Deputy Speaker, the answer is that the regional courts have jurisdiction to deal with divorce matters and matrimonial property matters, flowing from such divorce matters.
It is not the intention of the Act to confer jurisdiction in relation to maintenance and children's court to the regional courts. It is our view in the department that these matters are appropriately located in the district courts, as these relate more to service delivery matters than to complex legal issues.
The district courts have the necessary capacity and the infrastructure to deal with the voluminous maintenance and children's enquiries. Regional courts, by their own nature, are entrusted with the trial of serious cases which are criminal or civil in nature that require an in-depth interpretation and application of the law.
Therefore, there are no immediate plans to confer regional courts with jurisdiction to deal with maintenance matters, children's court and domestic violence applications under the Maintenance Act and the Children's Act. Thank you.
Integration of all eligible members of MK, the SADF and armed wings of the PAC and Azapo into the SANDF
19. Mr V B Ndlovu (IFP) asked the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans:
Whether all eligible members of Mkhonto we Sizwe (MK), the SA Defence Force (SADF) and the armed wings of the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC) and Azanian People's Organisation (Azapo) have been integrated into the SA National Defence Force within the period specified by the Act; if not, (a) why have they not all been integrated and (b) why was the integration not completed by 31 March 2002, as specified in the Termination of Integration Intake Act, Act 44 of 2001; if so, how many?