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Squires Praised |
| Publication | Daily News |
| Date |
2005-06-09 |
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Reporter |
Bheko Madlala |
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Web link |
He is a good man, says KZN's Judge President
Kwa-Zulu-Natal Judge President Vuka Tshabalala has come out in defence of Judge Hilary Squires in the aftermath of the Schabir Shaik trial, saying the venomous attacks on the judge were a direct assault on the integrity of the judiciary.
In an exclusive interview with the Daily News, Tshabalala, who appointed Squires to handle the politically sensitive trial, described the torrent of criticism levelled at the judge as not only unprecedented, but also unfair.
Squires convicted Shaik on two counts of corruption and one of fraud last week and sentenced him to an effective 15 years in jail yesterday.
Addressing a press conference in Johannesburg at the weekend, just days after Squires had ruled that there was a generally corrupt relationship between Deputy President Jacob Zuma and Shaik, ANC Youth League president Fikile Mbalula lambasted the judge, labelling him an apartheid judge.
"There is an error in that the judgment that he has made amounts to a miscarriage of justice," he said at the time.
His comments were echoed by Young Communist League secretary-general Buti Manamela, who called Squires a bitter judge who served as Minister of Justice under the oppressive Ian Smith regime in the former Rhodesia.
Reacting, Tshabalala said: "It is actually unprecedented that a judge makes a judgment and people start writing about him and his history and that he was the then minister of justice in Rhodesia.
"It is uncalled for because the trial was a transparent process. People were allowed to come in and listen to the case and judge for themselves without attacking the judge.
"He did not create the evidence. What does his past have to do with the case?" he asked.
Tshabalala said the transparency was demonstrated by the judgment being beamed live on television.
"It is therefore not fair to start insulting the judge.
When a judge sits in a criminal case, he sits with two assessors.
In this case, one of them was a senior counsel and the other one a retired magistrate. When a judge arrives at a decision to convict or not to convict, he discusses that with his assessors. It is only when it comes to sentencing where the judge has a discretion to pass whatever sentence he thinks is appropriate," he said, adding that people who were criticising Squires had their own agendas.
Explaining why he appointed Squires, Tshabalala said: "I could have appointed any retired judge, because it is a very bad thing to tie down a judge who is still in active service, and has other duties, to a long trial. I decided to appoint him so that he could concentrate on this trial," he said.
On reports that Squires had been paid R3.5 million to preside over the trial, Tshabalala said: "That is not true and I can vouch for it. He is an upright man. Squires is a good man." *1
Tshabalala said that nobody "has a right" to comment on a judge and his work. It is unfair. Anybody *2 who is unhappy with the judgment can appeal."
With acknowledgements to Bheko Madlala and Daily News.
*1 We can take it from Judge Tshabalala, Judge President of the kwaZulu-Natal Division of the High Court, that Judge Squires is a good man.Anybody can see from the trial, judgment and sentence that Judge Squires is a good judge, actually an excellent judge.
His judgment probably sets the standard in criminal cases in this country.
His sentence was probably the most lenient he could give within the constraints of the Minimum Sentencing Act.
For example :
Now that Adv Percy Sonn has taken his ethyl alcohol-soaked ways elsewhere and Adv Geophrey Ledwaba is pre-occupied with resolving some important differences with his employer, this dirty work is firmly in the hands of Advocates Vusi Pikoli, Leonard McCarthy and Jan Henning SC.
May their minds be appropriately applied.
*2 Anybody?