Former chief justice Mogoeng Mogoeng has finally apologised over his controversial comments regarding the Israel-Palestine conflict and SA’s foreign policy.

Thursday was the deadline set by the Judicial Conduct Appeal Committee (JCAC) for him to issue the apology after it dismissed his appeal of the finding by the Judicial Conduct Committee (JCC), which found him guilty of misconduct for involving himself in political controversy.

This related to Mogoeng’s controversial utterances during a webinar hosted by the Jerusalem Post in 2020, where he expressed his love for Jews and Israel and lambasted SA’s foreign policy position against Israel.

This saw several organisations, including Africa4Palestine, SABDS Coalition and the Women’s Cultural Group taking on Mogoeng and calling for him to be forced to apologise for his remarks.

Mogoeng had previously hinted that he would never apologise for his remarks.

The JCAC had ordered Mogoeng to issue a statement in which he said: “I, Mogoeng Mogoeng, the former Chief Justice of the Republic of South Africa, hereby apologise unconditionally for becoming involved in political controversy through my utterances at the online seminar (webinar) hosted by the Jerusalem Post on 23 June 2020, in which I participated.”

Issuing his statement with the exact wording on Thursday, Mogoeng indicated that he was apologising because he was being forced by the law to do so.

“Did I say I will under no circumstances apologise? No,” he said.

He said he would never, “unless forced by the law align myself with principles or values repugnant to my sense of what is just, right or wrong”.

“The operative expression here is "unless forced by the law". The Judicial Conduct Committee is a creature of statute – the law. Unless set aside, its orders are lawful and binding,” he said.

Further explaining his reason to finally toe the line, Mogoeng pointed out that he and other judges had over the years issued rulings and expected all people to comply, including presidents.

“I am now forced by the law – the order of the lawfully constituted Appeal Panel of the Judicial Conduct Committee – to apologise unconditionally in terms of the prescribed apology. And because I am not above the law, I hereby apologise as ordered,” he said.

Africa4Palestine director Mohammed Desai said Mogoeng’s apology was more significant that it was forced out of him.

“He was forced, kicking and screaming. We see this as a victory over fanaticism and ego. We see the apology as admitted by Mogoeng that it is forced by the law as even more significant. He had an opportunity to quit being a judge or conform to the judicial code of conduct. We managed to force him and it is historic,” Desai said.

Desai said Mogoeng’s open criticism of SA’s foreign policy on the Israel-Palestine conflict  had signified the “interference of senior figures who have nothing to do with our foreign policy and the violation of our principle positions of human right on the Palestinian question”.