CONSTITUTIONAL CROSSFIRE: LEGISLATIVE DEVELOPMENTS DURING 2023
2024-01-10
During 2023, Parliament considered a mix of positive legislation and legislation that falls seriously short of constitutional standards.
During 2023, Parliament considered a mix of positive legislation and legislation that falls seriously short of constitutional standards.
On 15 November 2023, Parliament’s second house of Parliament – the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) – passed the Prevention and Combating of Hate Crimes and Hate Speech Bill despite countless submissions from various stakeholders opposing the Bill’s clear curtailment of the constitutionally-entrenched right to freedom of expression. The Bill will now go to the National Assembly for concurrence.
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”).
On Wednesday 19 July, President Ramaphosa signed the South African Sign Language Act into law, a welcome step “to promote the rights of persons who are deaf and hard of hearing”.
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.
In his recent articles on the Constitution, Prof Koos Malan expresses the view that those of us who supported the constitutional transformation of South Africa between 1989 and 1996 were motivated by some kind of liberal-religious delusion. Dave Steward, Chairman of the FW de Klerk Foundation, responds.
REPORT CARD ON CULTURAL, RELIGIOUS AND LANGUAGE RIGHTS Introduction The Constitutional Negotiations The Report Card on Cultural, Religious and