'I have never felt as proud as I felt today': Ramaphosa on SA’s 'formidable' legal team at The Hague

President Cyril Ramaphosa has lauded South Africa’s legal team at The Hague in the Netherlands, saying they put forward their case “strongly and forcefully”. 

“I must say that I have never felt as proud as I felt today when our legal team was arguing our case in The Hague," the ANC president told the party's women’s league umanyano gathering in Mbombela, Mpumalanga, on Thursday. 

He was speaking following day one of the International Court of Justice hearing into the South Africa vs Israel court case at the Peace Palace in the Dutch city.  

The women's league event is one of several lined up ahead of the ANC's 112th birthday bash on Saturday.

Ramaphosa said: “We put together a formidable team to represent South Africa in our case at the International Court of Justice against Israel. We did that because we saw the atrocities happening in Gaza where the Palestinians are being killed.

"People, leaders and various other countries have been trying everything that they can to try and plead with Israel to stop the slaughter of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank but Israel has persisted in the genocidal slaughter of the Palestinians."

Ramaphosa and the rest of the ANC national executive committee are in Mpumalanga drumming up support ahead of the party's January 8 statement rally to take place at the Mbombela stadium on Saturday.

Ramaphosa's speech on Saturday is expected to set the tone for the party's programme ahead of its manifesto launch scheduled to take place at the Moses Mabhida stadium next month. The speech could also give an indication  of what could be contained in his state of the nation address scheduled for February 8.

Ramaphosa told ANC faithfuls yesterday that South Africa was "duty bound", as members of the court, to act against Israel.

"We also felt duty bound because we were taught by Nelson Mandela that our freedom will never be complete until the freedom of the Palestinians is also attained. It is for that reason that we launched a court case. I have never been this proud as seeing Ronald Lamola, a son of this province, standing there in that court introducing our case.” 

Ramaphosa said he heard that some of the Palestinians who were there cried because “they had a sense that South Africa is possibly the only country that is standing by them through these trials and tribulations.

“So we thank you as South Africans that you stand on principle. We demonstrated our resolve to stand by them regardless of whatever consequences might befall us as a country.”  

He later told members of the ANC youth league during a Peter Mokaba memorial lecture in Kanyamazane that the case was a historic moment for the country. 

“Apart from advancing our foreign policy to a higher level, it also spoke volumes about taking forward the lessons we were taught by the father of our democracy Nelson Mandela who taught us that in whatever we do, we should uphold the human rights for all not only in South Africa but all over the world.” 

He said many countries had tried to bargain with Israel to ceasefire in various fora including the United Nations and a special emergency Brics meetings. 

“We were compelled to take a case to the International Court of Justice. Our team argued the case strongly and forcefully. It was a proud moment.” 

TimesLIVE