TRAINING

Are South Africa’s security officers properly trained considering the escalation in crime?

“Escalating crime figures suggest that the 588,368 security officers deployed by 9,398 registered security businesses are not doing the job for which their clients pay.”

So says Benedict Weaver, CEO of Zero Foundation Africa, a Pan-African corporate intelligence firm headquartered in South Africa. “Whilst it is admirable that PSiRA (Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority) has developed training standards designed to create a capable and trained private security industry in South Africa, concerns remain about the competency of officers deployed to guard sites. Whether these sites are industrial, commercial, residential, or key points, the question is: are the security officers fit for purpose, and is their current training sufficient for the job at hand?”

If they are capable and carry out their duties of protecting a company’s key corporate assets (property, people, information and reputation), then South Africans should have absolute confidence in the legitimacy, occupational practises, and transformation of the private security industry, he avers. But police crime statistics, the latest of which were released on 19 November by the country’s Minister of Police, General Bheki Cele, suggest that poor training and inadequate management skills in the sector – in many instances –are part of the problem rather than the solution.

Aside from the risk to corporate assets as a result of poor security service delivery, Weaver says that travellers are also increasingly vulnerable as a result of the dramatically changed global threat landscape. “According to well-informed sources in foreign intelligence services and security agencies, the various lockdowns have enabled terrorist groups to plan, communicate and coordinate more mayhem once travel resumes to pre-pandemic levels. The lockdowns also provided unique opportunities to radicalise disaffected individuals via the Internet, and sowed confusion amongst many with the proliferation of fake news and false information on social media platforms. Within this context, all corporate travellers are going to face heightened risks when travelling to countries whose economies have been destroyed by these lockdowns and whose populations have lost jobs and sources of legitimate income,” he warns.

The need for travel security training standards

Weaver says that South Africa’s security industry desperately needs training standards for corporate travellers. “Very few companies have a travel security policy and almost none have dedicated security professionals tasked with managing corporate travel security programmes for their employees. Generally, companies transfer this risk and the insurance to some very capable travel security providers, but transferring a risk is not a suitable defence against negligence should a staff member be killed by natural or manmade causes while visiting a foreign country on business. To mitigate this risk, companies need to be aware of their Duty of Care (DoC) obligations and the costs of legal compliance.”

He continues: “Every company has a duty of care towards its employees and contractors when they are working on the company premises. With globalisation and competitive forces pressuring companies to look for new markets, business travel has increased — and with it the risks to corporate travellers.”

Common risks include physical assault, robbery, hotel room invasion, fraud, and a variety of other attacks, says Weaver, and kidnappings and abductions have increased along with hostile surveillance and the theft of sensitive proprietary information. “Given the number of reported thefts of smartphones and computers, this information is often held on unsecured laptops which are left unattended in vehicles, hotel rooms or public places,” he says.

Part of the solution, believes Weaver, is Hostile Environment Awareness Training (H.E.A.T.).

“H.E.A.T. courses must be designed around a company’s specific operational needs. Whether delegates are seasoned travellers or are working away from home for the first time, the courses must provide all delegates with the practical knowledge and skills sets to operate in any hostile environment, with confidence.”

According to Weaver, H.E.A.T. courses comprise six critical training modules:

1. Psychology of Survival

This is an understanding of how the mental processes involved when operating in a hostile environment is critical to one’s survival. A comprehensive insight about the mental attitude and fortitude required to handle stress is provided during this module. Also, a thorough understanding of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and its implications enables delegates to know how to recognise and recover from such a debilitating condition.

2. Pre-Planning

A person’s ability to survive when conditions change from benign to critical is largely determined by the pre-planning and preparation conducted before travelling to any destination. In Africa, the need to plan is critical to the success of one’s journey and helps company management to assist corporate travellers who find themselves isolated and far from home in negative circumstances.

3. Handling a Disaster

Whether you’re living in a hotel or in an expatriate residence, there is always the risk that local conditions might deteriorate to such a state that evacuation is imminent. By providing delegates with the knowledge and skills sets to handle themselves and others during natural or man-made disasters, corporate management is able to develop cost-effective and practicable contingency plans.

4. Kidnapping in Africa

Recent experiences have shown that the crime of kidnapping for ransom or extortion is on the increase throughout the African continent. By making delegates more aware of terrorist tradecraft and the cycle of crime, they will be far better able to minimise the risk of kidnapping and optimise their chances of survival.

5. Anti- and Counter-Surveillance

Physical and electronic surveillance is the most common method by which hostile intelligence and security agencies monitor the activities of expatriate personnel and corporate travellers. By understanding the nature of the threat, and how to handle such surveillance, delegates enhance their situational awareness. By improving such situational awareness, they improve their chances of survival and are able to operate effectively in any hostile environment.

6.Emergency Medicine

A hostile environment is one in which there is a high risk of loss of life, limb or liberty. During the emergency medicine module, delegates are exposed to the latest medical knowledge with regard to blunt trauma and gunshot wounds. Also, the ability to organise a medical evacuation after stabilising oneself is taught, as are other techniques of medical self-preservation.

Benedict Weaver.

