The Eastern Cape Bench, civil liberties and the 1985/1986 state of emergency

A state of emergency was declared by the State President, acting in terms of the Public Safety Act 3 of 1953, on 21 July 1985. It was lifted on 8 March 1986. During the state of emergency civil liberties were under a much more severe attack than usual. This article analyses the cases, emerged from the state of emergency, and heard in the Eastern Cape Division of the Supreme Court which deal with the interpretation of the Public Safety Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder. It is an examination of the choices open to the judges because the mythical ‘intention of the Parliament’ is seldom selfdefining: the words of an enactment require judicial interpretation. It shows that only in a few cases the court was willing to come to the assistance of the individual. Notes, ref.