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Human Rights: Interim Constitution Accord

Implementations

Human Rights – 1993

Human rights situation deteriorated in South Africa with the increase in violent activities. “In its October 1992 figures for the year to date, the independent Human Rights Commission (hrc) reported that 1,147 people had been killed in political violence in Natal, including 32 killed by the security forces. Attacks on prominent grassroots organizers continued and in many cases blocked local efforts to establish peace.” One important effort on the side of government to end violence was the establishment of the Goldstone Commission, which was formed in 1991. The commission had mandate to investigate public violence. “In 1992, it publicly recommended steps the government should take to end the violence.” The commission established its reputation as an independent and unbiased body and made numerous recommendations to the government, some of which were not implemented. Following reports of deaths in detention, “the government allowed the International Committee of the Red Cross to examine prisons in South Africa for the first time.”¹

According to the Human Rights Watch report, “During 1993, some steps were taken to increase accountability in the law enforcement system, but abuses of human rights continued to be committed by the security forces, including detention without trial and torture and ill-treatment of detainees. South Africa signed several human rights treaties during 1993, including the Convention Against Torture and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).” The report further states that “the structures of the September 1991 National Peace Accord (NPA), including the Goldstone Commission of Inquiry into the causes of the violence, continued to function during 1993. Measures taken under the NPA, especially the establishment of local dispute resolution committees, were widely credited with the decline in political violence in late 1992 and early 1993.” According to the report, “the South African government continued to allow greater freedom than in the past to organizations monitoring human rights based both inside and outside the country.”²

The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa Act 200 of 1993 made a provision for the establishment of the South African Human Rights Commission. The interim constitution granted fundamental rights. The constitution also had a provision for the establishment of constitutional court.

“Human Rights Watch World Report 1992 – South Africa” Human Rights Watch, 1993, accessed December 8, 2010, http://www.hrw.org/legacy/reports/1993/WR93/Afw-09.htm#P414_168570.
“Human Rights Watch World Report 1993 – South Africa” Human Rights Watch, 1994, accessed December 8, 2010, http://www.hrw.org/legacy/reports/1994/WR94/Africa-07.htm#P316_139744.

Human Rights – 1994

In October 1994, the Constitutional Court announced that its first case would be to decide the constitutionality of the death penalty. Although violence was the major problem, all official restrictions on monitoring human rights abuses were lifted with the installation of the new government.³ The Human Rights Commission Act 54 of 1994 was passed on 7 December 1994 paving the way for the establishment of Human Rights Commission in South Africa.

“Human Rights Watch World Report 1994 – South Africa” Human Rights Watch, 1995, accessed December 8, 2010, http://www.hrw.org/legacy/reports/1995/WR95/AFRICA-09.htm#P485_172720.

Human Rights – 1995

The Constitutional Court made a decision to abolish the death penalty on June 7, 1995.⁴ The Human Rights Commission was inaugurated on October 2, 1995 under the Human Rights Commission Act 54 of 1994 and as provided for by the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa Act 200 of 1993.⁵ The provision of human rights in the interim constitution was fully implemented with the establishment of the Human Rights Commission and the functioning interim constitution.

“SOUTH AFRICA; Constitutional Court abolishes death penalty,” BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, June 7, 1995.
South Africa Human Rights Commission, accessed December 8, 2010, http://www.sahrc.org.za/home/index.php?ipkContentID=1&ipkMenuID=28.

Human Rights – 1996

The Human Rights provisions were implemented. Six institutions for the Protection of Human Rights mentioned in sections 116-119 of the interim Constitution were created and incorporated into the Final Constitution. These were: The Public Protector, the Human Rights Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious, and Linguistic Communities (replaced the Volkstaat Council), the Commission for Gender Equality, the Auditor General and the Electoral Commission. It was established that no rule could limit the individual rights guaranteed by the Bill of Rights. However, the creation of a Human Rights culture faced challenges in so far as crime rates were the fourth largest in the world, the police continued to abuse power, and prisoners were victims of inhuman treatment (breaching the rights of the Arrested, Detained and Accused Persons). Socio-economic rights were hindered by the structural inequalities present in South Africa.