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Your Guide to Parliament
How our Democracy Works
Information obtained from brochure issued by: Public Education Office of Parliament (021) 403 8200 |
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Introduction
Our
Democracy in South Africa is very new. People struggled for very long time
for democracy in our country. But democracy must be protected so that no
person, political party or group can seize your freedom and your rights. The
rules which protect our democracy are in our constitution. The
Constitution is our protection
In 1996, after two years of
public consultation and debate, South Africa adopted its Constitution. This means that we are a
constitutional democracy and that everyone in this country must act according
to the constitution. The constitution gives every
citizen rights and obligations. These are written in the Bill of Rights, which
is part of the constitution. It is very important that you understand these
rights and obligations, as the constitution is there to protect you. It is
your constitution. The constitution is the
highest law of the land. Neither the President, Minister or Parliament can
act against the constitution. Parliament can also not pass any law that goes
against the constitution. It is important for you to
know what your responsibilities as a citizen of South Africa are, in order to
ensure that the constitution is respected. The
first rule of democracy is elections The
Constitution says that there must be an election every five years. In
an election, everybody over 18 years of age may vote for a political party of
their choice. The party
that wins the most votes must form the government because the voters have
given it a mandate to rule the country. Elections
mean that, if voters are unhappy with the government, they can change the
government by voting for another party in the next election. |
Why there are three arms of state The
state is made up of three separate parts or arms. We call the three arms of
state the Executive (Cabinet), the Legislature (Parliament), and the
Judiciary (the Courts). Each
of these parts of State has its own function, The three arms also help to
make sure that power is divided so that no arm of state has all the power.
This is protected in the consitution and is called the separation of powers. The Cabinet After
the election, Parliament elects a President, who in turn appoints the Deputy
President, Ministers and Deputy-Ministers. The
President and Minister form Cabinet. It is their responsibility to run the
country rest with Cabinet. Cabinet cannot makes laws, but table their
proposed laws in Parliament. Cabinet
Members are accountable to Parliament. Parliament The
Second Arm of State is Parliament. The responsibility of Parliament is to
discuss the Bills that Ministers submit to Parliament, to make changes and to
pass them if they agree that they are in the interest of the public and
provinces, as well as in line with the Constitution. Members
of Parliament are accountable to the people, as Parliament is the direct
representative of the people. Although
Parliament makes the laws, it is the courts that must implement the laws. The Court The
judiciary is different from the other two arms of state because it is not
elected, but independent. No government and no person can interfere in the
work of the courts. It is
the responsibility of the courts to try people who are accused of breaking
the law, and if they are found guilty, to sentence them. The Constitutional
Court has the power to decide whether
the government is acting against the constitution, or if Parliament has made
a law that is unconstitutional |
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