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The Free Market Foundation (FMF) is a classical liberal
think tank A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governmenta ...
located in Bryanston,
Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...
,
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
. Founded in 1975, the FMF was established to further human rights and democracy through the principles of an
open society Open society (french: société ouverte) is a term coined by French philosopher Henri Bergson in 1932, and describes a dynamic system inclined to moral universalism.Thomas Mautner (2005), 2nd ed. ''The Penguin Dictionary of Philosophy'' Open so ...
, the
rule of law The rule of law is the political philosophy that all citizens and institutions within a country, state, or community are accountable to the same laws, including lawmakers and leaders. The rule of law is defined in the ''Encyclopedia Britannica ...
,
personal liberty Liberty is the ability to do as one pleases, or a right or immunity enjoyed by prescription or by grant (i.e. privilege). It is a synonym for the word freedom. In modern politics, liberty is understood as the state of being free within society fr ...
, and
economic liberalism Economic liberalism is a political and economic ideology that supports a market economy based on individualism and private property in the means of production. Adam Smith is considered one of the primary initial writers on economic liberalism ...
and
press freedom Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the fundamental principle that communication and expression through various media, including printed and electronic media, especially published materials, should be considered a right to be exerci ...
. According to ''The Mercury'' editor Fikile-Ntsikelelo Moya, the FMF is a "
libertarian Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's e ...
think tank" wanting "unfettered capitalism" which "eschews all forms of state intervention in the life of the individual citizen". In 1987,
Leon Louw Leon Louw is a South African intellectual, author, speaker and policy advisor. He is the executive director and cofounder of the Free Market Foundation, a nonprofit organisation ranked at number 123 in a CEOWorld's 2017 list of the most influen ...
, the FMF's Executive Director, described the work of the FMF as follows: :"We mobilise public opinion, we lobby, we fight government, any government, and make representations and submissions. Our objective is to create a climate of public opinion among politicians, radical groups and unions in favour of free markets." In 2017 the
Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program The Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program (TTCSP) was a non-profit program at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that operated from 1989 to 2021. TTCSP was originally established at the Foreign Policy Research Institu ...
of the
University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...
ranked the FMF as the 123rd best think tank in the category "Top Think Tanks Worldwide – (U.S. and non-U.S.)," the 21st best think tank in
Sub-Saharan Africa Sub-Saharan Africa is, geographically, the area and regions of the continent of Africa that lies south of the Sahara. These include West Africa, East Africa, Central Africa, and Southern Africa. Geopolitically, in addition to the List of sov ...
, and the 109th best "independent think tank" in the world, for the year 2016. From 2012 until May 2014, businessman
Herman Mashaba Herman Samtseu Philip Mashaba (born August 26, 1959) is a South African politician, entrepreneur and the current president of ActionSA, a party he launched on 29 August 2020. He served as the Mayor of Johannesburg from 2016 to 2019. He is the fo ...
, who was the Executive Mayor of Johannesburg, served as chairman of the foundation's board. He stepped down from his position when he joined the Democratic Alliance as an "ordinary card-carrying member," citing the need for the foundation to remain politically impartial.
Leon Louw Leon Louw is a South African intellectual, author, speaker and policy advisor. He is the executive director and cofounder of the Free Market Foundation, a nonprofit organisation ranked at number 123 in a CEOWorld's 2017 list of the most influen ...
is a co-founder of and is the Executive Director of the FMF. The other directors of the FMF are economist Jasson Urbach, accountant Eustace Davie, and Temba Nolutshungu, a pioneer of
black consciousness The Black Consciousness Movement (BCM) was a grassroots anti-Apartheid Activism, activist movement that emerged in South Africa in the mid-1960s out of the power vacuum, political vacuum created by the jailing and banning of the African Nationa ...
and a participant in the struggle against apartheid. The FMF is an
Atlas Network Atlas Network, formerly known as the Atlas Economic Research Foundation, is a non-governmental 501(c)(3) organization based in the United States that provides training, networking and grants for libertarian, free-market, and conservative groups ...
partner.


