The Office of the South African Military Ombudsman will participate in the 2nd International Ombuds Expo in Gaborone, Botswana from 29th July to 2nd August 2024. This event will bring together over 500 national and specialty Ombudsmen and grievance handling offices from over 100 countries to showcase and discuss critical performance factors.
Military Ombudsman Lt Gen (Ret) Vusumuzi Masondo will play a key role at the event by chairing and moderating a high-level Experts Session focused on "Silencing the Guns in Africa and AU Agenda 2063." He will be accompanied by his Deputy, Adv. Simphiwe Damane Mkosana, who will participate in other plenary sessions.
Masondo emphasized that the expo will provide an opportunity for the Office to share its best practices with other Ombuds institutions from around the world. Additionally, he mentioned that their participation is crucial for promoting the concept of Military oversight institutions in the continent. According to Masondo, there has been interest from other African countries in establishing dedicated offices for their armed forces based on the South African model.
Participation in the Expo will also allow the Office to learn from other peers on how they handle complaints and the systems they use. Masondo stressed that the establishment of Military Ombuds institutions should be guided by democracy, good governance, and the rule of law.
The Office of the Military Ombudsman was established in May 2012 through the Military Ombuds Act of 2012 to address complaints from current and former members of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) who are dissatisfied with their conditions of service. This includes issues such as unfair dismissal, promotions, job classification, and access to tools of trade. Before approaching the Office for assistance, aggrieved soldiers are required to exhaust the internal mechanisms within the Department of Defence.
In addition to addressing complaints from SANDF members, the Office is also mandated to investigate complaints from the public regarding the official conduct of SANDF members.
South Africa currently stands as the only country in Africa with a Military Ombudsman institution.
