Adv. Michael Donen honoured

Advocate Michael Donen SC has served on the SABJD Cape Council for over a decade and has been a practising member of the Cape Bar for over thirty years.

His legal career exemplifies the very best of intellectually robust impartiality and faithfulness to the South African Constitution; defending political activists during the height of apartheid in pioneering cases that put him at security risk and even caused him to be ostracised by members of our community.

On 9 November, fellow Cape Board member Michael Bagraim MP, past a motion without notice in parliament that Adv. Michael Donen’s remarkable career be recognised and honoured:

“I hereby move, on behalf of the Democratic Alliance, that this House:
notes that Advocate Michael Donen SC represented many freedom fighters during the days of Apartheid;
further notes that Advocate Michael Donen SC was highly successful in representing Major-General Mxolisi Petane in 1987;
recalls that Major-General Mxolisi Petane passed away in September 2017 and was buried last month, on 7 October 2017;
further recalls that Major-General Petane was arrested on charges of terrorism against the Apartheid state, and that the defence raised by Petane’s Advocate Michael Donen was a claim for prisoner of war status;
acknowledges that this prisoner of war defence was successful in that Major-General Petane was able to avoid the death sentence;
further acknowledges that Advocate Michael Donen SC stepped in to represent another hero of the peoples’ struggle for liberation from Apartheid namely Michael Lucas, unfortunately, he was not able to avoid the ultimate sacrifice but in so doing was able to save his comrades from the gallows;
recognises the outstanding contribution made by Advocate Donen to the rule of law;
further recognises his excellent work in representing freedom fighters during a time in South Africa’s history when representing freedom fighters was not only risky but also destructive to his practice; and
congratulates Advocate Donen SC on this remarkable effort he put into representing freedom fighters for many years.”

M Bagraim MP

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