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Article: Judge selection is not state meddlingThe JSC and the president must be sensitive to issues of public trust and confidence, writes Ziyad Motala.(News)
- Article from:
- Cape Argus (South Africa)
- Article date:
- July 1, 2009
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In a recent dissenting judgment in the Gauteng High Court involving the application by Cape High Court Judge President John Hlophe against the Judicial Services Commission (JSC), Judge Nigel Willis referred to his cultural tradition and invoked the nursery rhyme Humpty Dumpty.
Without taking issue or commenting on the conclusion he reached, Judge Willis's invocation of his cultural tradition of not missing work for 30 years and his reference to Humpty Dumpty "to those for whom English is not a first language" reflects a mindset that exemplifies extraordinary arrogance, paternalism and condescension.
At best it shows the attitude of a judge with a colonial ...