Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court, Raymond Zondo, has passed his condolences to the family of Dr Frene Ginwala following her death last week.

Ginwala was democratic South Africa’s first speaker of the National Assembly after the fall of Apartheid.

“We mourn the passing on of Dr Frene Ginwala and celebrate her illustrious life and her contribution to the freedom that we all enjoy today. We thank her family for sharing her with all the people of South Africa and beyond. Dr Ginwala made many contributions in different capacities to our constitutional democracy.

“On the occasion of her passing on, I particularly wish to mention the fact that it was during Dr Ginwala’s term of office as Speaker of Parliament that our first democratic Parliament repealed a number of apartheid laws that discriminated against the majority of the people of South Africa on the basis of their race,” Zondo said.

The Chief Justice said South Africans will be “forever indebted” to Ginwala’s contribution in the repealing of Apartheid’s brutal laws during her during her decade long service as Speaker of the National Assembly.

“It was also during Dr Ginwala’s term of office as Speaker of Parliament that South Africa’s first democratic Parliament passed our Supreme Law, namely, our Constitution.

“The Constitution that Dr Ginwala helped produce for South Africa contains the Bill of Rights, provides for an independent Judiciary and constituted South Africa as a democratic state founded on, among others, the values of human dignity, the achievement of equality, the advancement of human rights and freedom, non-racialism, non-sexism, supremacy of the Constitution and the rule of law.

“For this, our country will forever be indebted to Dr Ginwala and many others,” Zondo said.

Source: South African Government News Agency