Chairperson;
Honourable Members.

In May 1992, two years before our first democratic elections, the ANC released a document called “Ready to Govern: ANC Policy Guidelines for a Democratic South Africa.” It was a comprehensive piece of work which set out the ANC’s policies and vision for the future.

Paragraph eight of the document states that: “There will be no part of South Africa from which the law and the Constitution will be excluded... All South Africans shall have recourse to independent courts of law and other tribunals. The bench will be transformed in such a way as to consist of men and women drawn from all sections of South African society.”

These are the two issues that I would like to focus on, namely, how do we ensure that all South Africans have recourse to courts of law? In other words: the issue of access to justice. Secondly, with regards to the transformation of the bench, I’d wish to deal specifically with our magistracy, or lower court judiciary, and highlight some of the progress made.

Small Claims Courts are a vital component in the quest for access for justice,  as a cheap and easy to understand place to resolve civil disputes of less than R15 000.

Small Claims Courts have been a success story in the drive to make justice more accessible.  It is the aim of our Department to ensure that there is a well-functioning Small Claims Court in each of our 393 magisterial districts throughout the country. To date, 303 Small Claims Courts have been established.

The vast majority of the new courts and places of sitting are in rural areas and former black areas. Since the start of this current financial year, 10 courts have been established and gazetted, three more have been approved and are to be gazetted shortly, while two are presently being processed by the department.

In this House, Chairperson, I want to report on where we are in each province as far as Small Claims Court coverage.

I am pleased to say that Mpumalanga and Gauteng now have 100 percent coverage. In other words, there is an established Small Claims Court in each and every one of those two provinces’ magisterial districts. Limpopo has 94 percent coverage, with only two small claims courts that still need to be established. The Free State has 80 percent coverage, with 11 courts still to be established.  KwaZulu-Natal has 79 percent coverage, with 12 courts still to be established. North West has 72 percent coverage, with eight courts still to be established. The Western Cape has 65 percent coverage, with 15 courts still to be established, while the Northern Cape has 62 percent coverage, with 12 courts still to be established. Finally, the Eastern Cape has only 60 percent coverage and in that province 31 Small Claims Courts still need to be established.

I am pleased to say that with the assistance of our regional officers and provincial role-players we are busy finalising a plan of action for the establishment of each of the remaining Small Claims Courts.

The biggest challenge really lies in finding suitable persons to serve as Commissioners in these courts. Any person who is qualified to practice as an advocate or attorney or qualified to be appointed as magistrate and has so practiced or served for an uninterrupted period of at least five years, may be appointed as a Commissioner. Teachers of law may also be appointed if they were involved in the tuition of law for more than five years and also practiced as an attorney or an advocate.

I want to appeal to Members to identify possible suitable persons in their areas who can avail themselves as Commissioners and thus fulfil this very important role in our Small Claims Courts.

Chairperson, Honourable Members,

With regards to our magistrates, significant progress has been made in establishing a lower court judiciary which is, as the “Ready to Govern” policy document says, “drawn from all sections of South African society.”

Figures for the 4th quarter of last year show that 40 percent of our magistracy is white and 60 percent black, of which 43 percent are African. With regard to gender only 40 percent of our magistrates are female.

In addition to the issue of transformation, additional magistrates’ posts have also been created. From 2000 to 2014, 227 new posts of magistrates at various levels were created with 112 being created in October last year alone. 309 magistrates’ posts (both vacancies and the newly created posts) were advertised by the Magistrates’ Commission in November last year.

The Commission is busy with the appointment processes. A delay was caused unavoidably by the elections earlier this year as the Magistrates Commission consists of a number members of both Houses of Parliament.

There was a recommendation that the appointments committee of the Magistrates Commission be split in two, given the large number of vacant posts and the even larger number of applications. However, the newly established appointments committee decided that given the number of newly appointed members to the committee and the availability of some of the members, it would be best not to proceed with the splitting of the appointments committee.

In the meantime however the vacant posts are filled by acting appointments which in terms of the Magistrates Court Act can only be for a maximum of three months at a time.

Chairperson,

These are but two of the many initiatives undertaken by our Department to ensure enhanced justice for all our people.

The history of the ANC shows a proud legacy in the pursuit of access to justice and the attainment of human rights. In his address in 1892 entitled “Upon My Native Land,” the first President of the ANC, John Langalibalele Dube, called for a free and prosperous Africa. Pixley Ka Seme echoed this call in 1905. In 1923 the ANC became the first political organization on the continent to adopt a Bill of Rights, which laid the basis for human rights and justice for all. Rev Zaccheus Mahabane, who became President-General of the ANC in 1924, dedicated his life’s work to equality and human rights. And so the list continues…

Now, more than a century after Dube’s address we will continue to strive tirelessly towards ensuring justice for all South Africans, black and white, rich and poor, urban and rural. With the assistance of this House in supporting this Budget Vote we can continue to make access to justice a reality.

I thank you.