By Koketso Mamabolo
The Constitution’s 30th Anniversary
In 1994 the newly elected parliament already knew that the most pressing matter on the agenda was one that would need the input of more than just the politicians and lawyers involved. While people in suits would drive the process, it was the citizens they represented whose words mattered most. The farm labourers in their gumboots, the domestic workers in their aprons, the miners in their overalls, the masses in rural areas who still relied on relatives working in the cities. These were the people whose voice needed to be heard in the document which would set the new South Africa’s course: The Constitution.
“Notwithstanding the fact that we are elected representatives and we have the mandate to write the Constitution, we must still consult from Cape Town to Limpopo,” said Collins Chabane, an MP at the time.
He was articulating a sentiment widely held in the Constitutional Assembly. They recognised that in order for the process of drafting the Constitution to be credible it would need to be participatory in nature. The Constitutional Assembly dubbed 1995 ‘The Year of the Constitution’ and devised a strategy to do something that was unprecedented.
It wasn’t just about getting people’s input but also educating them about the meaning behind the process. A multimedia campaign was implemented to spread the word and drive participation, reaching over two thirds of the population subsequently hailed as one of the most successful state information campaigns.
“We must put our vision to the country directly… because in the end the drafting of the Constitution must not be the preserve of the 490 members of this Assembly. It must be a Constitution that they feel they own, a Constitution that they know and feel belongs to them,” said President Cyril Ramaphosa, who was chair of the Constitutional Assembly and played a central role in the draft process.
The Constitution’s Journey
1910 – First Constitution of South Africa
1961 – Second Constitution of South Africa
1983 – Third Constitution of South Africa
1993 – Multiparty Negotiation Forum agree on plan for new Constitution
1993 – Interim Constitution is ratified
1994 – First Democratic Elections
1995 – First draft of new Constitution is produced
1996 – Final texted adopted by Parliament and certified by the Constitutional Court
1997 – The Constitution comes into full affect
A Century In The Making
“We celebrate thirty years of our constitution, not that it is perfect, but it is vital framework for the sustenance of our democracy, progressive realisation of human rights and accountability,” said Honourable Mmamoloko Kubayi, the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, at a plenary session of National Assembly earlier this year.
“Not a static document but rather a living framework that can respond to ever-changing legal, social and political context, the growing material needs of the population.” This living framework was almost a century in the making. The story begins with the end of the South African War, running through the unification of the four colonies, the country becoming a republic in the ‘60s, and the short-lived ‘tricameral parliament’ era of the ‘80s.
The Constitutions of 1910, 1961 and 1983 did not reflect the aspirations of all South Africans. What the first Constitution and the interim Constitution of 1993 have in common is that they both brought together disparate groups. In a way, they were both peace treaties, promises to build a better future together, attempts to prevent the country from unravelling.
The final Constitution of 1996 reflected a widening of what it means to be a South African and who is considered South African. It defined a nation in the language of freedom and equality. It welcomed diversity and embraced the rainbow.
While the process of negotiated settlement began in the ‘80s, it was in 1993 when the Multiparty Negotiation Forum agreed on a plan for the new Constitution. The twenty-six parties involved were responsible for writing and adopting the interim Constitution, which included 34 constitutional principles to guide the drafting of the final Constitution. One of the principles was the mandatory inclusion of a bill of rights.
The Bill of Rights as conceived in chapter two of the Constitution is the product of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Freedom Charter. The former was adopted by the UN the same year apartheid began, the latter was written in the ‘50s in response to apartheid.
“This Bill of Rights is a cornerstone of democracy in South Africa. It enshrines the rights of all people in our country and affirms the democratic values of human dignity, equality and freedom,” reads the introduction to chapter two. It compels the state to “respect, protect, promote and fulfil the rights in the Bill of Rights.”
These include the rights that are most often tested in the courts: access to information, the right to privacy, freedom of expression, labour relations. But it also includes rights that aren’t often taken for granted such as freedom of association, human dignity, equality, and the right to an environment that is not harmful to their health or wellbeing.
“The theme of this anniversary: Reflect, Renew, Recommit, captures both the significance of this milestone and the responsibility it carries,” wrote Andries Nel, Deputy Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development. “It invites us to reflect on the journey from oppression to democracy, renew our commitment to constitutional principles and recommit ourselves to advancing justice, equality and accountability in every sphere of our national life.”
When President Nelson Mandela signed the Constitution into law, he was in Sharpeville, where one of the country’s great tragedies took place in 1960, which we commemorate each year on Human Rights Day. It was an opportunity to reflect as the people committed themselves to a new South Africa.
Sources: WeThePeopleSA | Parliament | Department of Justice | SA History Online
