Evaluating South Africa's policy and institutional frameworks to combat terrorism : implications for security sector reform

Abstract

If the stability of the Southern African region is to be maintained, the ability to combat and prevent terrorism should be of utmost importance to South Africa. The lack of significant terrorist attacks in the region is likely to entice the authorities into a state of complacency, and denial, potentially resulting in a failure to take action. This may provide an opportunity for terrorists to launch attacks in South Africa, which has become a preferred destination for terrorists. The question of its readiness for a terrorist attack, therefore, becomes ever relevant. The primary objective of the study is to evaluate the effectiveness of South Africa’s policy and institutional framework to combat and prevent terrorism in South Africa as perceived by senior officers in the South African National Defence Force (SANDF). The study uses the institutional theory as its primary theoretical framework to assess the institutions responsible for countering terrorism. It additionally identifies South Africa’s anti-terrorism legislation and relevant institutions responsible for combatting and preventing terrorism. It further evaluates the institutions’ history in preventing terrorism, as well as their state of readiness in case of probable attacks. Importantly, the study measures the respondents’ perceptions regarding the institutions’ ability to quell a terrorist attack. This study utilised an explanatory sequential mixed method approach, which involved surveying 280 senior officers from the SANDF. The respondents were selected using a probability sampling technique known as simple random sampling. An additional 19 academics and security practitioners were chosen using a non-probability random method, purposive sampling method. Semi-structured interviews were used for this purpose. The quantitative data was analysed using the IBM SPSS computer software’s descriptive statistics. The qualitative data, on the other hand, was analysed using the thematic analysis approach. These elements were integrated and interpreted simultaneously. The study’s key finding is that there appears to be a general lack of public trust and confidence in the capacity of government institutions and the anti-terrorism policy framework to effectively combat and prevent terrorism in South Africa. This can be vii attributed to the perceived high levels of corruption in certain government institutions, institutional dysfunctionality, and a general apathy towards the government. Furthermore, inadequate communication regarding terrorism may have adversely impacted the respondents’ views on the government’s capacity to address a terrorist threat in South Africa. This finding is suggestive of a need for a holistic approach to security sector reform in order to effectively combat terrorism in South Africa.