President Thabo Mbeki has appointed advocate Dumisane Ntsebeza as senior counsel, the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) reported on Sunday.
Ntsebeza is the first African in the entire history of the Cape Bar to be appointed senior counsel, which is the highest recognition in the legal profession.
The former Truth and Reconciliation Council (TRC) commissioner said this showed that the legal profession still needed to be transformed.
”It is remarkable that in this day and age we can still talk about Africans being the first in anything,” Ntsebeza told the SABC.
”And I had not noticed this until somebody brought it to my attention that in the entire history of the Cape Bar, which was started I think somewhere in the 19th century, that I actually was the first African to be appointed as senior counsel by the
president.”
Ntsebeza said this showed the ”distortions” in the profession as currently only three of the over 300 members of the Cape Bar were Africans. – Sapa