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The purpose of this handbook - Know your Rights, Claim your Rights - is to provide a straightforward overview of the Constitution of South Africa; to set out the basic constitutional rights and responsibilities of all South African citizens and to assist in drawing the attention of civil society to the remedies available when their rights have not been respected and upheld.

Popular protest has become a regular feature of post-1994 South Africa. As a young democracy born out of resistance, we may understand the contemporary manifestations of protest as extensions of this broader history. However, it is notably in the context of formal democratic institutions that popular protest has become an increasingly normalised mode of influencing policy, demanding service delivery and forcing change. Protest is constitutive of South Africa's democratic politics, but also reflective of it.Protest in South Africa: Rejection, reassertion, reclamation explores the underpinnings of contemporary protest and both its short-term causes and structural drivers. Focusing on the surge of protest from the mid-2000s, this edited volume provides an overview of the complexity of protest action, the diversity of protest spaces and actors, and responses to protest from both citizens and state. The volume situates its analysis against the backdrop of the global wave of protest witnessed since the turn of the 21 century, while examining protest in South Africa's local and historical contexts.Contributors to the volume examine protests in relation to, among other factors, provision of infrastructure and services, contestations around socio-economic development, issues of citizenship, and demands for inclusive democratic governance. Chapters also examine the role of women in protest action, the policing of protest, and the intersection of protest action with spaces of formal politics. The volume also alerts us to the darker side of protest, and the destruction and division it may foment. It thus considers the prospects of South Africa's evolving, sometimes violent, protest terrain for social and state stability and democratic progress.In the diversity of spaces, sectors and communities of interests in which collective action has emerged, Protest in South Africa: Rejection, reassertion, reclamation shows how protest is underpinned by a rejection of the status quo, a reassertion of interests, and a reclaiming of the political and democratic space.

Bureaucrats of Liberation narrates the history of the Southern Africa Project of the Lawyers'Committee for Civil Right under law, a civil rights organization founded in 1963 at the request of President John F. Kennedy. Between 1963 and 1994, the Southern Africa Project connected lawyers from Namibia, South Africa, and the United States. Within the Project's network, activist lawyers exchanged funding resources, provided logistical support for political trials, and mediated new voting and governmental systems. The Project's history provides a lens into twentieth century geopolitics tied to anti-apartheid, decolonization, Cold War, and movements agitating against white supremacy. In doing so, it pays careful attention to the Project's different eras, beginning with US Executive Branch officials helming the effort and evolving into a space where more activist-oriented attorneys on both sides of the Atlantic drove its mission and politics.

The 1996 South African Constitution was promulgated on 18th December 1996 and came into effect on 4th February 1997. Its aspirational provisions promised to transform South Africa's economy and society along non-racial and egalitarian lines. Following the twentieth anniversary of its enactment, this book, co-edited by Rosalind Dixon and Theunis Roux, examines the triumphs and disappointments of the Constitution. It explains the arguments in favor of the Constitution being replaced with a more authentically African document, untainted by the necessity to compromise with ruling interests predominant at the end of apartheid. Others believe it remains a landmark attempt to create a society based on social, economic, and political rights for all citizens, and that its true implementation has yet to be achieved. This volume considers whether the problems South Africa now faces are of constitutional design or implementation, and analyses the Constitution's external influence on constitutionalism in other parts of the world.

Priscilla Jana is a legendary figure in South African revolutionary politics. As an Indian woman who experienced racial oppression first-hand, she decided to use her degree in law to fight for the rights of her fellow people and do all she could to bring down the Apartheid state. At one time she represented every single political prisoner on Robben Island, including both Nelson and Winnie Mandela. Priscilla spent her days in court, fighting human rights case after human rights case, but it was at night when her real work was done. As part of an underground cell, she fought tirelessly to bring down the hated government. This activism, however, came at a price. One of South Africa's infamous'banned persons,'for five years Priscilla was unable to take part in any political activities, enter any place where a large number of people were gathered, and had her movements severely restricted. Her home was attacked with petrol bombs on multiple occasions. Undeterred, Priscilla Jana continued her work, even adopting the baby daughter of a client imprisoned on Robben Island, bringing her up, educating her, and providing a loving home. Finally, upon Mandela's release and the political revolution of her beloved country, Priscilla's work was rewarded, as she was elected as a member of South Africa's first democratic parliament. Later, she was to become an ambassador to both The Netherlands and Ireland.

Priscilla Jana is a legendary figure in South African revolutionary politics.As an Indian woman who had experienced racial oppression first-hand, she decided to use her degree in law to fight for the rights of her fellow people and do all she could to bring down the Apartheid state - who saw her as a very real threat. At one time she represented every single political prisoner on Robben Island, including both the late Nelson Mandela and his wife Winnie.Priscilla spent her days in court, fighting human rights case after human rights case, but it was at night when her real work was done. As part of an underground cell, she fought tirelessly to bring down the hated government.This activism, however, came at a price. One of South Africa's infamous ‘banned persons', for five years Priscilla was unable to take part in any political activities, enter any place where a large number of people were gathered, and had her movements severely restricted. Worse, her own home was attacked with petrol bombs on multiple occasions.Undeterred, Priscilla Jana continued her work, even adopting the baby daughter of a client imprisoned on Robben Island, bringing here up, educating her, and providing a loving home. Finally, upon Mandela's release and the political revolution of her beloved country, Priscilla's work was rewarded, as she was elected as a member of South Africa's first democratic parliament. Later, she was to become an ambassador to both The Netherlands and Ireland.Now retired and living in Cape Town, Priscilla still works and waits for her most fervent desire: the true healing and unification of South Africa.

