PERSVERKLARING: KONSTITUSIONELE HOF GEVRA OM MENSWAARDIGHEID VAN ONGEBORE BABAS TE ERKEN

PERSVERKLARING: KONSTITUSIONELE HOF GEVRA OM MENSWAARDIGHEID VAN ONGEBORE BABAS TE ERKEN

by | Oct 15, 2021 | Press

PERSVERKLARING

KONSTITUSIONELE HOF GEVRA OM MENSWAARDIGHEID VAN ONGEBORE BABAS TE ERKEN - OCTOBER 2021

PERSVERKLARING DEUR CAUSE FOR JUSTICE: 15 OKTOBER 2021  

 

* VIR ONMIDDELLIKE VRYSTELLING *

ONDERWERP: “PERSVERKLARING: KONSTITUSIONELE HOF GEVRA OM MENSWAARDIGHEID VAN ONGEBORE BABAS TE ERKEN”

Menswaardigheid is ‘n hoeksteun-waarde van die Suid-Afrikaanse Grondwet. Mensregte-organisasie, Cause for Justice (CFJ), staan eersdaags in die Konstitusionele Hof op vir die inherente waarde van alle mense – insluitend ongebore babas.

 

Die Voice of the Unborn Baby-hofsaak

 Op 4 November 2021 oorweeg die Konstitusionele Hof ‘n waterskeidinguitspraak wat vroeër vanjaar deur die Pretoria Hooggeregshof gelewer is. Die hoogste Suid-Afrikaanse hof moet nou bevestig watter bedroefde ouers die reg het om die liggaamlike oorskot van hul ongebore baba te begrawe. [1] [2]

 Huidige Suid-Afrikaanse wetgewing beskou en behandel die oorskot van miskraam-babas (babas wat sterf voor 26 weke se ontwikkelling in die baarmoeder) as ‘mediese afval’ – d.w.s. as oorblyfsels van mediese of chirurgiese prosedures. Dit beteken dat ouers van hierdie babas nie die liggaamlike oorskot van hul baba kan ontvang vir doeleindes van ‘n begrafnis nie. Ongeag die ouers se wense, word hul baba se liggaam oorhandig om verbrand te word saam met chirurgies verwyderde liggaamsdele en ander mediese afval.

Volgens CFJ handel die hofsaak se sentrale vraag oor die inherente waarde (of waardigheid) van menslike lewe en wat dit beteken vir die manier waarop menslike oorskot behandel moet word.

 

Uitsprraak van die Pretoria Hooggeregshof

Die Pretoria Hooggeregshof is versoek om die huidige regsposisie ongrondwetlik te verklaar. CFJ het as ‘n amicus curiae (of ‘vriend van die hof’-party) opgetree in die saak wat oor twee dae in November 2019 aangehoor is. Op 26 Maart 2019 het die Hooggeregshof bevestig dat die 26 weke lewensvatbaarheid-skeidslyn ouers se reg skend om hul baba se oorskot te kan ontvang en begrawe. Die hof het die huidige regsposisie ongrondwetlik verklaar en gelas dat ouers die reg het om hul ongebore baba wat aan natuurlike oorsake sterf te begrawe, ongeag hoe lank (of kort) die baba in die baarmoeder was.

Terwyl CFJ hierdie uitkoms gevier het, was die organisasie ook verbaas dat die hof arbitrêr en sonder rede versuim het om hierdie reg uit te brei na alle ouers. Ouers wie se baba voor geboorte sterf as gevolg van menslike ingryping, het steeds nie die reg nie – en word wetlik verbied – om die oorskot van hul baba te ontvang vir doeleinde van ‘n begrafnis. Volgens CFJ is daar geen rasionele basis vir hierdie ontkenning van regte aan ouers wat die menslikheid van hul baba erken en hul groot verlies wil betreur deur wyse van ‘n begrafnis nie.

Ewe kommerwekkend is dat die uitspraak oënskynlik aan ouers die mag gee om te bepaal of ‘n baba wat voor geboorte sterf, wettiglik as ‘n ‘mens’ erken word of nie. CFJ beskou dit as ‘n ernstige onreg: ons menswees kan nie afhanklik wees van iemand anders se wil om ons te laat lewe of nie – óf van die manier waarop ons sterf nie (hetsy deur natuurlike oorsake of as gevolg van menslike ingryping).

