More than 100 new magistrates’ appointed by Justice Minister

Justice Minister Ronald Lamola has appointed 158 new magistrates who will take office on 1 October.

OF THE 158 NEW APPOINTMENTS, 88 ARE FEMALES AND 70 MALES

“I want to commend the Magistrates Commission for their efforts in the enormous tasks of filling these posts. The shortlisting and interviewing of 418 candidates is unprecedented – all the more so given that the Commission had to do so under trying conditions brought about by Covid-19.

“The filling of these vacancies is an important step in capacitating our judicial officers and our courts so as to enable them to deliver justice to all,” said Lamola.

According to the spokesperson for the Ministry of Justice and Correctional Services, Chrispin Phiri, Magistrates Courts are at the very coalface of our justice system.

“It is vital that these courts, which are often the first port of call for the dispensing of justice, are well-capacitated and functioning optimally.

“This means having a sufficient number of magistrates in our courts, especially at a time when our courts are having to deal with the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on a daily basis.”

Phiri said a fully transformed judiciary is a constitutional imperative.

“Of the 158 new appointments, 104 are African, 23 are Coloured, eight are Indian, and 23 are White. In terms of gender, 88 are female and 70 male.

“We have made significant progress in terms of transformation over the last two decades.”

He furthermore said that at the dawn of democracy in 1994, magistrates were part of the public service and were employed by the then Departments of Justice in the various homelands, the TBVC States, and South Africa.

“An amalgamation process to bring them all under one department was led by the then Minister of Justice, the late Minister Dullah Omar, and in 1998 there were a total of 284 female magistrates (18%) and 567 Black magistrates (37%) countrywide out of a total of 1515 magistrates (including the regional, chief, senior magistrates and Regional Court Presidents).

“The new appointments show how far we have come in terms of gender and racial transformation, as there are now 695 African, 143 Indian, 176 Coloured and 388 White persons on the level of Magistrate.”

He said suppose one includes the regional, senior, and chief Magistrates and the Regional Court Presidents to view the magistracy as a whole.

In that case, 957 are African (50%), 204 are Indian (10,6%), 224 are Coloured (11,7%), and 528 are White (27,6%) out of a total of 1913. A total of 947 are women. This means that 72,3% of our magistracy are Black and 49,5% are female.

“The date of assumption of duty will be 1 October 2021 so as to enable the new appointees to give the necessary resignation notices at their current positions, make arrangements to relocate, and so forth.”

ALSO READ: National Lotteries Commission: Lamola NOT linked to ‘dodgy’ probe

Phiri added that in terms of the Regulations for Judicial Officers in the Lower Courts, 1993, all newly appointed Magistrates must, before commencing with the functions of a judicial officer, attend a course by the South African Judicial Education Institute (SAJEI).

“It is envisaged that this course will take place during October 2021. The Magistrates Commission plays an important role in the filling of vacancies of Magistrates’ posts.

“The Magistrates Commission is a statutory body established in terms of the Magistrates Act, 1993, and the appointment procedures and processes are set out in the legislation and in accompanying Regulations.”