History


Apartheid era

The "South African Free Market Foundation" was founded in August 1975 "to promote free enterprise" in South Africa. The initiative was spearheaded by the Association of Chambers of Commerce of South Africa (Assocom), which sought a way "to promote the free market economy in South Africa". According to the ''Sunday Express'', the FMF was founded by "a group of five young professional men", because "Government asprogressing inexorably toward a greater degree of control over traditional free market forces". Louw led the steering committee responsible for the establishment of the foundation. The steering committee consisted of FE Emary, M Lillard, Leon Louw, Fred Macaskill, André Spies and Marc Swanepoel". When asked about its view of South Africa's apartheid policies, the first chairman of the FMF, Lu Sher (who was President of Assocom), said that the FMF "would like to see restrictions on the movement and use of labour, capital, and goods, phased out wherever possible". Sher continued, saying the FMF was generally "limiting tselfto the economic field, but there we believe that the fewer restrictions the better, and that all races should be able to compete freely in all sectors". The foundation published a monthly classical liberal magazine, ''The Individualist'', from its founding in 1975 until October 1976, when the FMF was officially registered as a non-profit organisation in South Africa. The magazine was from then on published independently. ''The Individualist'' is currently defunct. The FMF would later publish its own journal, ''Free Market'', which was released six times a year. Senator
Owen Horwood Owen Pieter Faure Horwood (6 December 1916 – 13 September 1998) was a South African economist, politician, leader of the National Party in the province of Natal and Finance Minister 1975 to 1984. He was married to Helen Watt, sister of Janet S ...
(
Minister of Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...
) and
Gerhard de Kock Dr. Gerhardus Petrus Christiaan de Kock better known as Gerhard de Kock (14 February 1926 – 7 August 1989) was the sixth Governor of the South African Reserve Bank. He was the son of Dr. M.H. de Kock, who was the third Governor of the South ...
(Governor of the
Reserve Bank A central bank, reserve bank, or monetary authority is an institution that manages the currency and monetary policy of a country or monetary union, and oversees their commercial banking system. In contrast to a commercial bank, a central ba ...
) were among its contributors. ''Free Market'' is also currently defunct. In May 1976, the FMF moved offices to 401 City Centre, 36 Joubert Street, Johannesburg. In November 1976, after the FMF's registration as an NPO, it was reformed into the "Free Market Foundation (Southern Africa)". Dirk Hertzog, Chairman of the Oude Meester Group and President of the South African Society of Marketers, was chosen as chairman of FMF's interim executive committee. By this time, the FMF "had the backing" of Assocom, SASOM, the South African Federated Chamber of Industries (SAFCI), the National African Federation Chamber of Commerce (NAFCOC), and the Afrikaanse Handelsinstituut (AHI). The ''Clarion'' magazine also " ledgedits full support to the whole concept" of the FMF. At its inaugural congress in 1977, Professor Stephan du Toit Viljoen, Chairman of the Bantu Investment Corporation and the Bank of Lisbon (today Mercantile Bank), was elected as the FMF's first president. In his inaugural address, Du Toit Viljoen claimed that the cause for the unrest throughout South Africa was because black South Africans could not identify with the political and economic system in which they lived. According to Du Toit Viljoen, it was necessary to involve all of South Africa's races in the development of the free enterprise system, to avoid this unrest. To this end, Du Toit Viljoen called for the progressive removal of discriminatory laws, improving education facilities, and improving the quality of life by providing home ownership; and that "the gradually increasing involvement of all races in the administration of the country would be an essential corresponding development in the political field". At the time, André Spies was the secretary of the FMF. In March and April 1978, the FMF and the School of Business Leadership at the
University of South Africa The University of South Africa (UNISA), known colloquially as Unisa, is the largest university system in South Africa by enrollment. It attracts a third of all higher education students in South Africa. Through various colleges and affiliates, U ...
hosted
Friedrich A. Hayek Friedrich August von Hayek ( , ; 8 May 189923 March 1992), often referred to by his initials F. A. Hayek, was an Austrian–British economist, legal theorist and philosopher who is best known for his defense of classical liberalism. Hayek ...
, the
Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...
-winning economist, on a visit to South Africa. Hayek addressed a public meeting at the Carlton Hotel on Wednesday, 22 March, on
social justice Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has often referred to the process of ensuring that individuals fu ...
and economics. The Johannesburg Chamber of Commerce held a lunch for Hayek on Thursday, 6 April, at the hotel. At a banquet on Friday, 7 April, at the same hotel, Senator Horwood was the main speaker. The FMF criticized the South African government's 1980 budget, especially the "increased welfare spending including subsidies and housing". Howard Preece, an editor of the '' Rand Daily Mail'', responded to this criticism, sarcastically remarking that "there will be all those black pensioners whooping it up on their R33 a month while the oppressed whites slave to provide cheap bread for the blacks generally". The editor concluded that " mmunists never had better friends than these ultra-marketeers and their Standard Nine leventh gradeeconomics". Eustace Davie became a director of the FMF in 1981. Professor Jan A. Lombard, Head of the Department of Economics at the
University of Pretoria The University of Pretoria ( af, Universiteit van Pretoria, nso, Yunibesithi ya Pretoria) is a multi-campus public university, public research university in Pretoria, the administrative and de facto capital of South Africa. The university was ...
and Deputy Governor of the SA Reserve Bank, was President of the FMF between 1981 and at least 1991. Louw and Frances Kendall, his wife, wrote the bestselling book ''South Africa: The Solution'' in 1986, which put forward a vision for
direct democracy Direct democracy or pure democracy is a form of democracy in which the Election#Electorate, electorate decides on policy initiatives without legislator, elected representatives as proxies. This differs from the majority of currently establishe ...
broadly based on the
Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...
canton Canton may refer to: Administrative division terminology * Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries, notably Switzerland * Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French Arts and ent ...
system. The book sold over 25,000 copies and was translated into
Afrikaans Afrikaans (, ) is a West Germanic language that evolved in the Dutch Cape Colony from the Dutch vernacular of Holland proper (i.e., the Hollandic dialect) used by Dutch, French, and German settlers and their enslaved people. Afrikaans gra ...
. By 1987, much of the FMF's funding came "from large corporations, with lesser contributions coming from individuals and smaller companies". The FMF also earned an income from consulting work for companies seeking to overcome government interventions that inhibit their enterprises, and advising government institutions and homeland governments, especially on
deregulation Deregulation is the process of removing or reducing state regulations, typically in the economic sphere. It is the repeal of governmental regulation of the economy. It became common in advanced industrial economies in the 1970s and 1980s, as a ...
and
privatization Privatization (also privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation when ...
. Its With Justice For All training program, aimed at teaching "economic principles and also covers politics", which ended in 1988, accounted for 60% of the FMF's total income. The Rand Mines Group sent 100,000 of its staff to participate in With Justice For All. Don King, the group's personnel director, said the program would "tell workers of the benefits of the free market system as the viable and more welcome alternative to the
marxist Marxism is a Left-wing politics, left-wing to Far-left politics, far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a Materialism, materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand S ...
-socialist system". At the time, the FMF argued that privatization was the only way to bring about racial equality between black and white South Africans. Louw said that, in addition to producing enough wealth to raise the welfare of blacks, privatizing South Africa's state-owned enterprises and industries would depoliticize various economic sectors, like buses and trains, which had been racialized whilst in state hands. Resistance from civil servants and the possibility of generating private monopolies were two issues Louw identified, but this could be overcome by guaranteeing job security and ensuring privatized enterprises are not given to one firm. In 1988, the FMF awarded Lawrence Mavundla with its "Free Market Award" for his contribution to the cause of economic freedom in South Africa. Mavundla had co-founded the Co-Operative for Hawkers and Informal Business in 1986 to fight for the right to enterprise of black South Africans during the time of the apartheid regime's discriminatory legislation.


