This article builds on two lectures (delivered in 2017 and 2019 at the University of the Western Cape and the University of Cape Town respectively) that addressed a a controversial and often overlooked crisis in the criminal justice system – the minimum sentencing regime.  The paper argues that minimum sentences are no response at all to curbing crime in South Africa and to making our people safe. The minimum sentencing regime is a misdirected, hugely costly and above all ineffective way of punishing criminals and dealing with crime. It has been an extravagant mistake of science, understanding, and policy and social response. The article summarises some of the arguments and considers why we are still stuck with minimum sentences when they are demonstrably useless and counterproductive. The author argues that the reasons lie in our broken history, in incoherent decision-making in our present political leadership, institutional incompetence, and the fact that minimum sentences themselves, through their false promise, divert us from finding more efficient solutions.    

中文翻译：

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南非的刑事司法危机

本文建立在两场讲座（分别于 2017 年和 2019 年在西开普大学和开普敦大学举行）的基础上，这些讲座解决了刑事司法系统中一个有争议且经常被忽视的危机——最低量刑制度。该论文认为，最低刑罚根本不是对遏制南非犯罪和保障我们人民安全的回应。最低量刑制度是一种方向错误、代价高昂且最重要的是惩罚罪犯和处理犯罪的无效方式。这是科学、理解、政策和社会反应的一个极端错误。这篇文章总结了一些论点，并考虑了为什么我们仍然坚持使用最少的句子，而这些句子显然无用且适得其反。作者认为原因在于我们破碎的历史，