Tertiary Education:
- LLM - University of Cape Town: DISTINCTION in International Criminal Law.
- Postgraduate Certificate in Constitutional Litigation, UNISA. One year specialised training in Constitutional litigation offered by the University of South Africa.
- LLB - DISTINCTIONS in Jurisprudence and Advanced Criminal Law and A minus in Advanced Administrative Law and Labour Law - University of the Transkei.
- B.PROC - DISTINCTION in Accounting I. - University of South Africa. B.Proc is a 4 year degree in Law.
- B.A. Majors - History and African Languages (Xhosa) - University of South Africa. Finished the 3year degree in this distance education university after having been expelled from Fort Hare for reasons stated herebelow.
- B.A. 1 and 2 - DISTINCTION in African Languages in Course I. Expelled for political reasons before completing B.A. degree - University of Fort Hare.
- Matric - First Class Pass - DISTINCTION in Latin, St Johns College, Umtata.
- Junior Secondary Certificate - First Class pass DISTINCTION in General Arithmetic - Arthur Tsengiwe Training School, Cala.
- Primary Education - First Class Pass in Std 6 - Arthur Tsengiwe Practising School.
Career (Other):
- 2005 OCT - DEC
Acting Judge, Cape Provincial Division, Cape Town
- 2004 OCT - 2005 JAN
Member, International Commission for Darfur to investigate reports of violations of international human rights and humanitarian law in Darfur, Sudan. Appointed to the Commission by the United Nations General Secretary, Kofi Annan, pursuant to Security Council Resolution 1564 (2004).
- 2002 JAN - 2002 DEC
Distinguished Visiting Prof of Political Science and Law, University of Connecticut, USA.
- 2001 AUG - DATE
Lead Counsel: Apartheid Litigation in re: Ntsebeza v Citibank and Others (New York Court).
- 2000 JUL - DATE
Advocate of the High Court of South Africa.
- 1999 SEP - 2000 FEB
Appointed by Minister of Justice as Acting Judge in the Cape High Court and immediately assigned by President Mbeki to the Special Tribunal. Here I presided on cases brought to the Tribunal by the Special Investigative Unit, which probed, among other things, allegations of corruption in government Departments.
- 1999 APR - 1999 JUL
Appointed Acting Judge of the Umtata High Court by the Minister of Justice to preside over cases of the High Court dealing with cases that lower courts have no jurisdiction to try and from which appeals lie only to the Supreme Court of Appeal and/or the Constitutional Court. During my tenure as an Acting Judge in this Division wrote publishable judgements, most of which were in fact published.
- 1999 FEB - 1999 APR
Appointed Acting Judge of the Cape High Court and performed similar duties as in the Umtata High Court and again wrote several judgements most of which are publishable, and were in fact published in the South African Law Reports (SALR), the All South African Law Reports (All SA), and the South African Criminal Law Reports (SACR). Some of the judgements have been, and continue to be, the subject of critical law reviews in South Africa's most reputable law journals, notably the South African Law Journal (SALJ) and the South African Journal on Human Rights (SAJHR). One judgment on non-variation clauses in contract law, published in the 2001 February issue of the SALR has been critically reviewed in the SALJ as introducing a fresh and far-reaching interpretation of non-variation clauses in this critical area of Contract Law in South Africa.
- 1996 - 1998
Appointed by the Association of Law Societies to be a Lecturer for candidate attorneys in the Practical Law School, Cape Town, in human rights practice. This is a course whose intention is to short circuit the two-year apprenticeship lawyers in this country had to undergo in the past. The Practical Law School shortens internship by getting experienced lawyers to walk candidate attorneys through practical problems they are likely to encounter. The course is problem-solutions based in nature covering all practical exigencies likely to be experienced by attorneys.
- 1996 - July - 2000 JUL
Senior Partner and Co-Director in Ntsebeza Incorporated, in the Eastern Cape. A partner ran the Office when I was appointed by President Mandela as a Commissioner in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Though I had to leave the practice for the TRC and judgeship, I remained a partner until 2000, as the office treasured the goodwill the name of the office came with.
- 1996 - 2001
Was also a Partner in the law firm, Qunta Ntsebeza, Cape Town.
- 1995 DEC
Appointed Acting Judge, the first practising attorney in the Eastern Cape to be so honoured, Umtata Supreme Court. This was a historical event as judges of the high court before 1994 were only appointed from the ranks of the advocates' profession (barristers in the U.K.). The Minister of Justice in the new South Africa appointed, for a start, experienced and respected lawyers. In this trend setting position I gave of my best and wrote judgements which were published and publishable.
