Sihlalo, ngisikima nokuthokoza, bengiyalotjhisa kuNgqongqotjhe wezoBulungiswa nokuThuthukiswa komThethosisekelo, uMhlonitjhwa uJeff Radebe, kunye nomndenakhe, ngilotjhise kuSekela lakhe uMhlonitjhwa u-Andries Nel, godu namajaji akhona njenganje, namajaji wakade, begodu nakiwo woke amaLunga ahloniphekileko wePalamende akhona namhlanjesi. (Translation of isiNdebele paragraph follows.)
[Mr J B SIBANYONI: Chairperson, I stand to thank and greet the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, hon Jeff Radebe, his family, with greetings to his Deputy, hon Andries Nel, and all judges present here, retired judges, and all hon Members of Parliament present today.]
My speech will focus on the transformation of the judiciary. Legal education and the legal profession and so on need to be transformed. This includes community service for newly qualified lawyers. I would like to focus on enhancing access to justice. It is true that justice delayed is justice denied. I want to refer to the use of indigenous languages in court proceedings.
Ngifuna ukuthokoza khulu amagadango lawo asele athethwe mnyango lo. Siyakhumbula bona ikhotho yeNkandla KwaZulu-Natal, kelikaMthaniya, kwabangiyo eyaba sibonelo yaba yi-Pilot Project. Ikhotho leyo ikhombise imiphumela eminengi bona kungasebenza bona namalimi wesintu nanyana amalimi wesikhethu asetjenziswe.
Sihlalo, kunento erarako, uthola umarhastrata aliNdebele, uthole umtjhutjhisi aliNdebele negcwetha nalo liNdebele, kodwana uthole boke abantu laba banetoloki ebatolokelako, begodu lokho kuriyadisa ukutjhutjhiswa komlandu. Abantu laba boke nabakhulumako bazi ilimi ekungaba siNdebele nanyana isiZulu. Yeke-ke, kubayini banga khulumi ngelimelo khona nommangali, nommangalelwa nan yana umsolwa naye akhulume, akwazi ukuzwa bona kuthiwani, ukuze amakhotho wokugwebela angabi yinto yakosobantu kodwana abe yinto yekhayapha. (Translation of isiNdebele paragraphs follows.)
[I would like to thank this department for all the steps it has taken. We will remember that the court of Nkandla in KwaZulu-Natal, in Mthaniya's land, was the one that was used as an example and became a pilot project. The court has demonstrated in many ways that indigenous languages or our African languages can be used.
Chairperson, there is something amazing. You will find that the magistrate, the prosecutor and the lawyer are all Ndebele-speaking people, but they have an interpreter that interprets for them. This yet again delays the process of prosecution of the case. All these people, when they speak, you can tell that they all know isiNdebele or isiZulu. Why don't they talk to the complainant, defendant or a suspect in that specific language? This will enable him to hear what is said. This will make courts of law not to become foreign courts, but to be domestic courts.]
I commend the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development for launching the audio-vision remand, AVR, system. Yesterday, in this province, we commenced with the initial phase in Mitchells Plain Public hearings were conducted in various provinces throughout the country, dealing with the review of the criminal justice system.
Into le ekukhulunywa ngayo ebizwa ngokuthi yi-Audio Vision Remand, AVR, system, zzzzyinto ehle. Njengokuthi umuntu uhlezi e-"New Lock" nge-Pretoria Central Prison, umlandu wakhe ungena ngeKwaggafontein, esiFundeni seMpumalanga. Kusuka ilori le! Mhlambe ilayitjhe babili nanyana bathathu, kube namapholisa asiqhema abalandelako, bakhamba nabo ukuya ngeKwaggafontein, ibanga elingaba makhilomitha alikhulu, bese uyokutjelwa nje kwaphela bona umlandu wakhe awukalungi, yeke ubuyiselwa emva, uyatshwiliswa uzakungena ngelinye ilanga.
Umraro omkhulu kukobana kungenzeka bona umuntu lo unabantu asebenzisana nabo abobogalajana, abangahlala endleleni balindele ukumsiza bona abaleke. Ngalokho-ke, siyazi bona izinga lokubaleka kweenlelesi ngapha ngeSewula Afrika lingangani. Alo-ke, i-Audio Vision Remand system ubuhle bayo kukobana nalokhe iselelesisi sisePitori ngeTshwane, umarhastrata, umtjhutjhisi negcwetha lakhe ulibona esibonibonini ahlezi khona lapho akhona begodu uyabezwa nabakhuluma naye. Nabo bamqalile ngekhotho, bambona ngesathalayidi bebakghone nokukhulumisana naye nabafunako, begodu unelungelo lokucocisana ngokuyifihlo angaziwa ngabanye abantu negcwetha lakhe, njalonjalo.
