed in Chapter 2 to set the scene for the study. The question is asked whether these legislation. policies and directives are effectively being implemented to enhance the development of women in the organisation and to give them a fair chance to show their skills and competencies in managerial positions. The study further materialises in a discussion on the role and performance of women in the policing environment and a historical background of women in policing in South Africa. The remainder of the study focuses on the research methodology, the empirical findings: a summary: recommendations and a conclusion.