El Tribunal Supremo indio, El Tribunal Constitucional sudafricano y la Corte Constitucional colombiana son tres de los tribunales más importantes y creativos del Sur Global. Este libro explora de manera detallada la jurisprudencia de estos tres tribunales sobre: derechos sociales y económicos, diversidad cultural y acceso a la justicia. Temas relacionados directamente con la pobreza y la desigualdad, la violencia política, las minorías culturales y la consolidación del Estado de derecho. Este libro es una contribución valiosa a la discusión sobre los límites y estructura del constitucionalismo contemporáneo.

For decades Sydney Kentridge QC has been admired as a brilliant advocate, an outstanding lawyer and, during the apartheid years in South Africa, a courageous defender of the individual against an oppressive state. His advocacy at the inquest of Steve Biko came to the attention of a wider audience when he was portrayed on stage and screen by Albert Finney. He has since pursued a second, equally celebrated career as a barrister in England. In 1999 he was knighted'for services to international law and justice'.This selection from his lectures and talks includes memorable and often moving accounts of Sydney's experiences as an advocate practising in South Africa under a legal system which not merely permitted racial discrimination but required it and in which, for political cases, many of the protections essential to a fair trial had been abolished. Wider topics addressed include the ethics of advocacy, freedom of speech, the rule of law and the selection of judges. Two themes that run through this book are an acute sense of the fragility of the rights and values that define a free country and, at the same time, an intense appreciation of just how much such rights and freedoms, which we may sometimes take for granted, really matter.'One of the great pleasures of this collection is that the author's voice and personality, including his understated sense of humour, are evident throughout. His is not just the voice of a great advocate; it is also wise and humane.'From the Foreword by David Lloyd Jones and George Leggatt

This volume provides a timely assessment on the progress made towards the achievement of a constitutional democracy in South Africa. The chapters collectively present an in-depth analysis of the development of the legal system and of the implications of the Constitution for the social configuration of power. To what extent has the vision of constitutionalism contained in the Constitution been realised? Primarily concerned with the impact of laws and the salience of their existence and enforcement for South Africans, the work highlights the importance of placing the constitutional regime in its historical, cultural, social, economic and political context. The book further recognises the importance of the South African constitutional provisions for transnational or globalised constitutionalism more broadly. It contains contributions from South African scholars, as well as European authors, bringing in new analytical angles and adding a specific comparative dimension. Through the prism of South Africa, the authors discuss the innovative character of constitutional and legal provisions in terms of both constitution-making and law-making processes and their contents. This book provides analysis that will be relevant to scholars, students and practitioners, specifically those interested in International Relations, Law, Sociology of Law, and African Studies, as well as socio-political comparative studies.

South Africa supposedly has one of the best Constitutions in the world, one which is intended to control and constrain the exercise of power by the state so that it does not threaten the liberty and security of citizens. But, in reality, does the Constitution contribute more to the security of some groups than others? Does it help to ensure certain types of security but not others? And does it have greater impact on some institutions than others? The book is based on the assumption that the Constitution has a significant impact on the security of South African citizens and communities but that this impact is differential. The chapters in the book explore what kind of differential impact the Constitution has, explain what accounts for the differences, examine the consequences of the different impact and consider whether there are any general observations and hypotheses that emerge from comparative perspectives.

Pillay, a trailblazer in Human Rights Law, was born in1941 to a humble Indian family in apartheid South Africa. She faced enormous obstacles to her aspirations for further education and a meaningful career. However, in 1967 she was the first black wo

The embrace of socio-economic rights in South Africa has featured prominently in scholarship on constitution making, legal jurisprudence and social mobilisation. But the development has attracted critics who claim that this turn to rights has not generated social transformation in practice. This book sets out to assess one part of the puzzle and asks what has been the role and impact of socio-economic strategies used by civil society actors. Focusing on a range of socio-economic rights and national trends in law and political economy, the book's authors show how socio-economic rights have influenced the development of civil society discourse and action. The evidence suggests that some strategies have achieved material and political impact but this is conditional on the nature of the claim, degree of mobilisation and alliance building, and underlying constraints.

The Constitution informs every aspect of our legal system and every instance of interpretation and application of that system. The Bill of Rights Handbook's detailed coverage of all aspects of Bill of Rights jurisprudence and practice has made it the standard reference work for this important area of law, and it has been extensively relied upon and quoted by the judiciary. The sixth edition of the Handbook is a comprehensive account of over two decades of jurisprudence interpreting and applying the Bill of Rights. The work has been thoroughly revised, in particular to cover developments in the areas of constitutional jurisdiction, remedies and socio-economic rights.

This book is an outcome of the conversation that occurred during the five days of intense discussion at two symposia initiated by the “New Humanism Project”. The struggle for a more humane society is both local and universal, and increasingly these are connected in our time. So while the conversation focused specifically on South Africa, the discussion was neither parochial nor insular in its scope and character. Hopefully, then, people beyond South Africa will find the contents of this book of value for them in terms of their own contexts.

The bulk of the contributions in this publication originated in a research project initiated by the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study (STIAS) in 2002. The book is based on the idea that the attainment of greater social and economic justice, specifically in the South African context, is strongly influenced by the implications and the coherence of various theories of social and economic justice.

The twelve essays in this book pay tribute to senior Harvard law professor Frank Michelman whose thinking – and input – on Constitutional Law has made a great contribution to constitutional development in South Africa. These essays are the work of some of the best practical and academic legal minds in this country and, given South Africa's recent successes in this field, represent an advanced position in constitutional thinking in the world.