ABSTRACT
Hlengani’s murderers were released on bail the whole community went on strike and wanted to take matters into their own hands since they felt that the justice system had failed them. Whilst the responsibility to ensure that justice is done is borne by the courts in South Africa, research that pays attention to courts as well as how people interact with courts remains limited, particularly in the field of anthropology. A similar logic might be at play when members of the Giyani community are ‘toi-toi-ing’ inside and outside the Giyani magistrate’s court. The people of Giyani see the court proceedings as the performance of justice at work. A few days later, Jabu and Miyelani were due to appear in court for their final verdict. However, the Giyani community assumes that an accused’s release on bail means that they are guilty, and thus is seen as evidence of the inefficiency of the justice system.
