S OUTH AF RI CA

Visions of a Liberal Future

Helen Suzman

By liberalism I don't mean the creed of any party or any century. I mean a generosity of spirit, a tolerance of others, an attempt to comprehend otherness, a commitment to the rule of law, a high ideal for the worth and dignity of man, a repugnance of authoritarianism and a love of freedom.

Alan Paton

TOwhat extent has Alan Paton’s vision of liberalism been realised in the new South Africa? The nation adopted an Interim Constitution in 1993, and conducted its first democratic elections a year later, at which all adult citizens and permanent residents were eligible to vote. The Constitution had been thrashed out over three years of negotiation at CODESA(Convention for a Democratic South Africa, later renamed the Multi-Party Negotiating Forum), and attended by representatives of 36 political parties, NGOs and individuals. The two key figures during the transition were Nelson Mandela, representing the African National Congress (ANC), and President FW de Klerk, from the National Party (NP) government, while individuals such as Colin Eglin of the Democratic Party and Cyril Ramaphosa of the ANC played crucial roles in shaping the Constitution, which was finally agreed upon in 1996. As political analyst David Welsh has observed, what was surprising about this document is that neither of its principal architects, the ANC or the NP, had any history of commitment to the liberal values that are enshrined in it. Yet liberalism has a long tradition in South Africa, represented by missionaries, newspapers, universities, organizations such as the SA Institute of Race Relations, and parties like the Liberal Party, the Democratic Alliance (DA) and its predecessors. Today, however, to be called a ‘liberal’ in South Africa is not a compliment, and the role played by white liberals in opposing apartheid has been largely airbrushed out of history –it seems only the white communists are given any credit. The South African Constitution has been described as the most liberal in the worldand indeed its contents merit such a description. It includes a comprehensive Bill of Rights, which prohibits discrimination on grounds of race, gender or religion, along with clauses which include, inter alia , universal suffrage, adherence to the rule of law, freedom of expression, and socio-economic rights such as access to housing, healthcare, food, water and social security. The right to education

“The South African Constitution has been described as the most liberal in the world”

and the protection of children from exploitation are enshrined in the Constitution, which recognizes 11 official languages, all under a quasi-federal system, with a separation between the state and the executive, no detention without trial and an independent judiciary. With this promising beginning, the future of liberalism in South Africa seemed bright, and in many ways South Africa is a much better country in 2007. What, in fact, have 13 years of democracy achieved? South Africa is no longer a pariah state – there are no more economic sanctions or academic boycotts. The country is once again a member of the Commonwealth and has been readmitted to international sport (an important factor for sport-mad South Africans). All the discriminatory laws of the apartheid government have been removed, including Bantu education, which to my mind was the worst sin of apartheid, because it deprived two generations of black children of adequate instruction in maths and science. Economically, South Africa has a sound fiscal policy, a reduced deficit, and until recently, inflation has been kept at a reasonable level. There is a growing black middle-class, and the government has built some two to three million houses to replace shacks and provided them with water, electricity and sanitation. Such basic amenities have also been made available to many more citizens. The DA, as standard-bearer of South African liberalism, is now the official opposition, having increased its representation from 7 seats in 1994 to 49 at the last general election in 2005. The ANC obtained 279 seats out of 400 in 1994, perhaps not surprising considering South Africa’s demography: a total population of 47.3 million, of whom 43⁄4 million are white, 3 million are mixed-race, 1 million are Indian and the remainder are black. David Welsh draws the sober conclusion that still “racial and ethnic identity is probably the most powerful force in determining political choice”. And as Professor Milton Shain has pointed out, “A liberal constitution does not in itself ensure a democratic future”. Although three of the key components of liberalism – a vigilant opposition in parliament, a pro-active civil society and a watchful press – are evident in South Africa, the concerns of Shain and Welsh appear to be justified. Since 1994, the ANC has increased its number of seats from 279 to 293 seats, while the DA has decreased its tally to 47 due to floor-crossing. The present electoral system of Proportional Representation (PR), which gives minority parties representation in parliament, also allows an MP to join another party during ‘window periods’

20 | The Liberal | Autumn 2007