JOHANNESBURG - South Africa’s Constitutional Court celebrates 30 years since its establishment.
Chief Justice Mandisa Maya led a commemorative event at Constitution Hill, attended by President Cyril Ramaphosa, along with former presidents Thabo Mbeki and Kgalema Motlanthe.
Ramaphosa reaffirmed the independence of the judiciary, an important pillar of South Africa's constitutional democracy.
The Judiciary will now have its own financial independence and will no longer fall under the budget of the Department of Justice.
This means court infrastructure and budget will be managed by the judiciary, who will be responsible for their own administration, staffing, training and infrastructure projects, according to President Cyril Ramaphosa who says funding for the judiciary will be made available despite South Africa’s tightening fiscal environment.
Mbekezeli Benjamin,a legal researcher and advocacy officer from Judges Matter commented on this decision, "What this decision allows them to do is to have a little bit of a say in how they manage the courts..."
"When do courts open (and) when do they close? How quickly a judgment can be produced?" he said.