Africa: The Right to Shelter - Let Down By the Judicial System in South Africa

opinion

"Lots of people live under bridges," a Johannesburg judge said after a group of people was evicted from a building. Three days after their eviction, a young woman gave birth to a baby. She was found living under a bridge with her newborn. When lawyers appealed to a judge to allow the group back into the building on the grounds that women, children and a newborn were living under a bridge, the judge chose to protect the rights of the property owner over the rights of the vulnerable group. We speak to Prof. Bonita Meyersfeld, Director of the Centre for Applied Legal Studies who explains how judges in South Africa today often find themselves on the wrong side of social justice.

Transcript of Interview

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