Online gamblers in South Africa could be fined R10-million or jailed for 10 years.
This was the ruling in the Pretoria High Court on Tuesday when Judge Willie Hartzenberg dismissed an application by Casino Enterprises of Swaziland to have residents of Gauteng gamble online.
The casino had taken the Gauteng and the national gambling boards, as well as the minister of trade and industry, to court.
The basis for the application was that although the gambling was done on computers in Gauteng, the gambling was taking place in Swaziland.
'It was recognised that gambling can be dangerous for individuals' The casino stressed that because of this, the punters were not contravening the Gauteng Gambling Act.
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However, the application was strenuously opposed by the defendants, who argued that Casino Enterprises was not licensed to operate gambling activities in South Africa.
In his ruling, Judge Hartzenberg noted: "In terms of section 15(1) of the National Act, nobody is allowed to advertise or promote any gambling activity in the Republic which is unlawful in terms of that act or applicable provincial law, and in terms of section 71(1) of the Gauteng act, nobody is allowed to advertise or disseminate any information relating to gambling in Gauteng in respect of which no licence was issued."
When parliament passed the gambling laws, it took a number of issues into consideration, including the fact that it had to guard against people gambling irresponsibly and becoming addicted.
"It was recognised that gambling can be dangerous for individuals and that they have to be protected by way of controls," stated the judge, adding: "It was recognised that gambling can be a great source of revenue for the province, which, if wisely spent, can improve the standard of living."
'All monies spent on casino gambling must contribute to the state' To ensure that the government achieved the goal of generating more revenue for its coffers, it had to institute proper controls.
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