Against the Tide by Steven Friedman

Judges play an important role in defending the constitution and dispensing justice. But this does not mean they are experts on politics and government. And it certainly does not mean that their opinions on these issues should tell us what to do simply because they are the views of judges. Which is why the current fuss about implementing the Zondo Commission's recommendations on how parliament and elections should be changed should be ignored. While the Commission played an
important role bringing people to justice, its views on these issues would take us backwards

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Steven Friedman is a public commentator and an academic, currently employed as a Research Professor at the University of Johannesburg. He has been writing on South African politics for the entire democratic period both as a scholar and public commentator. He has published books on South Africa’s transition to democracy, the role of the trade union movement, and current South African politics. He has also written columns and articles for several South African newspapers. His writing seeks to use academic research to shed light on current politics but to ensure that this is conveyed in a way easily understood by people who have no academic training.