MEDIA RELEASE By Adv Dumisa Ntsebeza SC resigning from the Freedom Under Law

Adv Dumisa Ntsebeza SC announced his intention to resign from the Board of Directors of Freedom Under Law following Judge Kriegler's announcement that he intended to challenge the decision of the Judicial Services Commission.

Adv Ntsebeza SC said: "I have wrestled with my conscience, especially because I am a member of FuL, the organisation chaired by Judge Kriegler since Judge Kriegler went on a public campaign against the Judicial Service Commission, a body to which I have been appointed by the President of the Republic of South Africa."

Adv Ntsebeza SC continued: "It will be recalled that in 2007, when similar attacks were made on the JSC by Judge Kriegler, on issues around Hlophe JP-and I have no brief for him - I had expressed certain reservations about the way he was going about things, in my capacity as Head of the BLA Judicial Committee, and as National Head of the Advocates for transformation.

Among other things, I had expressed the view that organs of the Constitution must be accorded the necessary respect, and without suggesting that their decisions should not be challenged, I felt strongly that their decisions could be reviewed, and could even be set aside, without the fanfare that had accompanied, then, the attacks on the body which I felt were absolutely inappropriate.

Notwithstanding my misgivings about the way Judge Kriegler had gone about things at that time, I went on and agreed to serve on the Board of Trustees of the Freedom under Law(FuL), an organisation chaired by Judge Kriegler. It is now common cause that it has decided to take the decision of the JSC on review. Let me hasten to say I have no in principle problem with that decision, and, in any event, I was not even party to the proceedings sought to be reviewed. I had recused myself.

What however disturbs me are the Press utterances and the words attributed to Judge Kriegler.

I was particularly disturbed by the things he said about the JSC in his address at the Wits University recently (see here). I was also distressed by what I read as thinly disguised ad hominem attacks on me, in particular, as a member of the JSC, and the role I played in the questioning of candidates around the interpretation to be placed on s 174(2) of the Constitution, about which I will now have to respond to Judge Kriegler at an appropriate time.

What, however I have found increasingly impossible to live with is the very distinct patronising tone towards Black people that are a recurring theme in his utterances, particularly in his speech at Wits University.

I can no longer reconcile my membership of FuL with the conduct of Judge Kriegler which I witnessed recently, and, after a great deliberation with my conscience, and after consulting other colleagues, both in FuL, in the BLA, and in the AFT, I have come to the painful decision that the only honourable thing for me to do is to announce publicly my resignation from FuL with immediate effect.

The formalities of effecting this resignation will be pursued after this."

Dumisa Ntsebeza SC

Released by Maureen Mphatsoe: Group Communications Manager: Shanduka Group, September 5 2009

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