The South African Law Commission, recognising this injustice, proposed that such a person be committed to an institution only if he has not recovered or continues to pose a danger to himself or to society. The legislature addressed the issue with the Criminal Matters Amendment Act,68 of 1998. giving the court a discretion, if "it considers it to be necessary in the public interest," in cases involving serious crimes, to order either detention in an institution, or release, conditional or unconditional.
