Tukkies prof the first South African to be appointed to ICJ for nine-year term

University of Pretoria professor of international law Dire Tladi on Tuesday officially began his historic term as the first South African to be appointed to serve for nine years at the International Court of Justice.

Tladi was a professor of international law in the University of Pretoria’s department of public law. His qualifications include a bachelor of law (LLB), master of law (LLM) and a PhD, which centred on analysing sustainable development in international law. 

Tladi began his journey as a legal scholar 27 years ago when he was appointed a lecturer in 1997 by Tuks university. He moved to improve his expertise in international law as a lecturer at the University of SA in 2002. 

Apart from his work in academia, Tladi was a legal adviser for the department of international relations & co-operation (Dirco) and for minister Naledi Pandor for almost a decade between 2006 and 2014.

He is no stranger to world courts and was a lead counsel for South Africa and the AU at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the case against the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, accused of disregarding a request for the arrest and surrender of Omar al-Bashir. 

As senior ICJ judge Peter Tomka read out Tladi’s academic history on his first day on the job at the court, he sat quietly with his hands in front of his face. 

“I solemnly declare that I will perform my duties and exercise my powers as judge honourably, faithfully and impartially and consciously,” Tladi read to the court.

Tladi adds to a list of African judges who have served on the panel, namely Mohamed Bennouna from Morocco, Abdulqawi Ahmed Yusuf from Somalia and Ugandan Julia Sebutinde.

Congratulatory messages have dominated social media charts: