Posted on December 17, 2018
On 11 December 2018, the Constitutional Court of South Africa in the matter between Law Society of South Africa and Others v. The President of the Republic of South Africa and Others, upheld the 1 March 2018 decision of the Northern Gauteng High Court that the President’s decision and signing of the 2014 Protocol which disbanded the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Tribunal was unconstitutional, unlawful and irrational. The Court thereby ordered the President to withdraw his signature from the 2014 Protocol to the SADC Tribunal.
The decision from the Northern Gauteng High Court was appealed at the Constitutional Court. Below is an excerpt from the Constitutional Court’s judgement:
[93] The President’s decision to render the Tribunal dysfunctional is unconstitutional, unlawful and irrational. And so is his signature. The appropriate remedy is simply to declare his participation in arriving at that decision, his own decision and signing of the Protocol constitutionally invalid, unlawful and irrational.
[94] We cannot withdraw the President’s signature. But, we may direct him to withdraw his signature to the Protocol. One President is a successor in title of another and the obligations are similarly transferable from one to the other. For the execution of the duties attendant to the presidential office and antecedent authority is never really incumbent-specific. The power and obligations devolve from one personality to another – it is, after all, the Presidency. Whoever the President happens to be will be directed to withdraw the President’s signature to the Protocol.
The Centre for Human Rights welcomes this judgement from the Constitutional Court of South Africa, and hereby calls on the President of South Africa, President Cyril Ramaphosa to comply with this judgement and withdraw South Africa’s signature from the 2014 Protocol to the SADC Tribunal which withdraw the individual access from the Tribunal.
The Centre for Human Rights urges all SADC civil society organisations to put pressure on their governments not to ratify the amended protocol but to restore individual access to the Tribunal.
#bringbackSADCTribunal, #retainindividualaccess,#bringbackhumanrightstoSADC
For more information, please contact:
Prof Frans Viljoen
Tel: +27 (0) 12 420 3228
Fax: +27 (0) 86 580 5743
[email protected]
OR
Henrietta Ekefre
Tel: +27 (0) 12 420 4532
Fax: +27 (0) 86 580 5743
[email protected]
Copyright © University of Pretoria 2024. All rights reserved.
COVID-19 Corona Virus South African Resource Portal
To contact the University during the COVID-19 lockdown, please send an email to [email protected]
Get Social With Us
Download the UP Mobile App