Bridging the Communication Gap: Leveraging Indigenous Languages to Improve Police Statement-Taking in South Africa

Abstract

Justice is often lost in translation within South Africa’s law enforcement system, where police officers take sworn statements in English, despite many officers and community members being unfamiliar with the language. While South Africa’s Constitution recognises twelve official languages, the dominance of English in police procedures leads to misinterpretations, inaccuracies, and incomplete statements, which compromise investigations and erode public trust. Existing studies acknowledge these challenges but fail to provide practical solutions rooted in the use of indigenous languages. This study addresses this gap by exploring how incorporating indigenous languages into police statement-taking can enhance accuracy, communication, and community trust. A qualitative research approach was adopted, employing a secondary data analysis within an interpretivist paradigm. The study examined scholarly literature, policy documents, case studies, and official reports to identify patterns and themes. An inductive approach was used for data analysis, with thematic analysis applied to explore recurring issues such as communication breakdowns, procedural inefficiencies, and the impact of language mismatches on law enforcement. Findings indicate that taking statements in indigenous languages improves their accuracy, completeness, and clarity, thereby enhancing investigative integrity and reducing case dismissals due to procedural flaws. The study recommends the adoption of multilingual policies, standardised training for police officers in indigenous languages, and the integration of AI-assisted translation tools to support multilingual policing. These findings have significant implications for law enforcement, justice accessibility, and language policy, contributing to the broader discourse on social justice and decolonization in South Africa’s institutional practices.