Drugs and Drug Trafficking Act, 1992 (Act No. 40 of 1992)

Chapter I : Application of Act

1. Definitions

Purchase

(1)	In this Act, unless the context indicates otherwise:—

"convert"

in relation to property, includes—

(a)	any agreement or understanding in connection with the property, whether any such agreement or understanding is legally enforce able or not; or

(b)	any other act in connection with the property, whether any such act is performed independently or in concert with other persons,

which has or is likely to have the effect—

(i)	of concealing or disguising the nature, source, location, disposition or movement of the property or its ownership or any interest with respect thereto; or

(ii)	of enabling or assisting any person who has committed or commits, whether in the Republic or elsewhere, a drug offence or an economic offence—

(aa)	to avoid prosecution; or

(bb)	to remove or to diminish any property, or any part thereof, realized directly or indirectly by him as a result of the commission of the said offence, or to use it in order to obtain funds, investments or other property;

"dangerous dependence-producing substance"

means any substance or any plant from which a substance can be manufactured included in Part II of Schedule 2;

"deal in"

in relation to a drug, includes performing any act in connection with the transhipment, importation, cultivation, collection, manufacture, supply, prescription, administration, sale, transmission or exportation of the drug;

"declaration of forfeiture"

means a declaration of forfeiture made in terms of section 25(1);

"defined crime"

means—

(a)	a drug offence; or

(b)	the conversion of property, or any part thereof, which was derived directly or indirectly as a result of the commission, whether in the Republic or elsewhere, of a drug offence;

"dependence-producing substance"

means any substance or any plant from which a substance can be manufactured included in Part I of Schedule 2;

"designated officer"

means any officer referred to in section 8;

"drug"

means any dependence-producing substance, any dangerous dependence producing substance or any undesirable dependence producing substance;

"drug offence"

(a)	in relation to a drug offence committed in the Republic means an offence referred to in section 13(f);

(b)	in relation to a drug offence committed outside the Republic, means any act or omission which, if it had occurred within the Republic, would have constituted an offence referred to in that section;

"economic offence"

(a)	in relation to an economic offence committed in the Republic, means an offence referred to in section 14(b);

(b)	in relation to an economic offence committed outside the Republic, means any act or omission which, if it had occurred within the Republic, would have constituted an offence referred to in that section;

"financial institution"

means—

(a)	any public company registered provisionally or finally as a deposit taking institution in terms of the Deposit-taking Institutions Act, 1990 (Act No. 94 of 1990);

(b)	the Land and Agricultural Bank of South Africa;

(e)	the Development Bank of Southern Africa;

(d)	a mutual building society as defined in section 1(1) of the Mutual Building Societies Act, 1965 (Act No. 24 of 1965);

(e)	an insurer registered in terms of the Insurance Act, 1943 (Act No. 27 of 1943), and carrying on any class of long-term insurance business, other than a funeral business, within the Republic;

(f)	any company registered as a management company in terms of the Unit Trusts Control Act, 1981 (Act No. 54 of 1981), or any company or institution registered as a trustee in terms of that Act;

"interest"

includes any right;

"manufacture"

in relation to a substance, includes the preparing, extraction or producing of the substance;

"medicinal purposes"

in relation to a particular drug, means the treatment or prevention of a disease or for some other definite curative or therapeutic purpose, but does not include the satisfaction or relief of a habit or of a craving for the particular drug or for any other drug;

"Medicines Act"

means the Medicines and Related Substances Control Act, 1965 (Act No. 101 of 1965);

"Minister"

means the Minister of Justice;

"place of entertainment"

includes any premises, vehicle, vessel or aircraft, or any pan thereof, used for or in connection with any exhibition, show, performance, dance, amusement, game, competition or sport;

"plant"

includes any portion of a plant;

"police official"

means any member of the Force as defined in section 1 of the Police Act, 1958 (Act No. 7 of 1958);

"possess"

in relation to a drug, includes to keep or to store the drug, or to have it in custody or under control or supervision;

"premises"

means land or any building, dwelling, flat, room, shop, office or other structure;

"proceeds"

in relation to a defined crime, means any property, or any part thereof, which was derived directly or indirectly as a result of—

(a)	the commission in the Republic of the defined crime; or

(b)	any act or omission outside the Republic which, if it had occurred in the Republic, would have constituted the defined crime;

"property"

means money or any other movable, immovable, corporeal or incorporeal thing;

"record"

includes any information contained in a computer or reproduced by a computer print-out, as the case may be;

"scheduled substance"

means any substance included in Part I or II of Schedule 1;

"sell"

in relation to a drug, includes to offer, advertise, possess or expose the drug for sale, to dispose of it, whether for consideration or otherwise, or to exchange it;

"undesirable dependence-producing substance"

means any substance or any plant from which a substance can be manufactured included in Part III of Schedule 2.

(2)	In this Act—

(a)	except where it is inconsistent with the context or clearly inappropriate, any reference to property shall be construed as a reference also to property which is situate outside the Republic;

(b)	any reference to a person practising any health service or cognate profession shall be construed as a reference to a person practising any health service or cognate profession as defined in the Medicines Act.