SA committed to implementation of international law, says Cyril Ramaphosa

SA is committed to the strict implementation of international law, says President Cyril Ramaphosa, after its court case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

In his weekly letter, Ramaphosa reaffirmed the country’s obligation to stand up for justice and fundamental human rights for all people. 

“It is this obligation that informed our application to the ICJ to halt the violence unleashed by Israel on the Gaza Strip. The Genocide Convention was unanimously adopted by the UN General Assembly in the immediate aftermath of the Holocaust, one of the worst crimes in modern history,” he said.

Referring to the world witnessing the mass extermination of 6-million Jews and millions of other victims of the Nazis, Ramaphosa said the world united to prevent such atrocities from occurring again.

“As a signatory to that convention, SA carries a responsibility, like other states that are signatory to the convention, to prevent acts of genocide wherever they occur. It was in fulfilment of this responsibility and to prevent further civilian deaths and destruction that SA took this case to the court.”

Ramaphosa also noted the ICJ’s listening to the cases of SA and Israeli, resulting in the findings that it is plausible that Israel has committed acts that are in violation of the Genocide Convention to which SA, Israel and many other countries are signatories.

“We have been equally consistent in condemning the atrocities committed by Hamas against Israeli civilians on October 7 2023 and in calling for the release of hostages still being held in Gaza,” Ramaphosa.

“The International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that the state of Israel shall, in accordance with its obligations under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, in relation to Palestinians in Gaza, take all measures within its power to prevent the commission of all acts within the scope of article II of this Convention, in particular: killing members of Palestinians group; causing serious bodily or mental harm to Palestinians; deliberately inflicting on Palestinians conditions of life calculated to bring about their physical destruction in whole or in part; and imposing measures intended to prevent births of Palestinian children.”

The president condemned the unprecedented onslaught in Gaza, calling it an assault on all those who believe in justice, human rights and respect for international law.

“As SA, we have called these genocidal acts that the international community has a duty to halt and hold Israel accountable for. As South Africans committed to peace, justice and human rights, we are proud to stand on the right side of history. 

“The eminent novelist Primo Levi, himself a Holocaust survivor, wrote: ‘As long as there is suffering in the world, our duty to remember is not fulfilled’. If the slogan ‘never again’ is to offer hope for humankind, the lessons of not just the Nazi Holocaust but all forms of genocide must be practically and consistently applied.”

At the time they were committed, and despite glaring evidence, Ramaphosa said there were those who said they were unaware of the extent of the horrors committed by the Nazis — or others, like the Bosnian Serb armed forces or the Interahamwe in Rwanda.

“In our own country, there were also those who feigned ignorance about apartheid and its true impact on our people. A genocide is unfolding in the Gaza Strip and we have a moral duty to act. Let it be recorded in the history books that the democratic SA was not among those who shut their eyes or said they didn’t know.

“I call on all South Africans to rally behind our call for justice for the Palestinian people, and for a negotiated settlement that will bring about a just peace between Israelis and Palestinians. This cause is a reminder to us all that justice for only some is justice for none.”

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