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– to open the doors of the Centre in June 1990. He was joined by Bulelani Ngcuka, an attorney,and secretary Sunita Dalla. The allocated offices were far removed from the Law Faculty, butright next to the Dean of Research, Prof Renfrew Christie, who over time became an institutionin the Centre. The Board of Trustees included Archbishop Tutu, who would actually attendboard meetings, along with the community activists Christmas Tinto and Lucy Nyembe.Dr Zola SkweyiyaBoard of Trustees meeting in 1993: Professor Jeremy Sankin, Advocate Dullah Omar, Professor Flip Swart, Peter Volmink,Advocate Steve Majiedt, Professor Nico SteytlerCrammed into two offices, the mission of the Centre changed dramatically: from a researchinstitution looking towards the future, it became directly involved in negotiating that future.From the outset, Omar made his intention clear when he wrote to Professor Gerwel: ‘Myplan for our centre is to participate in the debate and discussion in a way which enables usto be involved in future constitution-making in our country.’ This happened on a significantscale with the return of exiles. Dr Zola Skweyiya, the head of the ANC legal departmentand Constitutional Committee, and Brigitte Mabandla, also from the ANC legal department,joined the Centre. Although they were not staff members, Albie Sachs and Kader Asmal (thefirst professor in human rights in the Law Faculty) worked closely with the Centre. Collectively,as members of the ANC Constitutional Committee, these individuals participated in theconstitutional negotiations, charting the course towards the new South Africa. The Centrebecame a major contributor to policy formulation for the new constitutional order, focusingon the structure of the state, the electoral system,gender issues, children’s rights, policing and thetransformation of the judiciary.Attracted by the Centre’s work, a number ofstudents from abroad volunteered their services.One was Amy Biehl, a student from the USA whojoined the Centre in 1992 as a voluntary researcheron gender. Having spent more than a year at theCentre, her time in South Africa ended tragicallywhen she was murdered by a mob of young peopleAmy Biehlwhile dropping off friends in Gugulethu.Brigitte MabandlaJustice Albie SachsProfessor Kader AsmalAnnual Report 2009 3
Chief Justice Arthur ChaskalsonThe 1994 democratic election saw most of the Centre’s staff beingelected to Parliament and elevated to high political office. TheCentre’s ethos and direction, however, had been firmly set during itsfounding years.When Dullah Omar sadly passed away after a long illness in 2004,the Centre instituted an annual memorial lecture to pay tribute tohis rich legacy on human rights and democracy. The first lecturewas given by his colleague and co-founder of the Centre, BulelaniNgcuka, the former National Director of Public Prosecutions.Thesecond lecture was delivered by another founding member, MinisterBrigitte Mabandla, in 2005. Chief Justice Arthur Chaskalson spoke in 2006 and MinisterTrevor Manuel in 2007. A trustee of the Centre, emeritus Archbishop Desmond Tutu, gracedthe occasion in 2008, while in 2009, Dr Navanethem Pillay, the UN High Commissioner forHuman Rights, gave an inspiring lecture on women’s rights in the international human rightssystems. In a short space of time, the Annual Memorial Lecture has become an importantevent in the calendar of the University.Archbishop Desmond TutuMinister Trevor ManuelDr Navanethem Pillay2nd Dullah Omar Memorial Lecture with Minister Brigitte MabandlaShaping the new democracy and connectingwith the rest of AfricaWith the departure of original staff members, the Centre not only had to be re-staffed butalso had to refocus its activities. In 1994 Nico Steytler was appointed as director and JuliaSloth-Nielsen and Sandy Liebenberg as researchers. From the heady days of being intimatelyinvolved in negotiating a constitutional settlement, the Centre’s activities moved towardsassisting in the transformation of the legal order befitting the new democratic state, givingform and content to the constitutional framework. The Centre sought to provide the newstate with research assistance and advice, placing its resources and expertise at the disposalof Parliament, government ministries and departments and other state institutions such asthe Human Rights Commission and the Law Reform Commission.4COMMUNITY LAW CENTRE
Page 1: A place of quality, a place to grow
Page 4 and 5: Messages of supportArchbishop Desmo
Page 8 and 9: Signing ceremony of EU grant for th
Page 10 and 11: Focus areasGiven the enormity of th
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Page 18 and 19: The people of the CentreThe Centre
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Page 34 and 35: Income and expenditure statementInc
Page 36 and 37: Fessha, Yonatan, 2009, “A tale of
Page 38: Mission statementThe Community Law

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