Everything about The Parliament Of South Africa totally explained
The
Parliament of South Africa is
South Africa's legislature and is composed of the
National Assembly of South Africa and the
National Council of Provinces.
It has undergone many transformations as a result of the country's tumultuous history. From 1910 to 1994, it was elected mainly by
South Africa's white minority, before the first democratic elections were held in
1994.
Under the 1994
Constitution, the Parliament, consisting of a
Senate and a
National Assembly, was also the 'Constitution-Making Body' (CMB). This was a compromise between the
African National Congress, which wanted a
Constituent Assembly to draft the constitution, and the other parties, who wanted constitutional principles agreed first, before the final constitution was drafted and adopted in 1997. Under the 1997 Constitution, the Senate, elected by members of each of the nine Provincial Legislatures, was replaced by a
National Council of Provinces, or (NCoP), which retained the former Senate's membership, although changed its legislative and constitutional role. The National Assembly remained unchanged as the primary legislative chamber, with the
President of South Africa being the leader of the largest party in that house.
History
The Union
When the
Union of South Africa was established in 1910, the Parliament was
bicameral and consisted of the
Senate and the
House of Assembly (known in
Afrikaans as the
Volksraad). The Senate was indirectly elected by members of each of the four Provincial Councils, and the members of the House of Assembly being elected mainly by whites.
South West Africa
In 1948, white residents of the
United Nations mandated territory of
South West Africa became eligible to vote in South African elections, despite the territory never being formally incorporated into the Union. Representation for the territory in the South African Parliament was abolished in 1981.
Apartheid
When the
National Party came to power on a policy of racial segregation or
apartheid in 1948, it began to push through controversial legislation to deprive non-whites of what few political rights they already had.
In 1959, the government of
Prime Minister Hendrik Verwoerd passed legislation to strip the mixed race
Coloureds of their voting rights. In order to amend
entrenched clauses in the Union's Constitution, there needed to be a two-thirds majority in favour in both Houses of Parliament.
As the National party didn't have a majority in the Senate, Verwoerd instead increased its membership, appointing a large number of Senators who duly voted for the changes. In anticipation of a referendum on making South Africa a
republic, Verwoerd also lowered the voting age for whites from 21 to 18. When a
referendum was held on
October 5,
1960, 52 per cent of whites voted in favour of a republic.
The creation of the Republic of South Africa didn't change the role of the Parliament, which remained whites-only, and dominated by the National Party, although the mace used in the House of Assembly, featuring a British Crown, was replaced by a new South African design, and portraits of the
British Royal Family were removed.
Tricameral Parliament
» Main article: Tricameral Parliament
In 1980, Prime Minister
P.W. Botha announced plans for constitutional reform. The Senate was abolished in 1981, and a new 'President's Council' was appointed to advise on a new Constitution, under which Coloureds and Asians would be represented. The Council was chaired by a Vice State President, Mr Alwyn Schlebusch, who would be the only person to hold the post. Its membership was composed of Whites, Coloureds and Asians (including a Chinese member as well as Indians), but the Black majority had no representation at all.
Under the 1984 Constitution, the
House of Assembly, elected by whites only, became one of three Houses of Parliament, the other two being the
House of Representatives, elected by the mixed race
Coloureds and the
House of Delegates, elected by
Asians. Each House had a Ministers' Council, responsible for 'own affairs', but the white-controlled President's Council could override any decisions made by Coloured and Asian leaders.
The black majority were still disenfranchised, and the new system lacked legitimacy even among the Coloureds and Asians, many of whom boycotted elections. In 1994, one of the last pieces of legislation passed by the Tricameral Parliament was Act 200 of 1994 – the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa – before the first non-racial elections were held on April 27 that year.
Cape Town or Pretoria?
Parliament sits in
Cape Town, even though the seat of government is in
Pretoria. This dates back to the foundation of the Union, when there was disagreement between the four provinces as to which city would be the national capital. As a compromise, Cape Town was designated the
legislative capital,
Bloemfontein the
judicial capital,
Pietermaritzburg the
archival, and Pretoria the
administrative capital. The
African National Congress (ANC) government has proposed moving Parliament to Pretoria, arguing that the present arrangement is cumbersome as ministers, civil servants and diplomats must move back and forth when Parliament is in session. However, many Capetonians have spoken out against such a move, accusing the ANC of trying to centralise power. Under the Constitution, there's provision for Parliament meeting outside Cape Town should the Speaker of the National Assembly see fit.
List of Parliaments
Parliaments of the Union
Parliaments of the Republic
13th South African Parliament (1961 - 1966)
14th South African Parliament (1966 - 1970)
15th South African Parliament (1970 - 1974)
16th South African Parliament (1974 - 1977)
17th South African Parliament (1977 - 1981)
18th South African Parliament (1981 - 1984)
19th South African Parliament (1984 - 1987)
20th South African Parliament (1987 - 1989)
21st South African Parliament (1989 - 1994)
22nd South African Parliament (1994 - 1999)
23rd South African Parliament (1999 - 2004)
24th South African Parliament (2004 - 2009)Further Information
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