'Witness protection can't be done on shoestring!' - Glynnis Breytenbach, DA

Calls are growing for swift action to protect whistleblowers after the execution of Madlanga Commission witness Marius van der Merwe.

Last month, Van der Merwe testified before the commission which is investigating corruption in the criminal justice system.

Van der Merwe was shot dead outside his Brakpan home in front of his family on Friday.

In 2022, the Zondo Commission revealed that South Africa's existing whistleblower protection framework was critically insufficient and recommended urgent reforms to safeguard those who expose corruption.

Glynnis Breytenbach, the Democratic Alliance (DA) spokesperson on justice and constitutional development, says nothing has improved since then.

"Rather depressingly, very little has been done about the Zondo report, which is a matter of some concern."

Breytenbach says costs are hindering witness protection.

"Witness protection costs a lot of money; it's a big budget item. If you're going to do it properly, it can't be done on a shoestring."

Breytenbach says effectivewitness protection requires giving whistleblowers and their families the means to rebuild their lives entirely

"In South Africa, those things are very hard to come by, and we don't have that kind of budget."

The country needs a whole new mechanism for witness protection, says Breytenbach, before, during, and after testifying.

There must also be monetary incentives for whistleblowing, she suggests.

"So people will step up to the plate and blow the whistle, give the evidence and make the risk-taking worth it in the way of a financial incentive."

To listen to Breytenbach in conversation with CapeTalk's John Maytham, click below: