By Akani Nkuna
South Africa invoked the international campaign against apartheid on Monday as it defended its genocide case against Israel and called for similar global solidarity to help secure justice for Palestinians.
International Relations and Cooperation Minister Ronald Lamola, speaking at a Hague Group public event at Riverside Church in New York City, said Pretoria approached the International Court of Justice (ICJ) as part of its commitment to uphold international law and multilateral institutions.
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“We acted because we know what global solidarity can do. In so doing, we summoned the same global solidarity that broke apartheid in South Africa to help dismantle the apartheid under which Palestinians continue to live. We chose to act because democratic South Africa was made possible by multitudes of ordinary people who heard and answered our call for freedom in our lifetime,” he said.
“We acted to stop Israel’s impunity and to secure justice for a people suffering a live-streamed genocide. This has not been a solitary journey. Many countries, some of whose representatives are here today, have joined this effort to put a stop to the destruction of Palestinian life.”
Lamola made the remarks at the public event, themed “We Shall Not Be Moved: A Special Event in Honour of the UN Charter”, ahead of the start of the general debate of the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York.
South Africa instituted proceedings against Israel at the ICJ in December 2023, accusing it of violating its obligations under the Genocide Convention through its military operations in Gaza and seeking measures to prevent genocidal acts.
Israel has rejected the genocide allegation. The ICJ case remains ongoing and the court has not delivered a final ruling on the merits of South Africa’s claim.
Several countries have since filed declarations of intervention in the proceedings.
The case has also become one of several points of tension between Pretoria and Washington. The Trump administration has criticised South Africa’s case against Israel, a close US ally, alongside disagreements over South African domestic and foreign policy.
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Relations have deteriorated further over a series of US measures against South Africa, including visa restrictions announced in September targeting certain South African nationals over policies Washington says enable uncompensated land seizures, racial discrimination or incitement to violence.
Lamola said South Africa’s actions were aimed not only at securing justice for Palestinians but also at defending international law and a multilateral system in which countries from the Global South and North were treated equally.
He warned that attacks on international law and growing global inequality were undermining confidence in democratic and multilateral institutions.
“We also act because we know that the current attacks on international law and multilateralism are part of a bigger crisis confronting humanity. Today, run-away inequality is eroding faith in democracy and opening the door to populists who set the poor against each other. The global financial architecture remains tilted in favour of wealthy nations, while developing countries bear the heaviest burden of climate shocks,” said Lamola.
Lamola said the world was also falling behind on the Sustainable Development Goals, with less than four years remaining until 2030.
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He said global military spending was now almost 800 times the UN’s regular budget, while institutions established to protect peace and advance development were struggling to respond to major global crises.
He pointed to the humanitarian and displacement crisis in Sudan, wars in the Middle East and eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, and the continuing Russia-Ukraine war as examples of the strain on international institutions, saying the UN had been unable to bring the latter conflict to an end.
He acknowledged that South Africa’s stance had attracted criticism, including questions about whether Pretoria should focus its attention on domestic economic and social challenges or avoid confronting powerful states.
“As one of the 20th century’s greatest beneficiaries of international solidarity, we have no choice but to act despite trial and challenges we face as a result of our choice to act in defence of humanity,” Lamola said.
