Glenister at the coalface: are the police part of an effective independent security service?

Abstract

This article looks at the problem of corruption to which Glenister refers through a different disciplinary lens: sociology. It does not ignore the law, but utilises the voices of South African citizens to explore these problematics as they are captured in focus groups recently run by the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) throughout South Africa: in the township of Alexandra in Gauteng; the informal settlement, Zamdela, in the Free State; and an informal settlement falling under traditional jurisdiction, Violet Bank, in the province of Limpopo.