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South African Bill of Rights and the African Renaissance: Incompatible values? Should a Rastifarian lawyer, whose religion prescribes that he use dagga on a regular basis, be allowed to practice law? Should sex work be legalized in South Africa? Should homosexual marriages be permitted and should we, in the light of our high crime rate, re-institute capital punishment? These are all issues and questions which we, as South Africans, in terms of our legal system and our Constitutional Court have had to wrestle with during the decade since the inception of our democracy. The answers to these questions, in South Africa, are all relative to our Bill of Rights which entrenches, Freedom ……..including the freedom of religion, belief and opinion; Freedom of trade, occupation and profession; Equality …….. including equality in sexual orientation and Human Dignity …………including The Right to Life. The South African Bill of Rights is the cornerstone of our democracy and as such, enshrines the rights of all people in our country. It affirms the democratic values of human dignity, equality and freedom. The Bill of Rights applies to all law and binds the legislature, the executive, the judiciary and all organs of the state. It essentially casts South Africa as a liberal democracy in that it considers individuals as the seat of moral value and upholds each individual as of equal worth. No Bill in South Africa can become a law unless it complies with the values enshrined in the Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights is one of a number of instruments which serve to restore past injustices and to contribute towards the development of a nation in South Africa. Our democracy is entrenched in it. President Thabo Mbeki has frequently, poetically and passionately elaborated on his vision for and the ideal of an African Renaissance in which all Africans will, inter alia, assert their humanity, free themselves from the legacy of poverty, hunger and marginalization, establish and maintain systems of good governance through multi-party democracies and adopt principles and practices of human rights. Through our democratic structures, systems and policies South Africa is well on the road to being a leader in the advance of the African Renaissance. Africa is a vast continent of many, diverse nation states. It is not homogeneous and has democracies, autocracies, benevolent dictatorships, dictatorships, anarchies and emerging or transforming democracies as its members. It consists of countries as diverse as Egypt, Zimbabwe, Sudan, Equitorial Guinea, The Democratic Republic of Congo, Libya, Botswana, Swaziland and South Africa all of whom are integral, valuable members, of the continent. It is also a continent in which female genital mutilation, capital punishment, genocide and the detention without trial of political opposition are not uncommon. These human right violations are proof of the fact that a number of African countries do not subscribe to the values of human dignity, equality and freedom enshrined in the South African Bill of Rights. President Thabo Mbeki has said, “none of our countries is an island which can isolate itself from the rest and none of us can truly succeed if the rest fail”. Will these apparently incompatible value systems between South Africa and some other African countries lead to an abandonment of the African Renaissance project or is it possible for South Africa to continue to strive for the ideal? The Honourable Mr. Justice Dennis Davis, Cape High Court Judge will speak on “The SA Bill of Rights and African Renaissance: Incompatible Values?” at a Harold Wolpe Memorial Trust Forum meeting to be held on Thursday, 30 September 2004, 6 for 6.30pm at the Centre for The Book, 62 Queen Victoria Street, Cape Town. Members of the public are invited to attend. Please confirm attendance by calling 021 424 7543 or 021 424 9602. Submitted by: Leslie Liddell |
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