Hon House Chairperson, let me first commend you for calling us to order. Let me say that the Committee on Justice and Correctional Services received a briefing from the Department of Justice and Correctional Services, inputs from stakeholders and also allowed stakeholders to submit additional inputs in writing. I also want to say that the committee engaged thoroughly with the reports and came to identify common issues which really made the committee support the Bill.
Firstly, it identified that there is a lack of unity in regulation, that there is fragmentation within the legal profession, and observed that apartheid created desperate laws that are applied in different parts of the country. And Bantustan law societies were created which operate unprofessionally and were unable to maintain and enforce discipline amongst the lawyers practising in those areas. Now, also the committee unanimously observed, for instance, that the Law Society of Bophuthatswana, which had concurrent jurisdiction with the Law Society of the Northern Provinces, was continuously at war with the Law Society of the Northern Provinces.
Also, it was observed that the constitutions of the law societies still use the colonial names, which is in conflict with the Constitution of the Republic SA, Act 108 of 1996. Therefore, the committee unanimously supported the Bill. On the strength of the mandate of this committee, I would like to propose to this House that the report of the Committee on Justice and Correctional Services be adopted by this august House. Thank you, hon House Chairperson.
There was no debate.
House Chairperson, I move:
That the Report be adopted. Motion agreed to.
Report accordingly adopted.