Assessing the performance of the justice system during the World Cup on Wednesday, the minister said once the courts had finished their work on 25 July, a thorough assessment would be made of their successes and challenges.

Radebe said from the preliminary reports he had received he had no doubt that "what works needs to be kept".

"All the things that worked well during this period will be maintained and improved," he added.

The minister said that swift justice was a commitment his department had made and he would consider all measures that would help stamp out crime in the country.

"I think the whole of government wants to see swift justice. It is what our people desire and what our people must get," he added.

The minister insisted that sentences handed down by the dedicated courts were not harsh.

"This justice is very fair. The arm of the law is very long. Each case was considered according to the merits. I looked at the cases and I am satisfied with the sentences," he said.

According to figures from the department, the courts have dealt with 205 cases since they opened on 28 May, up until 11 July.

Most of the cases - 163 in total - have already been finalised.

There have been 122 convictions, 42 cases have been postponed, 33 withdrawn and there have been eight acquittals.

Most of the cases, 42.44 percent, were in Gauteng, while 30.24 percent were in the Western Cape, followed by the Eastern Cape with 10.73 percent.

South Africans and international visitors alike have found themselves on the wrong side of the law, with 137 locals and 102 foreign nationals appearing in the dedicated courts.

Most of the cases heard by the courts - 71 of them - were theft-related, with the selling of World Cup tickets (23 cases), fraud (13 cases) and common robbery (12 cases) also featuring high up on the list.

On the policing front, government said the 40 000 police officers trained and incorporated into the police force for the World Cup will remain on the force.