THE SACP says that former Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng’s apology for his pro-Israel remarks in June 2020 was important as it had the potential to contribute to restoring public trust and respect for the judiciary.
Spokesperson for the SACP Alex Mashilo said that the apology, which Justice Mogoeng issued on Thursday in compliance with the Judicial Conduct Appeals Committee’s decision, was also significant as it was made with the knowledge that no one is above the law.
The decision comes after Justice Mogoeng, in a webinar hosted by the Jerusalem Post, said that he had an obligation as a Christian to love Israel and pray for peace in Jerusalem while he also slammed the South African government’s policy position on Israel.
“In that seminar, hosted by the Jerusalem Post, Mogoeng expressed support for Israel in a context conflating the Biblical Israel and the latter-day typically apartheid Israeli regime which colonially occupies Palestinian land.
“The Israeli apartheid regime has year in, year out, unleashed varying forms of apartheid segregation, atrocities, killings, and other human rights violations against the Palestinian people,” Mashilo said.
Justice Mogoeng’s remarks saw him receive an enormous public backlash and pressure piled on him to retract his comments. However, he didn’t retract his comments.
However, sustained pressure from lobby groups, Africa4Palestine, the SA BDS Coalition, and Women's Cultural group saw the Judicial Conduct Appeals Committee eventually rule that Justice Mogoeng, by the utterances at the seminar, became involved in political controversy, and thus breached Articles 12(1)(b) and 14(2)(a) of the Judicial Code of Conduct.
“The Articles prohibit judges from becoming involved in any political controversy or activity (12(1)(b)). However, they allow judges to be involved in extra-judicial activities, if such activities are not incompatible with the confidence in, or the impartiality or the independence of the judge (14(2)(a)).
“The Judicial Conduct Appeals Committee clarified that the utterances made by Mogoeng Mogoeng at the seminar contained elements of such a nature that they could diminish the public confidence in the integrity of the judiciary,” Mashilo said.
He added that contextually, it was important to note that the apology came at the time when the judiciary was systematically isolated and attacked and that the attacks against the judiciary escalated during the proceedings of the judicial commission of inquiry into state capture.
“They were intensified with unjust criticism devoid of any scientific substance when the commission, which is headed by Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, handed over the first of its three-parts-report to President Cyril Ramaphosa, who took the commendable decision to release it immediately afterwards.
“When this happened, someone wielding a heavyweight hammer attacked the Constitutional Court by vandalising it,” Mashilo said.
POLITICAL BUREAU