Mr Zuma is no ordinary litigant. He is the former President of the Republic, who remains a public figure and continues to wield significant political influence, while acting as an example to his supporters… He has a great deal of power to incite others to similarly defy court orders because his actions and any consequences, or lack thereof, are being closely observed by the public. If his conduct is met with impunity, he will do significant damage to the rule of law. As this Court noted in Mamabolo, “[n]o one familiar with our history can be unaware of the very special need to preserve the integrity of the rule of law”. Mr Zuma is subject to the laws of the Republic. No person enjoys exclusion or exemption from the sovereignty of our laws… It would be antithetical to the value of accountability if those who once held high office are not bound by the law.
In light of the recent attacks on Abahlali baseMjondolo (AbM) in Kennedy Road, Durban, the Centre for the Study of Democracy (CSD) at University of Johannesburg/Rhodes University will hold a seminar entitled Democracy under Threat?: What Attacks on Grassroots Activists Mean for our Politics where grassroots activists, scholars and human rights campaigners will discuss threats to free political activity and their implications.
Venue: Training Centre, 6th Floor, South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) – map attached
Time: 9am to 3pm
Date: Wednesday, 4 November 2009
RSVP: Johnny Selemani – jaselemani@gmail.com / 073 553 0726
Kate Tissington – kate.tissington@wits.ac.za / 072 220 9125 (by Friday 30 October 2009)
Speakers:
Steven Friedman, Centre for the Study of Democracy (CSD)
Pregs Govender, South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC)
S’bu Zikode, President, Abahlali basMjondolo
Mnikelo Ndabankulu, Spokesperson, AbM
Zodwa Nsibande, General Secretary of the Youth League, AbM
Michael Neocosmos, Monash University
Richard Pithouse, Politics Department, Rhodes University
Andile Mngxitama, Foundation for Human Rights (FHR)
Marcelle Dawson, Centre for Sociological Research, University of Johannesburg (to be confirmed)
Noor Nieftagodien, History Department, University of the Witwatersrand
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