The Portfolio Committee on Police in South Africa has initiated a 30-day campaign to publish the names, photographs, convictions, and sentences of verified adult sexual offenders using public court records. This move aims to bring attention to the lack of public access to the National Register for Sex Offenders (NRSO), which has been a concern for nearly two years. Committee chairperson Ian Cameron stated that the campaign will focus on convictions that can be independently verified through public court records.
The NRSO is intended to record individuals convicted of sexual offenses against children and other vulnerable people. Although employers working with vulnerable groups can conduct prescribed checks, the register is generally not open to the public. The issue has been under consideration by the Justice Department for over a year, with discussions on making the register more accessible. In September 2025, Justice Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi informed Parliament that the Office of the Chief State Law Adviser had concluded that the register could not be made public under existing law.
According to Minister Kubayi, section 52 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act prohibits the publication of information from the register, except for specific purposes provided for in the Act or by a competent court. She confirmed that a law of general application would be required, and directed the department to prepare necessary legislative amendments. However, concerns have been raised about the progress of these amendments, with some questioning what has happened to the drafted changes.
Nobuntu Hlazo-Webster, Deputy Leader of Build One SA (BOSA) and Johannesburg mayoral candidate, has questioned the delay in finalizing and implementing the legislative amendments. She emphasized that the public has a legitimate interest in knowing whether the system designed to protect children and vulnerable people is working effectively. The NRSO reportedly contains around 32,000 names, but South Africans currently have no meaningful way of accessing this information.
The Kwanele Foundation has expressed support for greater public access to the register, citing the potential to protect women, children, men, and boys by allowing people to know who has been convicted of sexual offenses. Foundation founder Sihle Sibisi stressed the importance of safeguards, particularly to ensure that victims' names are never published and that information is limited to offenders who have been convicted in court.
Ian Cameron has also emphasized that public access should not mean publishing sensitive information such as addresses, identity numbers, or victims' details. The campaign aims to put renewed pressure on the government to address the lack of public access to information about convicted sexual offenders. By publishing verified convictions and sentences, the committee hopes to highlight the need for greater transparency.
The issue of public access to the sex offender register remains a pressing concern in South Africa, particularly in light of the ongoing national crisis of gender-based violence. Various stakeholders, including the Portfolio Committee on Police and the Kwanele Foundation, are advocating for changes to the law to allow for greater transparency and public access to information about convicted sexual offenders.
Key points
- The Portfolio Committee on Police has launched a 30-day campaign to publish names and convictions of verified adult sexual offenders.
- The National Register for Sex Offenders (NRSO) currently contains around 32,000 names, but is not accessible to the public.
- The Justice Department is working on legislative amendments to allow for greater public access to the register, but concerns have been raised about the delay in finalizing these changes.
