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Equality Courts

Equality courts shutting down - 9 July
Equality courts are underused and some are shutting down because citizens do not bother to report cases of discrimination, says a Cape Times report. - Legalbrief website

Why are equality courts closing down? - 9 July
As long as people can be reminded of the suffering they have experienced because of racism and discrimination, the ANC can retain some of its credibility as the most prominent liberation movement which have helped to liberate us from apartheid. Is that why the ANC-led government has invested so little time, money and effort into making a success of the Equality Courts specifically designed to provide and easy legal avenue for people to address the lingering racism and discrimination in our society? Does it need racism and discrimination to retain its legitimacy and its power? Racism and discrimination remains a fact of life for many South Africans, but strangely the ANC government seems less enthusiastic about addressing the problem than in reminding us about it during elections. - Pierre de Vos on the Constitutionally Speaking website

Equality courts are busy in KZN - 10 July
Durban residents will not have to worry about equality courts closing down. Earlier this week the Human Rights Commission announced in parliament that equality courts were shutting down owing to a lack of interest and too few cases. KZN Department of Justice and Constitutional Development regional head Brigitte Shabalala said that the statement was far from true as equality courts that were inactive in the province were being revived. - IOL website

Johannesburg

Malema case dredges up Zuma rape trial - 9 July
Details of President Jacob Zuma's rape trial were resurrected in the defence of one of his staunchest supporters in the Equality Court in Johannesburg on Thursday. ANC Youth League president Julius Malema was accused of hate speech, discrimination and harassment by the Sonke Gender Justice Network after comments he made in January in reference to the woman who accused Zuma of rape. - IOL website

Lawyer defends Malema's rape comments - 9 July
Julius Malema made his controversial comments about women who say they are raped in the context of the judgment in President Jacob Zuma's rape trial, the Equality Court heard on Thursday. Defending the ANC Youth League president against a hate speech, harassment and discrimination complaint, Malema's lawyer said that his opinion was formed by comments made by the judge who acquitted Zuma in 2006. "He was commenting in the context of Zuma's rape case," said Malema's lawyer Tumi Mokwena. - IOL website

Malema drops his claim - 9 July
Julius Malema's attorney has dropped his first objection to the "hate speech" complaint against him. Lawyer Tumi Mokwena dropped his client's claim that the Sonke Gender Justice NGO's complaint against him was "vague and embarrassing', after discovering that the group had given a response to the claims that he had failed to read. - IOL website

Malema to eat only some of his words - 9 July
Julius Malema is prepared to say sorry for his claims that President Jacob Zuma's rape accuser had enjoyed herself with him - but not unconditionally. Negotiations between lawyers for Malema and the Sonke Gender Justice NGO, who have lodged a hate-speech complaint against Malema over his self-admitted remarks, yesterday broke down because of disagreements over the wording of the ANC Youth League president's proposed apology. - IOL website

Malema refuses to apologise - 10 July
After leaving the Equality Court in a fit of pique on Thursday, the ANC Youth League president indicated that he would return on Friday to defend his claims that President Jacob Zuma's rape accuser enjoyed herself with him. And he would do so surrounded by the Youth League's top brass, who announced on Thursday that they would be there to support their leader. - IOL website

Malema shows up in court for his hearing - 10 July
Julius Malema and his lawyer Tumi Mokwena went into a huddled discussion ahead of the hearing, in which Sonke Gender Justice Network is taking issue with Malema's comments about the woman who laid a charge of rape against President Jacob Zuma. In his defence on Thursday, his lawyer said Malema's comment was directed specifically at the woman who made the charge, and that it was based on comments made by the judge who acquitted Zuma. - IOL website

Malema blasted in court - 10 July
ANC Youth League President Julius Malema this morning took a blasting at the Johannesburg Equality Court, where he was accused of "distorting" and misrepresenting evidence in President Jacob Zuma's rape trial. After arriving at the Equality Court 22 minutes late, Malema wriggled in his seat, leaned his face on his hands and repeatedly wiped his mouth as he listened to rape expert Lisa Vetten testify about the "rape myths and stereotypes" that gender activists believe he is responsible for spreading. - IOL website

Malema backs out of testifying - 10 July
Julius Malema has ducked out of his much-anticipated showdown with gender activists. Moments after the Sonke Gender Justice NGO closed its hate speech complaint against Malema over his controversial rape comments, his lawyer Tumi Mokwena revealed that he was considering asking for the case to be thrown out of court. According to Mokwena: "We intended to call Mr Malema to testify but the tenor of the case is such that we don't think Mr Malema should be required to testify". - IOL website

Hate speech claim part of 'white agenda' - 10 July
ANC Youth League president Julius Malema refuses to apologise for his comment about the woman who laid a rape charge again President Jacob Zuma, saying the hate speech case against him was driven by a white agenda. "We will never apologise to some Mickey Mouses who want to put pressure on us," he said outside the Equality Court on Friday after the matter was postponed to August 31. He said the charge was driven by people who did not want to see black faces in leadership. - IOL website

InfoUpdate : an Information Service supplied by the KwaZulu-Natal Law Society