President Nelson Mandela's office has intervened in the selection of Land Claims Court judges in a bid to include women on the shortlist of nominees. Presidential spokesman Parks Mankahlana confirmed this week that the office would be asking the Judicial Services Commission to discuss new candidates, despite the fact that public hearings to select candidates are over, and the JSC has already sent a shortlist of five names -- all men -- to the President.
This move by the President's office was prompted by the National Association of Democratic Lawyers (Nadel) and supported by a number of NGOs involved with land issues. Nadel complained bitterly last week that there were no women on the JSC's short-list, and then compiled its own list of women candidates which it sent to the President's office.
The JSC defended its own all-male list, saying that only one woman had been nominated for the position of judge, despite extensive advertising in all national newspapers. She dropped out near the end of the selection process.
Source: Mail & Guardian
