Migration Jurisprudence from the South › South Africa
Lawyers for Human Rights v. Minister of Home Affairs
Constitutional Court of South Africa · South Africa · 2017-06-29 · National court
Citation: [2017] ZACC 22
Type of case: Constitutional and human rights
Outcome: Decided for the migrant side
Question
May immigration officers detain a person for deportation without bringing them before a court?
What the court decided
No. Section 34 of the Immigration Act was unconstitutional because it did not require a detained person to be brought before a court within 48 hours.
In plain language
People held for deportation in South Africa could be kept for weeks without seeing a judge. The Constitutional Court said they must appear before a court within 48 hours.
Dalam bahasa sederhana
Orang yang ditahan untuk dideportasi di Afrika Selatan bisa ditahan berminggu-minggu tanpa bertemu hakim. MK menyatakan mereka harus dihadapkan ke pengadilan dalam 48 jam.
Pertanyaan: Bolehkah petugas imigrasi menahan seseorang untuk dideportasi tanpa membawanya ke pengadilan?
What happened afterwards
- 2017-06-29: Section 34 declared invalid; interim rules set.
Sources
Open this decision in the interactive collection (compare, filter, Indonesian view, downloads).
Cite as: Institute for Migrant Rights (2026), Migration Jurisprudence from the South, version 0.1, https://theimr.org/court-decisions/d/za-lhr-2017/. This page summarizes a court decision for research and advocacy; it is not legal advice.