MEDIA STATEMENT
BY THE
INKATHA FREEDOM PARTY
|
MEDIA
STATEMENT BY: 30 January 2008 The High Court case by 384 prisoners against the President and the Minister of Justice starts today in the Pretoria High Court at 10:00am. This follows a massive struggle by these prisoners over a period of longer than four years to move the President and the Minister to consider their applications for pardon in accordance with section 84(2)(j) of the Constitution. During this inhumanly long waiting period the IFP had on a number of occasions raised this matter in Parliament and eventually asked for the Minister to be dismissed as she is not attending to her constitutional duties, but to no avail. The Constitution and the Laws of South Africa requires that justice is dispensed swiftly. It is therefore a massive tragedy that it had to be the Minister of Justice that has been ignoring her constitutional and legal obligations over a period of more than four years. Charges of violation of human rights were thereafter laid against the Minister with the Human Rights Commission who found her guilty on 4 January 2007 of violating the human rights of those 384 prisoners. The Minister arrogantly ignored the HRC's finding. In desperation the 384 prisoners then approached the High Court, asking the High Court to order the President and the Minister to consider these applications. The High Court hearing takes place today. As far as could be ascertained, the Minister of Justice is the only Justice Minister in the democratic world that has been found guilty of violating the human rights of the most defenceless human beings in society - prisoners. The matter
is now in the hands of the High Court. FOR FURTHER
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