The recent decision by the Legal Practice Council (“LPC”) to conduct all exams for candidate attorneys and pupil advocates exclusively in English has sparked significant controversy and discontent among various stakeholders.
The Basic Education Laws Amendment Bill (BELA Bill) was passed by Parliament’s first house, the National Assembly on 26 October 2023. It is now before the second house, the National Council of Provinces and is currently open for written submissions. The FW de Klerk Foundation expresses its concerns about the BELA Bill.
During 2023, Parliament considered a mix of positive legislation and legislation that falls seriously short of constitutional standards.
On 26 October 2023, the National Assembly passed the controversial Basic Education Laws Amendment (BELA) Bill, which it believes will improve the quality of basic education received by the majority of South African learners by creating a more just and equitable education system.
On 15 September, the FW de Klerk Foundation made a written submission to the National Council of Provinces on the National Health Insurance Bill. The Foundation analysed key failures of the NHI Bill with specific reference to the constitutional principle of the Rule of Law and rationality, the feasibility of the proposed system and governance concerns, coupled with the unfettered power of the Minister of Health (“the Minister”).
2019 Annual Report Card on Cultural, Religious and Language Rights Introduction For centuries the central theme of South Africa’s history has been interaction
While public hearings on the Basic Education Laws Amendment (BELA) Bill continue nationally, it is no surprise that the majority of the comments received have voiced strong opposition to it.
DIALOGUE BETWEEN THE FW DE KLERK FOUNDATION AND PRESIDENT THABO MBEKI’s GOVERNMENT President Mbeki went to a great deal of trouble to engage with minorities
The dust has settled a bit regarding the Constitutional Court’s ruling in the Gelyke Kanse (GK) case on Stellenbosch University’s (SU) Language Policy (read the full analysis of the case here). The implications of this ruling are relevant for SU and the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University (NWU Potch); and perhaps most importantly of all, for Afrikaans as a language of instruction in public schools.
