Vote of the thanks by the Hon Andries Nel, MP, Deputy Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, at the Welcoming Dinner for the International Conference on Access to Justice: Strengthening People-Centred Justice Systems: Deepening Democracy at Sun City
Goeienaand. Sanibonani. Molweni. Lotjhani. Dumelang. Ndaa. Avuxeni. Bonsoir. Boa noite. Habari za jioni.
Minister Kubayi, distinguished guests, colleagues and friends, good evening.
We have all enjoyed generous, sumptuous, and substantial servings of protocol tonight. I am only going to serve words of thanks.
My task, therefore, is to thank everyone and give the microphone back to the musicians before they have to apply to Deputy Chief Justice Mlambo for a structural interdict to entertain us and get us on the dance floor.
Sakina, thank you for guiding us through the evening and the many insightful comments that you made along the journey.
On behalf of the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Development, we thank each and every one of you who are committed to the cause of access to justice for joining us here in Sun City.
Premier Mokgosi, thank you for welcoming us so warmly to the North West Province, Bokoni Bophirima.
Minister Kubayi, thank you for your leadership and vision and for bringing us together and for reminding us why we have come together.
Thank you to Dr Monica Juma and Judge Tomoko Akane for your messages this evening, and to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime for helping us convene this conference.
The film we watched this evening took us back to the making of our Constitution. Thirty years ago, South Africans who had long been denied justice helped shape the law by which we would govern ourselves.
When President Nelson Mandela signed the Constitution at Sharpeville on 10 December 1996, he chose a place that held a painful memory for our country. It was there that he put his signature to a promise of dignity, equality and freedom for everyone.
The Preamble to the Constitution tells us what that promise asks of us: To “heal the divisions of the past” and build a society founded on democratic values, social justice and fundamental human rights in which every citizen is equally protected by law.
We can see what that promise means in the work of a community paralegal who helps someone take the first step, a Legal Aid lawyer who stands beside an indigent client in court, or a court official who takes the time to explain how to access its services.
Anyone who has tried to make sense of a form while worried about their safety, their home or their wages will know how much that help can matter.
Over the next two days, I hope we’ll keep asking what it takes for someone facing one of those problems to get help.
Can they find it close to home? Can they afford to get there? Will someone explain their options in a language they understand? And can they get a remedy in time for it to make a difference?
Those are questions we can learn a great deal from one another about, especially from colleagues who spend their working days helping people navigate the justice system.
To our colleagues from across the region and further afield, thank you for making the journey and for bringing your experience to this conversation.
Some of the most useful exchanges at a conference begin when someone at dinner asks, “How do you do it in your country?” We hope there will be a few more of those conversations before the evening is over.
Tonight we also congratulate South Africa’s Judge Navi Pillay on being awarded the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts to promote peace and international law. It is a moment of pride for South Africa and for everyone who has worked to give victims access to justice.
Judge Akane, your name closely resembles Akani, which means builder in Xitsonga, one of South Africas languages. You are indeed a builder of justice.
We stand with the International Criminal Court and support its independence. We oppose 3 the sanctions imposed by the United States on you and other Court personnel, and any threat of further sanctions. Judges and prosecutors must be free to do their work without intimidation.
Thank you to the steering committee, led by Deputy Director General Charles Mohalaba, and to the teams of committed officials from the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development and other departments and agencies who have spent months getting us here. To the colleagues working behind the scenes and the Sun City staff who have looked after us tonight, we are grateful.
Thank you to the SIU Choir for opening the evening with our anthems, and to the jazz band for giving us a very good reason to keep the speeches short.
Earlier this evening, the SIU Choir sang the African Union Anthem. Its words, “For lasting peace and justice on earth,” speak directly to the work that brings us together.
Friends, the best way we can honour thirty years of our Constitution is to make it easier for people to use the rights it guarantees. If each of us leaves Sun City with one practical change we can make for the people who turn to us for help, these two days will have been well spent.
For now, please enjoy the music and the company. We look forward to seeing you tomorrow morning.
Thank you and good night. Baie dankie. Ngiyabonga. Enkosi. Ngiyathokoza. Ke a leboga. Ndi a livhuwa. Ndza khensa. Merci. Muito obrigado. Asanteni sana.
