Faizel Patel – 24/03/2021

(Twitter: @FaizelPatel143)

Pro-Palestine group Africa4Palestine says the Office of South Africa’s Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng has turned down the request for a meeting following his pro-Israel comments made last year in June.

Mogoeng came under severe criticism following his remarks during a webinar with The Jerusalem newspaper, where he lamented the South African government’s policy regarding the Israel-Palestinian conflict.

Africa4Palestine laid a complaint with Judicial Services Commission.

The JSC gave Mogoeng ten days to apologise for his pro-Israel comments, but the chief justice refused to apologise saying he intends appealing the decision by the JSC.

#Africa4Palestine’s Muhammad Desai say they reached out to the Chief Justice to try and engage as well as have a dialogue with him, but he turned the organisation down.

“It is telling and disappointing that on the one hand, the Chief Justice will speak on a foreign Israeli platform but on the other hand, turns down an invitation to meet with a South African human rights organization.”

Desai says they are also waiting for the appeals process of the JSC.

“Our legal team advises us that we can remain confident that the initial 4th of March ruling by the JSC for Mogoeng to apologise will be upheld.

Desai says last week during another public webinar, Mogoeng threatened: “Anybody from today, who is plotting to disgrace me, they will die before they can even do it.”