 

Die Konstitusionele Hof-verrigtinge

 CFJ het aansoek gedoen om as ‘n ‘vriend van die hof’-party in die Konstitusionele Hof-verrigtinge op te tree, nadat hul dieselfde rol in die hooggeregshofsaak vervul het. [3] Die menseregte-organisasie berei voor om die hof by te staan rakende die hantering van die verhouding tussen ongebore menslike lewe en die grondwetlike waarde van menswaardigheid.

Die Konstitusionele Hof sal ook die hoofpartye se appèlle teen verskillende aspekte van die Hooggeregshof-hofbevel aanhoor. [5] Die Katolieke Aartsbisdom van Durban, een van die hoofpartye, appelleer bv. teen die onregverdige onderskeid wat getref word tussen ouers se regte op grond van die wyse waarop hul ongebore baba sterf (natuurlike oorsake teenoor menslike ingryping). Hul dring daarop aan dat die teenwoordigheid of afwesigheid van menslike ingryping bepaal nie of ouers bedroef is of nie.

CFJ sal argumenteer teen hierdie ongegronde onderskeid asook die arbitrêre ontkenning van sommige ongebore babas se menslikheid en die regte van hul bedroefde ouers. Die menseregte-organisasie sal die Konstitusionele Hof ook versoek om hul argumente wat in die Hooggeregshof gevoer is, te oorweeg. Hierdie argumente handel oor die inherente waarde van alle mense, insluitend babas wat in die baarmoeder is, en die implikasies hiervan vir die hantering van menslike liggaamlike oorskot. Die Hooggeregshof het versuim om dit in ag te neem in lig van die grondwetlike waarde van menswaardigheid. [4]

  

***

Die oorlede staatsman, Nelson Mandela, het gesê: ‘Daar kan geen groter openbaring van die siel van ‘n samelewing wees as die manier waarop dit sy kinders behandel nie’. Die Voice of the Unborn Baby-saak bied ‘n blik in die siel van Suid-Afrika – die vraag is wat dit oor die hart van ons samelewing sal openbaar.

 

[PERSVERKLARING EINDIG]

 

Vir enige navrae, kontak CFJ by:

E-pos:    info@causeforjustice.org

Tel:         074 355 0775

 

Eindnotas:

  • [1] Die hof het sekere artikels in die Births and Deaths Registration Act, 1992 en klousules in die Regulations Relating to the Management of Human Remains, 2013 ongrondwetlik verklaar tot die mate dat dit ouers die reg ontneem om hul ongebore baba se oorskot te begrawe waar die baba gesterf het aan natuurlike oorsake voor 26 weke se ontwikkelling in die baarmoeder.
  • [2] Die Konstitusionele Hof het die mag om die uitspraak van die Hooggeregshof te bevestig, te wysig of te vervang met ‘n nuwe uitspraak van sy eie.
  • [3] Die rol van ‘n amicus party is om die hof te help met die interpretasie en toepassing van die grondwetlike regte, waardes en belange wat deur die onderwerp van die saak geïmpliseer word.
  • [4] Gebaseer op Suid-Afrikaanse, buitelandse en internasionale reg.
  • [5] Die hoofpartye tot die saak is: die Voice of the Unborn Baby NPC, die Katolieke Aartsbisdom van Durban, die Minister van Binnelandse Sake, en die Minister van Gesondheid.

 

Lees meer oor CFJ se betrokkenheid by die saak hier:

 

Vorige persverklarings:

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PERSVERKLARING: KONSTITUSIONELE HOF GEVRA OM MENSWAARDIGHEID VAN ONGEBORE BABAS TE ERKEN

PRESS RELEASE – CONSTITUTIONAL COURT ASKED TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE HUMANITY OF UNBORN BABIES

by | Oct 12, 2021 | Press

PRESS RELEASE

CONSTITUTIONAL COURT ASKED TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE HUMANITY OF UNBORN BABIES - OCTOBER 2021

PRESS RELEASE BY CAUSE FOR JUSTICE: 12 OCTOBER 2021

* FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE *

SUBJECT: “PRESS RELEASE: CONSTITUTIONAL COURT ASKED TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE HUMANITY OF UNBORN BABIES”

Human dignity is a cornerstone value of the South African Constitution. Human rights organisation, Cause for Justice (CFJ), is preparing to go to the Constitutional Court on 4 November 2021, to advocate for the inherent worth of all human beings – including unborn babies.

