The former Public Protector Thuli Madonsela can be found on the top floor of the Law faculty building – that is if she is not in meetings with university management or going out of her way to secure funding from businesses through various engagements – for her portfolio: Chair of Social Justice at the said faculty.
Madonsela started in her post at the beginning of this year after having taken a sabbatical following the end of her term as Public Protector of South Africa towards the end of 2016.
Born in Soweto, Madonsela then joined trade union movements in the mid to late 1980s and is also known for having served as a technical expert in the drafting of the Constitution. Today, she holds honorary degrees from four universities including Stellenbosch University (SU) – an award bestowed on her in 2015.
Madonsela says the next focus on her Social Justice projects, will now be to narrow down the focus of the work to have a key focus area. PHOTO: Kamva Somdyala.
Madonsela’s role is to conduct and coordinate research on social justice. “The position is outward looking,” Madonsela begins. “The social justice research part focuses on the impact of our university in society. I have been invited into a space where the Vice-Chancellor [Prof Wim de Villiers] and the university community think about social justice in a manner that leaves no one behind.” Madonsela adds that she is “privileged” to be part of the drive of social justice.
JD Blanckenberg, an SU Alumni, says this particular portfolio within the Law faculty “provides us with another opportunity to take stock of our entire institutional journey and to take time to share our numerous complex and multi-faceted stories; stories of historical pain and suffering which help us understand the modern legacies thereof.
“What’s more is that it will enable us to share our stories of forgiveness and co-creating a significantly better and different SU and at the same time to co-dream and co-imagine a future SU which is truly welcoming and inviting and celebrating of differences.”
Now, six months into her position, Madonsela admits that although she has settled in well, she is “still settling”. She says the social justice research part is fascinating and has come naturally to her because social justice is something she has been doing all of her life.
“Stellenbosch prides itself on striving towards being an African-centred institution, therefore I envisage Social Justice at SU as taking a constitutional approach towards establishing a progressive rule of law in the broader African context,” says former SASCO Maties Secretary General Yamkela Tyapha (22).
“Additionally, given the historical context of SU and its institutional contributions to the exclusion of minority groups, Social Justice at SU should foster meaningful action towards empowerment, advocacy and social innovation.”
‘Narrow the focus’
Madonsela says what she has found difficult is to narrow her Social Justice scope to something tangible because “social justice happens every day in our lives”.
“With the United Nations (UN) wanting to eradicate poverty by 2030, the task now is to find something tangible to narrow the focus to,” she says.
Nosi Matiwane (23), a Social Anthropology Honours student says she views Madonsela’s role as being one that should facilitate engagements with university management. “Students have been involved in Social Justice issues dating back to the “black face” incident in 2014, including the ill-treatment of dissenting student voices against this university and their inherent rape culture and overt racism in policy.”
On the other hand, Blanckenberg says it is “exciting that the Law faculty has this particular chair – in the form of Madonsela especially given that it is SU’s centenary year”.
“I trust that this will contribute to the existing conversation around SU’s journey of transformation and excellence, and also add to the existing contribution to a better South Africa,” Blanckenberg added.
Madonsela says part of her work is to remove the stigma that poor people are lazy and wants to sensitise people into caring about issues of social justice. PHOTO: Kamva Somdyala
Madonsela says she continues to spread the word on social justice issues with industry stakeholders and says the reception has been “good”. These include, but are not limited to Woolworths, Nedbank, Standard Bank and Old Mutual. “I’ve used these platforms to sensitise people to ask ‘what is social justice and why should everyone be concerned about it’.”
Meanwhile, Matiwane is of the view that although her role is needed at the university, “she is not utilising it in a manner that is of use to the student body”.
‘Poor people are not lazy’
The narrowing down of the scope has happened now, according to Madonsela. “Policy makers in the past have had a ‘one-size-fits-all approach’ when dealing with issues of social justice and in that way, there have been unintended consequences. For example, when university’s ‘go digital’ and when applications are done online for everyone, what happens to people in rural areas who cannot access the internet?”
Blanckenberg believes that a “multitude of lenses will help us to see clearer” in relation to Madonsela’s continued work with social justice issues.
“It remains my view that first we must know about the different facets of our challenges before we can understand and appreciate their complexities, and find meaningful, lasting and sustainable solutions.”
Tyapha says she has always looked to the Equality Unit to advocate for social justice, however, “Madonsela’s appointment has allowed me to think and look beyond the Equality Unit for matters regarding Social Justice at SU. I am uncertain of the institutional stance toward Social Justice, therefore the expectation of the role Madonsela should play as Social Justice chair is informed by my own knowledge and understanding of Social Justice in the broader South African community.”
According to SU Vice-Chancellor, Prof Wim de Villiers, Madonsela, in her role as incumbent of the Law Faculty Trust Chair for Social Justice, “contributes significantly to the Faculty of Law’s continued commitment to champion the realisation of a constitutional vision for South African society”.
De Villers added saying, “SU aims to play a central role in South Africa through its significant research, teaching and social impact. The work of the Chair for Social Justice assists in this regard”.
What’s more is that Madonsela is working on the MOSA plan, named after Palesa Mosa, a woman who Madonsela says “is poor today, not for being lazy as she does work (selling cosmetics), but she’s still poor and she still cannot send her daughter to university. The MOSA plan is about helping people like Palesa to help themselves in a theme of ‘no hands outs but a hand up’”.
And in that way, with the hand up narrative, Madonsela says no one should be left behind.