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2023 Acta Juridica 77 (2023)
Highlighting the Higher Courts' Obligation to Protect Vulnerable Groups When Magistrates Fail to Conduct the Competency Test Properly

handle is hein.journals/actj2023 and id is 105 raw text is: Highlighting the higher courts' obligation to protect vulnerable groups when magistrates fail to conduct the competency test properly NONDUMISO PHENYANE* This article uses a series of judgments to highlight that the review or appeal courts' strict and formalistic application of the competency test and s 164(1) of the Criminal Procedure Act 51 of 1977 has been as detrimental to the rights and interests of vulnerable complainants as the contested rules themselves. The article examines matters where review or appeal courts set aside rape convictions because magistrates failed to conduct the competency test properly. It argues that, while the courts could not avoid setting aside the wrongful convictions, this should not have led to a compromise of vulnerable complainants' right to protection. In addition to setting the convictions aside, the higher courts should have adopted an approach that helped to mitigate the risks faced by the complainants. Therefore, the article suggests that higher courts which are called upon to decide such matters should use the following approach in the future. First, they should use the results of the competency test as an item of evidence and should evaluate the reliability of the complainants' evidence only at the end of the trial. Where a matter goes on review or appeal because a magistrate failed to conduct the competency test entirely or adequately, the higher courts should evaluate the complainant's testimony before deciding whether to exclude it. In instances where there is a possibility that the complainant's testimony is reliable, the higher courts should remit the matter to the magistrate to address the procedural error. However, in instances where the complainant's evidence is unreliable, and remittal is not possible, the courts should set the conviction aside and assign a social worker to oversee the complainant's protection after the release of the accused. Setswana: Athikele eno e dirisa metseletsele ya dikatlholo go bontsha gore dikgotlatshekelo tse di tlhatlhobang kgotsa tsa boikuelo di dirisa teko ya bokgoni ka tsela e e gagametseng le s 164(1) ya Molao wa * B Soc Sci LLB LLM (UCT), Lecturer, Department of Public Law, Stellenbosch University. ORCiD: 0000-0001-5149-2840. 77 https://doi~org/1 .47348/A(TA/2023/a4

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