Summary
The rising crime rate in South Africa is often linked with the breakdown of morality. The moral regeneration initiative is one response to this crisis, emerging in parallel to other initiatives aimed at reducing crime, some of which have themselves contained explicit appeals to morals, values or ethics. This monograph traces the origins and development of the moral regeneration initiative in South Africa, and illustrates that the initiative has suffered from a lack of clarity about both its mission and its strategy. The movement's attempts to build meaningful participation by the wider civil society have also been a key challenge. The monograph also considers whether a largely ideological campaign of this type will deliver any meaningful results in strengthening the social fabric and reducing crime.