Keynote Address by the Deputy Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, the Hon JH Jeffery, MP, at the Workshop on the 20th Anniversary of the Constitution, Multi-Purpose Centre, Orange Farm
Ladies and gentlemen, friends,
Sanibonani, good morning, dumelang.
This year is a special year. This year marks the 20th anniversary of our Constitution. The Constitution is the uppermost law of the land. No other law or government action can go against the provisions of the Constitution.
Our Constitution is one of the most advanced in the world and is highly respected internationally. Everyone in South Africa, including government, and all laws are subject to and must follow the Constitution. Everything we do, we measure against the Constitution.
Our Constitution sets out what every person’s individual rights are. …ilingungelo lakho. Each and every one of us has many rights – such as the right to life. We have these rights because we are human beings. All of us now have political rights and the right to vote – something which African people were denied before 1994.
All of us have the right to freedom of expression – we can say what we think and feel, as long as it’s not hate speech, without the fear of being banned or prosecuted like in the days before democracy.
We all have freedom of movement and residence – everyone can live and work in whichever area they want and move across the country. There are no more areas just for whites and other areas for Blacks. Forced removals, like we saw under apartheid, will never happen again.
Every one of us now has the right to equality – this means that nobody may unfairly discriminate against anyone on the basis of their race, gender, sex, pregnancy, marital status, ethnic or social origin, colour, sexual orientation, age, disability, religion, conscience, belief, culture, language and birth.
The Constitution not only guarantees individual rights – also group rights. For example, the Constitution says that nobody may interfere with an individual’s right to use the language or to participate in the culture of his or her choice. It also guarantees a right to education in the language of an individual’s choice. It also tells how all the elements of government are organised and what government must and must not do.
The Constitution making-process was a delicate one. The interim Constitution was the product of negotiation between parties who were at war with each other. Most people, both here and in the rest of the world, thought that we would never achieve peace without a full-blown civil war. After South Africa successfully held its first democratic elections in 1994, work began on all earnest on the final Constitution.
After much negotiation, the 1996 Constitution was approved by the Constitutional Court on 4 December 1996, it was signed into law by late President Nelson Mandela in Sharpeville on 10 December 1996 and came into operation on 4 February 1997.
Why is it important that it was signed at Sharpeville? Because it was a way of remembering the people who died during a peaceful demonstration against the pass laws on the 21st of March1960.
Recognising that the protection and promotion of human rights cannot be left to individuals or the government, Chapter 9 of the Constitution creates independent national institutions, such as the South African Human Rights Commission, the Office of the Public Protector, the Electoral Commission, the Auditor-General and the Commission on Gender Equality.
The Constitution shows us, daily, what to do to improve the quality of life of our people. It guides us to build a united, non-racial, democratic, non-sexist and prosperous South Africa. It has drastically changed people’s lives for the better.
If we look at the Bill of Rights, we see that our Constitution is inclusive, it says that most of the rights in the Bill of Rights apply to “everyone”. There are only 4 sections which apply to “citizens” only – these are sections 19 (political rights), 20 (citizenship), 21 (the right to enter and remain in and reside anywhere in SA and the right to a passport) and 22 (the right to choose their trade, occupation or profession).
I’m sure many of you have children or grandchildren at school. Sithini nge ngaane…
The Constitution guarantees the right to education. We have made huge gains in getting children to school. We have increased access to education with over 7 million learners in our no-fee schools, this is up from 5 million in 2009. We are providing daily meals to 9 million learners in 20 000 schools. Student enrolments at universities have increased and further education and training college enrolments have also increased.
What is more impressive with the achievement of the education targets is that the proportion of girls attending primary, secondary and tertiary education has improved significantly.
This is how government is making the Constitution real. And that’s why government condemns the burning of schools, like we recently saw in Vuwani, where 27 schools - 11 secondary schools, while 16 primary - were vandalised and set alight. This has affected more than 52 000 learners.
No grievance can ever justify the destruction of a school, as schools are meant to help our young people defeat poverty, inequality and unemployment. The Constitution guarantees the right to education – but our children cannot make use of this right if their school has been burnt down. If unenkinga, woza sikhulume…
If we look at some of the other important rights, our Constitution guarantees the rights to health care, food, water and social security. South Africans' life expectancy has increased by 9 years from 52 years in 2004 to 61 years in 2014. We have a successful anti-retro viral therapy programme for persons with HIV/Aids and we have seen the number of patients on treatment rapidly increased from 113 000 in 2005 to 2.8 million in 2014. Another important positive trend is the decline in HIV prevalence amongst our youth from 15% in 2001 to 8% in 2014. This is how government is making the Constitution real.
If we look at water, 90% of South African households had access to piped water in 2014. The bucket system affects the human dignity of people. The percentage of households who had no access to toilet facilities or who used bucket toilets has decreased from 12% in 2002 to 5% in 2013.
If we look at social security and the provision of social grants, the percentage of individuals that benefited from social grants consistently increased from 12% in 2003 to 29% in 2014. At the same time, the percentage of households that received at least one grant increased from 29% to 44%. For many people, this grant is their only income. This is how government is making the Constitution real. Siyaqhuba….
All these rights are basic rights that many of our people did not have before 1994. And the Constitution changed that.
As we review our progress over these last 20 years, we can see that we have made much progress in addressing the imbalances of the past and improving the quality of life of all citizens.
The Department of Justice and Constitutional Development will lead South Africans in celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Constitution. Why is it so important that all our people know the Constitution and know their human rights?
It is important because it:
- Strengthens respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms;
- Develops people’s sense of dignity;
- Promotes understanding, tolerance, respect for diversity and gender equality;
- Enables all persons to participate in a free and democratic society governed by the rule of law;
- Builds and maintains peace, and
- Promotes development and social justice.
Former President Mbeki recently described our Constitution as “a national contract for all South Africans”. He said: “As South Africans, we signed a common contract to say this is the South Africa we want to build.” He is correct when he says that we all have a special responsibility to defend the Constitution.
People can only exercise their rights, if they know what their rights are. People can defend the Constitution, if they know what it says.
You will see that we are handing out copies of the Constitution in booklet form here today, as well as other constitutional material with a lot of useful information.
Thola eyakho, uyifunde… (Please take it, read it), and share it – with your children, your parents, your neighbours, your community.
Let’s make the Constitution real, for all our people.
I thank you.
