South Africans are urged to have their voices heard on approved pieces of legislation related to illegal mining, the legal fraternity, the administration of trusts and incitement to commit offences.
At a media briefing on Tuesday, Justice and Constitutional Development Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi briefed South Africans on the General (Mining) Laws Amendment Bill 2026, the Legal Practice Amendment Bill 2026 and the Regulation of Trusts Bill and the Conspiracy, Instigation and Incitement to Commit Offence Bill 2026.
The first three have been released for public comment while the Conspiracy, Instigation and Incitement to Commit Offence Bill 2026 will now go to Parliament for processing and adoption.
Regarding the General (Mining) Laws Amendment Bill, Kubayi emphasised that the bill is not aimed at penalising artisanal miners who have permits but is aimed at cracking down on those who mine illegally, known as Zama Zamas.
“This Bill seeks to address the challenges that South Africa is experiencing in relation to illicit mining in that, while illicit mining is prohibited, illicit mining and the activities related to illicit mining, are not criminal offences.
“Illicit mining has negative effects on communities in and around mining towns, damages the infrastructure of affected areas such as underground water pipes which then affects water security and poses a serious threat to the safety and security of the affected communities, in many instances where we saw Sink holes,” she said.
The Minister noted that illicit mining has been linked to cases of “kidnapping, human trafficking, child labour and forced labour” with illegal mining gangs involved in “violent crimes associated with illegal firearms, rape, murder, intimidation, house breaking, theft, assault and corruption in nearby communities”.
“The Bill seeks to amend various pieces of legislation, with the view to amend provisions dealing with offences and penalties and to provide for matters connected therewith.
“These pieces of legislation are the Criminal Procedure Act, of 1977, the Diamonds Act, of 1986, the Minerals and Petroleum Resources Development Act, of 2002 and the Precious Metals Act, of 2005,” Kubayi added.
Amendments include:
Clause 1 of the Bill amends Schedule 1 to the CPA, by proposing the insertion of the offences of illegal prospecting and mining activities and prohibition of assistance in committing illegal prospecting and mining activities.
Clause 2 of the Bill amends section 87 of the Diamonds Act, to increase the penalty for the contravention of the provisions of section 82(a) or (b) from a fine of R250 000 to a fine of R100 million and imprisonment of 30years (previously was 10 years). This clause further increases the penalties for the contravention of the provisions of section 82(c), 83(a) or 84(a) from a fine of not exceeding R100 000 to a fine of not exceeding R100 million and the period of imprisonment to 30 years (previously was 4 years).
Clause 7 of the Bill seeks to insert a new provision (section 91A) into the MPRDA in order to empower members of the South African Police Service to carry out compliance functions as contemplated in section 91 of the MPRDA, excluding the powers to conduct routine inspections in terms of section 92 of the Act, and to issue compliance notices in terms of section 93 of the Act.
The amendments to the Legal Practice Amendment Bill 2026 seek to, primarily, amend the Legal Practice Act of 2014.
“The Bill seeks to amend the various provisions in the Act in order to develop and enhance the skills of legal practitioners, to ensure access to the legal profession, to ensure access to justice broadly and to address certain practical challenges in the application of the Act.
“This has been called for by various practitioners in the sector,” Kubayi said.
The amendments include:
Clause 1 of the Bill seeks to amend section 6 of the Act which provides for the powers and functions of the South African Legal Practice Council (“the Council”). The Bill proposes the addition of two new subsections to section 6. The newly inserted subsection (6) adds a function of the Council to enable it to assess the reasonableness of fees and disbursements for non-litigious work, which cannot be determined by the taxing masters of courts of law or tribunals. In the previous dispensation, the provincial law societies had this power. The newly inserted subsection (7) exempts persons employed by the Council or its substructures from liability for damages for actions done in good faith.
Clause 2 of the Bill amends section 17(1) of the Act in order to allow for a decision of the Council to be passed in situations where there are less than 12 members of the Council present at the meeting.
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for the removal in section 22 of the limitation that only an annual appropriation can be made by the Legal Practitioners’ Fidelity Fund (“LPFF”), to allow for more than one appropriation.
A full list of proposed amendments to the bill are available at the department’s website.
Regulation of Trusts Bill
Minister Kubayi noted that the Trust Property Control Act of 1988 has not been amended in 38 years and the new bill seeks to “address specific areas of the law of trusts that were problematic and required legislative intervention at that time”.
“In the 38 years since its enactment, the Act has not been reviewed comprehensively. The socio-economic, legal and practical environment in which the South African trust operates has, on the other hand, changed significantly.
“The Bill seeks to, amongst others, address shortcomings in the current legislation that enable trustees to evade accountability, constrain the Master of the High Court in exercising effective oversight over trusts, do not provide adequate protection for beneficiaries; address the lack of transparency in the management and control of trust property, which increases the risk of trust structures being misused for money laundering and other criminal activities; and align the regulation of trusts with the recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force [FATF] without imposing unnecessary regulatory burdens,” Kubayi said.
The amendments deal with, among others:
• Protection of vulnerable persons: Accountability by trustees and transparency in the management and control of trust property
• Strengthening oversight by the Master’s Office: Ensuring that compliance obligations imposed on trustees are proportionate to the objectives of the Bill
• Offences and penalties: More on information on these can be found on the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development website.
The Conspiracy, Instigation and Incitement to Commit Offence Bill 2026 seeks to repeal the 70-year-old Riotous Assemblies Act of 1956 originally designed by the apartheid government to “combat riotous gatherings, publications and conduct engendering hostility between one population group and another”.
“The Act has been identified by the department as a piece of apartheid and colonial era legislation to be repealed or repealed and replaced.
“The Act also reminds the people of South Africa of the atrocities of the past which stand in the way of reconciliation in the country. Many provisions of the Act have been repealed, apart from the preamble and sections 16, 17 and 18 of the Act,” Kubayi highlighted.
The bill deals with the following:
Clause 1 defines a serious offence as those offences identified in the Schedule to the Bill in respect of which a period of imprisonment exceeding six months may be imposed. The clause further makes provision for the offence of conspiring with another person to commit an offence and for the offence of instigating and inciting another person to commit a serious offence.
Clause 2 repeals the Act based on the reasons provided in the discussion above.
Clause 3 of the Bill provides for the short title and commencement.
Stakeholders, including civil society, business, labour, and members of the public are urged to participate in the commentary process and provide inputs to “strengthen these important pieces of legislation”.
“Regularly reviewing and changing legislation ensures that laws remain fair, useful, and ensures equality before the law. It allows governments to fix outdated rules, adapt to new technology, and respond to changing social and political values.
“Without updates, laws can become inefficient, fail to protect citizens, or create legal confusion,” Kubayi concluded.
The full documents of the Bills are available at the department’s website at https://justice.gov.za/index.html and the closing date for submissions is 11 September 2026. – SAnews.gov.za