- 1995 DEC - 1999 FEB
Appointed Commissioner of the TRUTH and RECONCILIATION COMMISSION (TRC) by the then President of South Africa, President Mandela, after a process of public nominations which was followed by publicly conducted interviews which were open to the public and the media.
- 1996 - 1998 OCT
Head of the TRC's Investigative Unit, which was the engine room of the TRC and carried heavy responsibilities. My duties included negotiating and meeting with Ministers and Directors General of Departments from which data were needed. Getting State Security Information and working mechanisms of how the information should be protected formed part of my responsibilities. Reviewing the legalities and boundaries of our work was part of my duties. The Investigative Unit was made up of civilians (Human Rights lawyers, Investigative journalists, etc), trained police officers and international investigators from mostly Scandinavian and European countries. These investigators were evenly distributed in 4 Provincial Offices and in the National Office in Cape Town. I was the link between the Investigative Unit and the Commission.
I was also Commissioner and Head of the TRC'S Witness Protection Programme, a structure established by statute within the TRC to protect witnesses especially from the old order security structures who at a great risk to their lives, came forward with very sensitive information about the atrocities of the apartheid past.
Whenever either the Chairperson, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, or his Deputy Dr Alex Boraine, was away or unable to perform his functions, I was regularly elected by my fellow Commissioners to the position of the Deputy Chairperson of the Commission. Between August and October 1998, when both the Archbishop and his Deputy were away in the US I assumed Chairpersonship of the Commission and supervised the writing of the final report.
- 1994 - 1996
Sole Director, Ntsebeza Incorporated - Law Firm which was one of the most well known Practices in the Eastern Cape Province and beyond. I represented high profile clients. One such client was the Minister of Safety and Security in the Eastern Cape Provincial Legislature in 1995 against whom were allegations that he was involved in the perpetuation of internecine and politically motivated violence in the Qumbu and Tsolo districts. During this period, I was the official legal advisor and Representative of the Transkei Public Servants Association (TRAPSA), which after 1994 became known as the South African Public Servants Association (SAPSA). I also litigated mostly in the High Court, handling commercial and human rights cases.
- 1994 - 1995
Senior Lecturer in Human Rights Law (LLB students), Criminal Law and Evidence (Undergraduate students) - University of Transkei. I lectured part-time as I was full time in practice.
- 1991 - 1993
Assistant and then Co-Director - with former Mrs Ntsebeza in our practice - N.M. Ntsebeza Incorporated.
- 1985 - 1991
Managing Partner and Co-Director in the Sangoni Partnership/Sangoni Incorporated, then the biggest Black Law Firm in South Africa whose track record in human rights cases was second to none. Within the Sangoni Partnership I was, in the main, responsible for representing political offenders throughout Southern Africa and as far afield as Botswana.
- 1982 - 1984
Articled Clerk - Sangoni Partnership, Butterworth and Umtata.
- 1976 - 1981
Political Prisoner - During internment I studied Law as a distant education student of the University of South Africa.
- 1975 - 1976
Bank Teller, Standard Bank, Umtata
- 1974
Teacher, offering matric English, History, African Law, African Administration, Current Events and Conduct of Public Affairs - Jongilizwe College for sons of Chiefs and Headmen, Tsolo
- 1973
Teacher, offering matric biology and history - Dilizintaba Secondary School, Tsolo.
- 1971 - 1972
Teacher, offering English and Arithmetic - Ndema Secondary School, Tsomo. Whilst studying under difficult conditions to complete my degree after having been expelled from University because of political reasons.
Membership and other Professional Activities:
- 2005 - DATE
Chairman: Desmond Tutu Peace Trust. The Trust is fundraising to build a R100m Peace Centre in a prime site opposite the Cape Town International Convention Centre, among other things.
The Board members are:
- Advocate Dumisa Ntsebeza SC (Chairman)
- Mr Nallie Bosman
- Mrs Pam Golding
- Mr Saki Macozoma
- Prof Njabulo S Ndebele
- Prof Wiseman Nkuhlu
- Mr Cyril Ramaphosa
- Mr Tokyo Sexwale
- Dr Franklin Sonn
- Ms Yasmin Sooka
- Ms Nomfundo Walaza
- Ms Sindi Zilwa
- 2000 MAR - DATE
Appointed a Trustee of the Nelson Mandela Foundation.
