CARMEL RICKARD: Conduct unbecoming?
The high court has suspended a finding by the military appeals court, pending a decision about whether that body was correctly constituted in a case involving ‘cashiering’
Cashiering has long been one of the most potent weapons of military authorities to ensure members of the force stay in line. Failure to act “honourably” can be followed by a humiliating separation from the military through cashiering — the public stripping of rank and insignia, sometimes also known as a “degradation ceremony”.
Charles Machard, a professional nurse in the SA National Defence Force (SANDF), faces exactly this punishment following his conviction for several sexual crimes. Now he is doing everything he can to ensure cashiering doesn’t take place, even preparing legal argument aimed at showing that such treatment is an infringement of the dignity of the person so punished and would be unconstitutional if carried out...
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