Ngqongqotjhe, sithokoza khulu kwamambala ngikuzwile, ngikulalele, nokobana uthe ihlelweli angeze lasetjenziselwa ukutshwiliswa kwemilandu kwaphela, kodwana ngokukhamba kwe sikhathi kuzaba nokugwetjwa imilandu ngesathalayidi umuntu ahlezi khona lapho akhona emaseleni. Ngaloko-ke, siyathokoza. (Translation of isiNdebele paragraphs follows.)
[This audio-vision remand, AVR, system that is talked about is something good. For example, a person is imprisoned at "New Lock" in Pretoria Central Prison and his trial is conducted at Kwaggafontein, in Mpumalanga. A lorry with only two or three people and a handful of police officers drive a distance of about 100 kilometres; on arrival then are then told that the case is not ready, and subsequently they are told that the case has been postponed or remanded for another day.
The biggest problem that might happen is that this person might have other people that work with him who are also criminals, who can wait on the way to help him escape. We all know of the rate of criminal escapes in South Africa. So the good thing about the audio-vision remand system is that when a prisoner is in prison in Pretoria Central Prison in Tshwane, he can hear the magistrate, the prosecutor and his lawyer through the monitor, talking to him. They also see him in court via a satellite and they can also talk to him when they want to. He can also talk about other personal issues, not being heard by other people, including his lawyer and so on.
Minister, we thank you so much. I understood you as you were speaking, even when you said the programme will not be used to postpone the cases only, but as time goes by there will be prosecution of cases, through a satellite link-up, of a person sitting in the cells where he is kept. So we thank you.]
With regard to Legal Aid SA, Lasa, led by the honourable Mr Justice Dunstan Mlambo, the report of the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Constitutional Development indicates that, during its presentation, Legal Aid SA indicated that it received additional funds to improve its practitioner-per-court ratio, accommodate occupational-specific dispensation, OSD, funding and increase its civil work. Additional amounts of R44,6 million, R90,8 million and R106,3 million have been allocated to Legal Aid SA to increase capacity, improve conditions of service and implement phase 2 of the OSD for legally qualified professionals.
The Justice and Constitutional Development portfolio committee, as in previous years, has been impressed by Lasa's presentation of its strategic and annual performance plan.
Umsebenzi wenu eniwenzako muhle, Jaji Mlambo, begodu uyakarisa. [Judge Mlambo, the work you are doing is commendable and impressive.]
Lasa should be proactive in seeking out opportunities to promote what it does. The report states that the committee is encouraged by the strong emphasis that emerged on the quality of services that Legal Aid SA provides. The ANC supports Lasa's goal of expanding its civil work and impact litigation, despite the financial constraints that it faces in this regard. Therefore, the ANC supports Lasa's aim to reach the rural poor.
I will be very brief on the matter of the Small Claims Courts. We commend the hon Andries Nel for championing the establishment of Small Claims Courts throughout South Africa. Thank you very much. [Applause.]
The extension of the civil jurisdiction of regional courts has been a resounding success. It is opening up access to justice for the rural poor.
I want to end by reflecting on the concept of freedom of expression versus the sub judice or pendente lite principle. The question is: Does the media respect the sub judice or pendente lite rule? The Sunday Independent newspaper of 29 May 2011 carried a front-page story with its heading in bold and huge letters. It said: "Hlophe must go: Ramphele". The question is ...
Kanti u-Judge President Hlophe wenzeni? Wona ngani? [What has Judge President Hlophe done? What wrong has he done?]
The newspaper said:
Embattled Western Cape Judge President John Hlophe is facing a new "gross misconduct" complaint - this time from a nonprofit legal advocacy group Freedom Under Law (Ful), which wants Hlophe to be disciplined and possibly removed as a judge for what they have called "scandalous public utterances" about judges of the Constitutional Court. ... In an affidavit, deposed by businesswoman and an academic Mamphela Ramphele, who is a member of Ful's international advisory board of trustees, the group says various statements made by Judge Hlophe, while defending a 2008 complaint by Justices of the Constitutional Court, were "contemptuous, scandalous, intemperate and false".
Izolo lokhu ngikhe ngabanaye u-Judge President Hlophe, pheze ngambuza bona kanti isagila sakhe lesa sayakuphi, ngombana ngathana siyasebenza njenganje, khona nakukhulunywako kwaziwe bonyana wenzeni. (Translation of isiNdebele paragraph follows.)
[Yesterday when I was with Judge President Hlophe, I nearly asked him where his knobkerrie was because it is supposed to be working now. So that when there are talks, it will be known what he has done.]
In conclusion, hon Chair, I would like to say that I also looked at an article written by the author Mr Moya in the City Press of 5 June 2011, which says, "Hlophe deserves fair treatment". The ANC supports the Budget Vote. [Time expired.] [Applause.]