Deputy Minister Andries Nel: Justice and Constitutional Development Dept Budget Vote 2024/25

Honourable Chairperson, Minister Simelane,
Ministers and Deputy Ministers,
The National Director of Public Prosecutions, The Head of the Special Investigating Unit,
The Chairperson and Members of the Portfolio Committee, The Chairpersons and Members of our Chapter 9 institutions,
The Chairperson and Members of the Board of Legal Aid South Africa, The Chairperson and Members of the Information Regulator, Distinguished guests,
Honourable Members,

Tomorrow we celebrate the birthday of the icon of our democracy, our beloved Madiba, who was born on 18 July 1918.

As we focus on our courts today, in this Mandela Month, we think back to how Nelson Mandela himself experienced the courts and the justice system when he appeared in the dock.

In his 1962 trial, which was held in the Old Synagogue in Pretoria he delivered what would later be known as his “Black Man in a White Man’s Court” speech.

He applied for the magistrate to recuse himself and said, I quote –
“I challenge the right of this court to hear my case on two grounds.
Firstly, I challenge it because I fear that I will not be given a fair and proper trial.
Secondly, I consider myself neither legally nor morally bound to obey laws made by a
parliament in which I have no representation.”

He continued to say that he feels like, I quote,
“I am a black man in a white man's court. This should not be.
I should feel perfectly at ease and at home with the assurance that I am being tried by a fellow South African who does not regard me as an inferior, entitled to a special type of justice.”

Today, as we celebrate 30 years of democracy, we can take enormous pride in the way in which our courts and our justice system have changed.

Today, everyone appearing in a court has the constitutionally guaranteed right to a fair and proper trial. Nobody can question the legitimacy of our courts - our courts are independent and subject only to the Constitution and the law.

Today, we have a judiciary which broadly reflects the racial and gender composition of our country.

Every person who is detained has the right to be informed of the reason for being detained, and to have a legal practitioner assigned to them at state expense, if substantial injustice would otherwise result.

Today we have the rights, the courts and a justice system for which so many South Africans sacrificed their lives.
We therefore owe it to them to ensure that justice is not only done but is, as the saying goes, manifestly seen to be done.

Access to justice lies at the heart of what we do.
And we need constantly to look at ways in which access to justice for all can be improved. In this regard, a symposium on access to justice will be held later this year to examine impediments hampering access to justice and explore innovative solutions to these challenges.

The Department has been at the forefront of the fight against Gender-Based Violence in all its forms. We are pleased to announce that we shall be designating and establishing an additional 15 sexual offences courts to provide a victim-centric justice system for survivors.

I also want to mention the successes of the NPA’s Thuthuzela Care Centers.

The number of TCCs, which offer a wide range of services to survivors of sexual violence has increased from 55 in 2020/21 to 64 in 2024. The NPA is collaborating with stakeholders further to identify additional TCC sites across the country.

It is also important to highlight that the TCCs’ scope was expanded so that survivors of all forms of GBV can now receive help and support.

In collaboration with the SAPS, a significant number of DNA reports, totalling nearly 50 000, were successfully processed from October 2020 to May 2024. The objective of this initiative was to accelerate proceedings of sexual offences cases.

We know that GBV and domestic violence can also take the form of economic abuse – often a person will withhold much needed funds from their partner. That is why the issue of maintenance is so important and the Department is working tirelessly to ensure that we finalise maintenance matters within 90 days from the date of proper service of process and that we also speed up maintenance investigations.

Many people visit our courts on a daily basis and the safety of the public, of legal practitioners, of officials and of judicial officers is of the utmost importance.

In 2022, the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure increased the maintenance delegation to R1 million. This increase means that the Department is now able to complete minor, yet much needed work, at courts much faster. These repairs improve the courts' conditions and ensure that the infrastructure is maintained. Minor capital work has enabled the completion of 74 projects in 2023/24.

At least 8 capital projects for the construction of new facilities and the refurbishment of existing facilities are targeted for implementation. These include the Durban High Court and Soshanguve, Mamelodi, Pretoria, Rustenburg, Klerksdorp, Keimoes and Boksburg Magistrates Courts.

To ensure that disruptions to court activities resulting from load shedding are kept to a minimum, the Department has registered 431 projects to install generators at various service points.

Our courts see high volumes of members of the public on a daily basis and, in particular, during high profile cases. Funds have been requested for additional security at courts, with 90 courts identified for the installation of new security infrastructure.

Honourable Chairperson,
There can be no access to justice if people are not aware of their constitutional rights and how to enforce these rights. For this reason, in this financial year, the Department plans to conduct over 400 public education and communication activities to enhance access to justice services and promote constitutional rights. We look forward to the participation of Members of Parliament and their PCOs.

Community-based advice offices are crucial to enhance access to justice for all. The Programme for Legal Empowerment and Access to Justice (or “PLEAJ”) is a funded project by the European Union and over 200 Community Advice Offices have been supported and a further 60 will be funded for the next year.

These community advice offices assist in the promotion of constitutional rights education campaigns, especially for marginalised and vulnerable groups in rural areas.

A major feature of our justice system is the provision of legal aid. Legal Aid South Africa champions the rights of all persons to access justice through the provision of accessible and quality legal aid services.

Legal Aid SA’s Land Rights Management Unit has been operating for just over two years, since the entity took over the management of the component from the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development. The objective of the Unit is to provide quality legal services to farm occupiers, labour tenants and restitution claimants. The Unit took on 1282 new matters in 2023/24 - well exceeding the annual target of 200 new matters.

Honourable Members,
Our courts are very different to the courts of our past – we have made great strides in making access to justice a reality for all.

There are various entities and bodies which fall within the broader Justice family – whether it be the Rules Board, the Information Regulator, the South African Human Rights Commission, the Public Protector, the South African Law Reform Commission, the Legal Practice Council and others – and we look forward to working closely with all these institutions as we start this new term of this 7th Administration.

To the SIU and the NPA, the fight against crime and corruption remains ever high on Government’s agenda and you can be assured of our support in the very important work that you do.

The Department is fundamental to providing justice services at various justice points. We owe it to the legacy of those who fought for freedom to ensure that these services work well.

There is still much to be done to further improve access to justice – and this budget will enable us to do so.

I thank you.