The Voice of the Unborn Baby court case

The Constitutional Court is set to consider the Pretoria High Court’s landmark decision in the Voice of the Unborn Baby case, which, if confirmed by the Constitutional Court, will secure grieving parents’ right to bury the bodily remains of miscarried babies. [1] [2]

Under current South African law, babies who are miscarried prior to 26 weeks in the womb technically constitute “medical waste” (remains of medical/surgical procedures) and are treated as such. This means parents of such miscarried babies are unable to receive their baby’s bodily remains for the purposes of a burial, with the babies’ remains being incinerated together with surgically removed body parts and other medical waste.

According to CFJ, the central question at the heart of the case is: the inherent worth (or dignity) of human life and what this means for how we should treat human remains.

Pretoria High Court judgment

The Pretoria High Court was asked to declare the current legal regime unconstitutional. CFJ was a party to that matter, which was heard over two days in November 2019. The High Court declared the current regime unconstitutional in its 29 March 2021 judgment, confirming that the 26-week viability dividing-line arbitrarily denies parents the right to bury their baby’s remains – a right that parents have in relation to babies that die from natural causes, no matter how long (or short) the baby was in the womb.

While celebrating this outcome, CFJ was perplexed that the court failed to extend the right to bury to all parents of babies that die prior to live birth. Specifically, parents whose baby dies in the womb as a result of human intervention still have no right – and are legally prohibited – to receive their baby’s remains for the purposes of a burial. According to CFJ, there is no rational basis for this denial of rights to parents who want to acknowledge the humanity of their baby and grieve their loss by way of burial.

Equally troubling, is that the judgment seems to give parents the power to determine whether a baby that died prematurely is legally recognised as human or not. CFJ considers this a grave injustice: our humanity cannot depend solely on whether someone else wants us to live or not, or on the manner of our death – whether by natural causes or because of human intervention.

In the Constitutional Court

CFJ has applied to act as an amicus curiae party (or “friend of the court”) in the Constitutional Court proceedings, having previously fulfilled the same role in the High Court. [3] It is preparing to assist the court in dealing with the relationship between unborn human life and the constitutional value of human dignity.

The Constitutional Court will hear appeals of the main parties against various aspects of the High Court order. [5] The Catholic Archdiocese of Durban is appealing the unjust distinction made between the rights of parents based on whether their baby died due to human intervention or as a result of natural causes. The presence or absence of an intervention does not determine whether parents are bereaved or not, it says.

In this regard, CFJ will argue against the arbitrary denial of some unborn babies’ humanity and their grieving parents’ rights. It will also request the Constitutional Court to engage arguments it made in the High Court concerning the inherent worth of all human beings, including babies in the womb, and its implications for how we treat their bodily remains. The High Court failed to consider the implications of the constitutional value of human dignity for how we dispose of human remains. [4]

***

The late statesman, Nelson Mandela, said: “There can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way in which it treats its children”. The Voice of the Unborn Baby case offers a glace into South Africa’ soul – the question is, what will it reveal about the heart of our society?

[PRESS RELEASE ENDS]

For further queries, contact CFJ at:

Email:    info@causeforjustice.org

Tel:         074 355 0775

End notes:

  • [1] The court declared certain sections of the Births and Deaths Registration Act, 1992 and clauses of the Regulations Relating to the Management of Human Remains, 2013 unconstitutional to the extent that it denied parents the right to bury the remains of an unborn baby who died of natural causes before 26 weeks of gestation in the womb.
  • [2] The Constitutional Court has the power to confirm, amend, or replace the High Court order with an order of its own.
  • [3] The role of an amicus party is to assist the Court in the interpretation and application of the constitutional rights, values, and interests implicated by the subject matter of the case.
  • [4] Based on South African, foreign, and international law.
  • [5] The main parties in the case are The Voice of the Unborn Baby NPC, the Catholic Archdiocese of Durban, and the Ministers of Home Affairs and of Health.

Read more about CFJ’s involvement in the case here:

Previous press releases:

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