- 1999 NOV - 1999 DEC
Seconded from the Special Tribunal to Chair a Commission of Inquiry into the causes of the Taxi Violence in Gauteng by the then Minister of Justice, Dr Maduna.
- 1999 - 2001
Deputy President, Black Lawyers Association
- 1999
Appointed a Member of the Attorneys Fidelity Fund, established for purposes of, inter alia, investigating claims of theft of Trust monies by practising attorneys and, in appropriate cases, compensating members of the public who have suffered damages as a result of the theft of their monies whilst entrusted to the attorneys.
- 1998 AUG - 1998 OCT
Acting Chairperson of the TRC and saddled with the responsibility of overseeing the writing of the final report.
- 1996 - 1998
Elected Acting Deputy Chairperson of the TRC on several occasions when either the Chairperson or the Deputy Chairperson was away.
- 1997 - 1999
Appointed a member of Council of the University of Cape Town.
- 1996 - 2000
Appointed Chairperson of Council of the University of Transkei
- 1995
Appointed Chair of a Committee of Inquiry to investigate financial maladministration in the Umtata Transitional Local Council by the Eastern Cape MEC for Housing and Local Government.
- 1995 - 2000
Member of the Council of the Law Society of the Cape of Good Hope., a governing and disciplinary body of all attorneys in the Eastern Cape, Northern Cape and Western Cape Provinces.
- 1995 - 1998
Board Member of the Efata School for the Deaf and Blind, Umtata.
- 1993 - 2002
Member of the Board of Bank of Transkei now MEEG (and was once a special legal advisor to the Managing Director.)
- 1991 - 1995
Chairperson and Convenor of BLA's Umtata and District Anti-capital Punishment Committee - Addressed several forums on abolition of capital punishment and on the unconstitutionality of death sentence.
- 1991 - 1995
Member of the Co-ordinating Committee - Umtata Advice Centre, an institution established to give free legal advice to indigent persons.
- 1990 - 1993
Chairperson - Transkei Association for Trade Union Libraries.
- 1989 - 1995
Chairperson - Umtata International School Council.
- 1989 - 1998
Member of the Board of Trustees - BLA - Legal Education Centre
- 1989 - 1991
President - Black Lawyers Association
- 1987 - 1989
Founder President - National Association of Democratic Lawyers (NADEL).
- 1985 - 1993
Chairperson - Prisoners Welfare Programmes (Priwelpro). Priwelpro was set up by me and 2 ex-political prisoners in one of the Bantustan of South Africa, the so called independent homeland of Transkei, in 1985, to respond to widespread detentions without trial, of political activists, accompanied by large scale incidents of beatings and torture, and in some cases, attempted assassinations and murders of political activists. Priwelpro agitated for the release of political prisoners from Robben Island and elsewhere, for the release of all political detainees, and for Court interdicts against the torture of those arbitrarily detained.
Some of Priwelpro's dramatic interventions have been covered in the recent book in the writing of which I collaborated, entitled: Unfinished Business: South Africa, Apartheid and Truth.
SPECIAL HONOURS AND INVITATIONS
- 2005 NOVEMBER
Appointed Silk (SC) by the President of the Republic of South Africa, the very first Black African Silk in the history of the Cape Bar, one of the oldest in the country dating back to the 19th century.
- 1994
Acted as Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) consultant in Qamata Irrigation Scheme for the then Transkei Department of Agriculture.
- 1994 (MAR - MAY)
Full-time Sub-Provincial Senior Mediator for IEC, Eastern Cape Region.
- 1993
Acted as DBSA consultant in the Ncora Irrigation Scheme for the then Transkei Department of Agriculture.
- 1993
Member of the Task Group on DISCRIMINATORY LEGISLATION - Legislation likely to impede free and fair elections, World Trade Centre, Midrand near Johannesburg.
- 1992 (JUL)
Was invited as the guest of the U.S. government on a sponsored coast to coast tour and became special guest of the American Bar Association in their week-long convention in San Francisco. Thereafter, visited Washington DC, Virginia, Philadelphia, Chicago, Boston, New York, talking to legal practitioners, academics, judges and political figures in Capitol Hill.
- 1990
Invited to the UK, London, at the instance of and by the Foreign Office of the British Government to look at Mediation, Conflict Resolution and other Conciliatory Services.
- 1989
Worked with T.L. Skweyiya S.C. (now Judge in the Constitutional Court) in the Skweyiya Commission to investigate the notorious CCB and related activities at the University of Transkei (now Walter Sisulu University).
BOARD MEMBERSHIP AND DIRECTORSHIPS
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