The 100-Day Challenge goals
The divorce team set a goal to reduce the divorce backlog by 50% and to hear at least 30 matters virtually. The sexual offences team set a goal to finalise 90% of the backlog and to have witnesses testify virtually in 40% of matters.
The teams
Both teams sit across court officials on their respective rolls. SAPS officials work directly with the sexual offences team, handling subpoenas and bringing witnesses to court when the roll requires it.
What they are doing
The sexual offences team meets every second week, which they describe as the mechanism that keeps issues surfacing early and keeps the programme running smoothly. Both teams are moving matters to virtual proceedings where the roll allows. During Child Protection Week the court donated items to Ngwana House.
Progress
The divorce team finalised 28 matters by the end of June, with one heard virtually. On the sexual offences roll, six cases had witnesses testify virtually. No sexual offence cases have been finalised yet: five sit at defence case stage, one at judgment on merits, one was set down for sentence on 17 July and one is at address on sentence. When the SOS testimony system in court A stopped working, the team switched to Teams rather than postpone. Child witnesses testified successfully on that setup, and the change also reduced state expenditure on witness travel.
Polokwane Regional Court