Features
August 13, 2009
ICTJ opposes pardons appeal to South Africa's Constitutional Court
The Pretoria High Court decided on April 29 to block the South African
President from issuing pardons under a special process for political
crimes pending the final determination of the case.
ICTJ is a member of a coalition of South African civil society organizations challenging the exclusion of victims from this process. The coalition has argued that this secretive process is unconstitutional and that it violated the spirit and legacy of South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which included victims in public hearings before offering amnesty to perpetrators.
The legal challenge has already succeeded in preventing former President Kgalema Motlanthe from granting pardons in advance of national and provincial elections. ICTJ has filed substantive papers opposing
the appeal to the Constitutional
Court, South Africa’s highest court. These and other legal filings are available, as well as a selection of news stories about the case.
Legal Arguments
1. Applicants' Notice of
Motion - March 19, 2009
2. Applicants' Founding Affidavit - March 19, 2009
3. Archbishop Tutu's Supporting Affidavit - March 24, 2009
4. Alex Boraine's Supporting Affidavit - March 19, 2009
5. Jody Kollapen's Supporting Affidavit - March 18, 2009
6. Notice of Opposition from President and Minister of
Justice - March 19, 2009
7. Notice of Motion and Founding Affidavit of First
Intervener (Third Respondent-Ryan Albutt) - March 23, 2009
8. NOTE: This is in fact the First Intervener's (Third
Respondent's) Heads of Argument - April 7, 2009
9. Applicants' replying Affidavit to the Third
Respondent - March 31, 2009
10. Notice of motion of the Second
to Seventh Interveners (Fourth to Ninth Respondents) - March 30, 2009
11. Affidavits of the
second to seventh interveners (Fourth to Ninth Respondents) -
March 30, 2009
12. NOTE: This is in fact the Applicants' Replying
Affidavit to the affidavits of the second to seventh interveners - April 1, 2009
13. President's Answering Affidavit -
April 1, 2009
14. Applicants' replying affidavit to the President -
April 6, 2009
15. Eighth Intervener's (van Westhuizen's) Affidavit -
April 9, 2009
16. Fourth to Ninth Respondents' Heads of Argument -
April 7, 2009
17. Applicants' Heads of
Argument - April 8, 2009
18. Pardons Judgement - April 29, 2009
19. President's Application for Leave to Appeal - May 20, 2009
20. Application launched by an intervener in the pardons challenge for a direct appeal to the Constitutional Court - May 18, 2009
21. First to Seventh Respondent's Answering Affidavit - June 17, 2009
22. Notice of Application in Terms of Rule 49(11) - June 18, 2009
23. Affidavit in Support of Application in Terms of Rule 49(11)
24. Applicant Ryan Albutt's Founding Affidavit for Direct Access
25. First to Seventh Respondents' Heads of Argument in response to Ryan Albutt's Leave to Appeal
26. Eight and Ninth Respondents' submission in response to Ryan Albutt's Leave to Appeal
27. Ryan Albutt (convicted of race crimes), an intervener in the pardons case and the applicant for leave to appeal (and direct access) to the Constitutional Court has filed supplementary heads of argument - October 16, 2009
Links to Relevant News
Stories:
http://www.businessday.co.za/articles/national.aspx?ID=BD4A980644
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=15&art_id=nw200904141215017
http://www.thetimes.co.za/PrintEdition/Article.aspx?id=915910
http://www.thetimes.co.za/News/Article.aspx?id=972598
http://www.thetimes.co.za/News/Article.aspx?id=980169
http://www.citizen.co.za/index/article.aspx?pDesc=93705,1,22
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=15&art_id=nw20090414121501787C777901
