Justice Albie Sachs of the Constitutional Court of South Africa will speak at
the UW School of Law on Monday, January 29 from 3:30-5 p.m. in William H. Gates
Hall Room 138. An internationally known champion of human rights, Justice
Sachs was appointed to the court, the highest in South Africa on constitutional
matters, by South African President Nelson Mandela in 1994. His lecture is sponsored by the law school's Condon-Falknor
Distinguished Lectureship Series.
Sachs has had a long and distinguished career in human rights advocacy,
beginning with his involvement as a law student with the Defiance of Unjust Laws Campaign
in Cape Town. After graduation, he became a member of the Cape Bar and the
bulk of his work involved defending people during the height of South Africa's
racist and repressive apartheid laws.
After several raids and periods of imprisonment by security police, Justice
Sachs went into exile in Mozambique in 1966. During the 1980s, he worked
with African National Congress (ANC) leader Oliver Tambo to draft the ANC's Code of
Conduct. In 1988, as a result of a car bombing by apartheid government
agents, Justice Sachs lost his right arm and the sight in one eye.
Following the bombing, he devoted himself to preparing a new Constitution for
South Africa and, in 1990, he returned to South Africa as the National Executive of the ANC
and a member of the Constitutional Committee. He took
active part in the negotiations which led to South Africa becoming a
constitutional democracy.
"Justice Sachs' important contributions include his work to help end
apartheid, as well as develop constitutional protections and rights for modern
South Africa,"
said Sylvia Kang'ara, assistant professor of law at the UW
and a native of Kenya. "When justice
was under siege, he was a relentless defender of human rights and dignity."
Justice Sachs is the author of several books, including "The Soft Vengeance
of a Freedom Fighter" and "The Jail Diary of Albie Sachs".
The Condon-Falknor lectures are funded by a gift from the late Dorothy Condon Falknor in honor of her uncle, John T. Condon (law school founder
and dean, 1899-1926) and her husband, Judson Falknor (law school dean, 1936-51).