Amnesty International wants Cele to come clean on DNA backlog
Amnesty
International South Africa has called on Police Minister Bheki Cele to give a
clear outline on the DNA backlog of gender-based violence and femicide-related
cases.
It says the existing backlog at the Forensic Science Laboratories is denying victims access to justice.
This comes after the minister told the country that the DNA backlog would be cleared within six months, during a media briefing in March this year.
Amnesty International SA spokesperson Sibusiso Khasa says the inconsistent and unreliable data shows a lack of commitment.
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"They are not reliable figures because if you look at the State of Nation Address, which President Cyril Ramaphosa delivered in February, he indicated that the 58 000 cases were cleared from the DNA backlog.
“The minister confirmed this in in the SONA debate. However, in May he came back to tell us that the cases were around 154 000 and if you look at some of the reports that have been coming through from Parliament, they also indicate that the figures could be higher around 180 000 cases.”
