STATEMENT ISSUED BY THE CHIEF JUSTICE, THE HEADS OF COURT AND SENIOR JUDGES OF ALL DIVISIONS ON 8 JULY 2015
THE JUDICIARY’S COMMITMENT TO THE RULE OF LAW
A Judge’s principal article of faith is to adjudicate without fear favour or prejudice. When each Judge assumes office she or he takes an oath or affirmation in the following terms: to be faithful to the Republic of South Africa; to uphold and protect the constitution and the human rights entrenched in it; to administer justice to all persons alike without fear favour or prejudice and in accordance with the constitution and the law.
To Judges this obligation and the oath are sacred.
Our constitution, like others of its kind, sets out the powers of each arm of state. No arm of the state is entitled to intrude upon the domain of the other. However, the constitution requires the Judiciary ultimately to determine the limits and regulate the exercise of public power.
Judges like others should be susceptible to constructive criticism.