The court has lived up to its promise in most cases, issuing some progressive and ground-breaking decisions and remedies.
South African president Cyril Ramaphosa delivers a speech next to a statue of the late former president Nelson Mandela in Cape Town in 2020.
EPA-EFE/Ruvan Boshoff
An uncomfortable reality is that looting is perceived by the looters to be socially acceptable and is often encouraged and endorsed within social and community networks.
South African soldiers interrogate a pedestrian outside a mall in Soweto.
Photo by Emmanuel Croset/AFP via Getty Images
After 1994 efforts were made to embed democracy. The focus was on policy and institution-building. What was missing was ensuring all South Africans were on board.
Looters grab items from a vandalised mall in South Africa.
Photo by Marco Longari/AFP via Getty Images
South Africa can’t possibly remain the same country in the aftermath of this mayhem. There are just too many storms ahead to simply continue unchanged.
Private armed security officers take a position near a burning barricade during a joint operation with South African Police Service officers in Jeppestown, Johannesburg.
Photo by Marco Longari/AFP via Getty Images
Corruption thrives in a destabilised state with weak institutions. South Africa cannot be allowed back to that space because there will be no turning back.
King Mswati III of eSwatini, Africa’s last absolute monarch, is facing growing demands for democracy and rule of law.
EPA-EFE/Yeshiel Panchia
There is more support for democracy among African people than is often recognised. Yet this can be undermined by election rigging and is lower in countries like Lesotho, Mozambique and South Africa.
Former South African president Jacob Zuma stands in the dock at a separate trial at the Pietermaritzburg High Court in May.
Photo by PHILL MAGAKOE/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
South Africa has many problems. But, as Jacob Zuma has found out, the strength of its rule of law and the independence of its judiciary should not be underestimated.
A convoy of Malian armed forces escorts the vehicle of the country’s coup leader as he returns from a recent ECOWAS summit where Mali was suspended.
Photo by Michele Cattani/AFP via Getty Images
John M. Murphy, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Rep. Liz Cheney may have been exiled from her party’s leadership, but she’s after a bigger thing: the restoration of politically conservative values in the GOP and its voters.
The separation of powers is critical for good governance.
Yellow Dog Productions/The Image Bank
The actions of the chief justice undermine the independence, impartiality and competence of the judiciary, which erodes public confidence in the courts.
The move towards an open process for appointing judges is unprecedented in Lesotho.
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The appointment of judges has hitherto been an obscure and oftentimes clandestine affair. This has produced incompetent judges and led to claims that the judiciary is beholden to the executive.
South Africa’s president Cyril Ramaphosa faces a tricky time giving evidence about corruption. He wears two presidential hats: as head of the African National Congress, and the government.
Rodger Bosch/AFP via Getty Images
Ramaphosa will be eager to communicate his position that no one should be above scrutiny and that all parts of society,should be examined by the Commission.
South African chief justice Mogoeng Mogoeng’s term ends in September.
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The judicial process in South Africa is hugely contested. This places an exaggerated burden on the courts to act with maximum independence and impartiality.
Who murdered Daphne Caruana Galizia?
EPA-EFE/Domenic Aquilina
Professor in Law and Co-Convener National Security Hub (University of Canberra) and Research Fellow (adjunct) - The Security Institute for Governance and Leadership in Africa, Faculty of Military Science, Stellenbosch University- NATO Fellow Asia-Pacific, University of Canberra