Advanced training for key company personnel

Whilst a H.E.A.T. course does heighten the situational awareness of delegates, other company personnel who are insured for Kidnap and Ransom (K&R) should have more specialised training, maintains Weaver. During these courses, delegates need to be briefed and experience the various stages of capture, transportation, processing, and captivity. They must learn how to exploit weaknesses in the various scenarios they might experience, especially with regard to the type of restraints and methods of confinement used. The ability to remove duct tape, rope, flexicuffs and handcuffs are necessary not only to minimise injury and improve comfort but also to escape from captivity. Acquiring the knowledge and skills sets to know what escape tools one should carry, conceal, or manufacture from everyday materials is vital to surviving unlawful detention or imprisonment. Such advanced training involving escape and evasion should be combined with an understanding of fundamental counter-kidnap and hostage survival strategies. In this way, delegates will have the best possible chance of adapting to the demands of their captivity for however long is required.

“From a business perspective, any investment in training is money well spent,” he emphasises. “Therefore, although no training standards currently exist for corporate travellers, excellent H.E.A.T. courses and travel security consultancy services are available to provide companies with the means to mitigate their financial and reputational risks, especially amongst their travellers in Africa. Company leadership must take time to review their travel security protocols and assess their DoC obligations before a member of their staff dies or is harmed while conducting business.”

Laurie Greyvenstein.

The need for Restorative Justice Practitioner training in South Africa

In light of South Africa’s dire crime situation and its over-flowing prisons, Laurie Greyvenstein, director of the Social Justice Foundation, an accredited training service provider, has welcomed the greenlighting of Restorative Justice (RJ), a known concept around the world, as a form of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) in criminal disputes in South Africa.

He explains: “The traditional way of dealing with crime in South Africa is litigation through the Criminal Justice System (CJS) but it is a tedious, timeconsuming process and not always the best or appropriate way to deal with less serious offences. RJ is an informal process and depends on community involvement in dealing with the consequences of crime.”

It’s not without its problems, though. Low resolution rates leave little room for community involvement in terms of meting out justice, says Greyvenstein, and crime victims often end up with a lack of closure. What’s more, there is a 94 percent recidivism rate for longterm prisoners within two years of their release.

By way of definition, restorative justice is an approach to justice with the intention of involving the parties involved in disputes or those affected by the harm, including the victims, the offenders, the families concerned and community members. It’s intended to collectively identify harm, needs and obligations through accepting responsibilities, making restitution, and taking measures to prevent a recurrence of the incident and promoting reconciliation, he explains.

“Not all cases are appropriate for RJ but various common law crimes and many statutory offences are quite suitable for these alternative methods. The private sector can position itself in offering valuable services to communities with direct community involvement in addressing crime. This is a viable opportunity for the security industry and Community Policing Forums (CPF) to take hands in making a difference in society. RJ can be applied at any stage after a crime has been committed — from pre-reporting to post-release from prison and integrating offenders back into community life.”

Integrity training

“Thousands of South Africans agree that the time has come to raise the business integrity metre but not many people really understand what that means or what it takes. Reassuring slogans and hard-hitting values exhibited on a company website may look good, but all that glitters is not always gold.”

That’s the word from Jenny Reid, director of iFacts, a South African employee screening services provider, which has partnered with the Integrity Forum to provide companies with a programme designed to cultivate true integrity in employees.

“We believe that integrity has the powerful capability to transform both business and personal lives,” says Reid, adding: “The business landscape is fraught with examples of how a lack of integrity can have devastating reputational and financial consequences. With high levels of fraud and corruption in business, it is important to consider integrity training as a critical component of leadership and development programmes.”

While many organisations tout integrity as part of their value system, there is often a lack of understanding on how to apply it, she notes. “Organisations may even have a code of conduct and ethics that employees are expected to follow in the workplace. However, integrity is far more complex. It is a value that lies at the core of the individual. Individuals who have integrity will always do the next right thing. They are honest and have strong moral principles. Having integrity comes down to the individual employee making the decision to uphold those organisational ethics. In the simplest sense, ethics is not a choice whereas integrity is very much a personal choice.”

Jenny Reid.

Can integrity be taught?

Yes, says Reid. “For the application of integrity to take hold, there must first be an awareness and understanding of what integrity is. iFacts has partnered with the Integrity Forum to provide an online course which teaches individuals how to define personal integrity, to look at their own level of integrity and how to apply it in their everyday life. The training will provide them with an understanding of what the cost and consequences of acting without integrity are for themselves and their organisation. In the words of Integrity Leadership Specialist Charissa Bloomberg: ‘Integrity costs nothing, but when you lose it, you lose everything,” she concludes.

Contacts:

Zero Foundation Africa

Tel: +27 (0)21 712 3024

Email: info@zerofoundationafrica.com

Website: www.zerofoundationafrica.com

Social Justice Foundation

Tel: +27 (0)84 507 4354

Email: laurie@socialjustice.co.za

Website: www.socialjustice.co.za or www.socialjustice.org.za

iFacts

Tel: +27 (0)11 4531627

Email: info@ifacts.co.za

Website: www.ifacts.co.za/integritytraining/ or www.ifacts.co.za