S v Williams and Others

The matter consisted of five consolidated cases referred to the Constitutional Court from the Cape of Good Hope Provincial Division. Six male juveniles had been convicted in various magistrates’ courts and sentenced, in terms of section 294 of the Criminal Procedure Act 51 of 1977, to receive juvenile corporal punishment (‘moderate correction’) by way of strokes with a light cane. Some of the juveniles also received suspended terms of imprisonment. All trials commenced before 27 April 1994, but sentences were imposed after the interim Constitution came into force. The referring courts questioned whether juvenile whipping, authorised by statute, was consistent with the Constitution.

Section 294 of the Criminal Procedure Act 51 of 1977, insofar as it authorises corporal punishment of juveniles, was declared unconstitutional and invalid. Juvenile whipping was abolished as a lawful sentence.

This was a landmark Constitutional Court decision abolishing judicial corporal punishment of juveniles in South Africa. It affirmed the absolute prohibition of cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment, entrenched dignity as a foundational constitutional value, aligned South African law with international human rights standards, and significantly advanced the constitutional protection of children within the criminal justice system.