Post-apartheid

The FMF was an active participant in both the
negotiations to end apartheid in South Africa The apartheid system in South Africa was ended through a series of bilateral and multi-party negotiations between 1990 and 1993. The negotiations culminated in the passage of a new interim Constitution in 1993, a precursor to the Constitution ...
(notably, the Dakar Conference of 1987) as well as the negotiations surrounding what the provisions of the Constitution of South Africa, 1996 would be. The FMF opposed the inclusion of section 8(2) of the Constitution, which provides that the rights in the Bill of Rights do not only bind government, but also citizens (so-called "horizontality"). The FMF further protested the inclusion of "public interest" as a justification for the expropriation of private property, currently found in section 25(2)(a) of the Constitution. Public interest, it argued, is wide and leads to uncertainty, making it "not only open to abuse, but deprives the courts of clear principles on which to adjudicate property rights disputes". The FMF also opposed including
socio-economic rights Economic, social and cultural rights, (ESCR) are socio-economic human rights, such as the right to education, right to housing, right to an adequate standard of living, right to health, victims' rights and the right to science and culture. Eco ...
, such as the right to access to housing (section 26) and the right to access healthcare, food, water, and social security (section 27), because, firstly, it argued the South African government did not have the resources to give effect to these rights, secondly, that 'right to have access' is "jurisprudentially vague", and thirdly, socio-economic rights were "unprecedented" in South African law, meaning the
courts of South Africa The courts of South Africa are the civil and criminal courts responsible for the administration of justice in South Africa. They apply the law of South Africa and are established under the Constitution of South Africa or under Acts of the Pa ...
would need "to decide whether measures that confer 'access' to targeted benefits are sufficiently 'reasonable' and 'progressive' and what the state's 'available resources' are, which means judges may have to determine levels of taxation; budget deficits and allocations; housing, health et al policies..." Professor Themba Sono, who was the President of the
South African Students' Organisation The South African Students' Organisation (SASO) was a body of black South African university students who resisted apartheid through non-violent political action. The organisation was formed in 1969 under the leadership of Steve Biko and Barney P ...
between 1971 and 1972 and a co-founder of the
Black People's Convention The Black People's Convention (BPC) was a national coordinating body for the Black Consciousness movement of South Africa. Envisaged as a broad-based counterpart to the South African Students' Organisation, the BPC was active in organising resis ...
, was President of the FMF from 1997 to 2000. In 2000, the FMF awarded its "Free Market Award" to Sir
Ketumile Masire 'Ketumile Quett Joni Masire'', GCMG (24 July 1926 – 22 June 2017) was the second and longest-serving President of Botswana, in office from 1980 to 1998. He was honored with the Knighthood of the Grand Cross of Saint Michael and Saint Geor ...
, the former
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
of
Botswana Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label=Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahar ...
(1980-1998), with FMF chairman, Michael O'Dowd, saying "Botswana maintained all the institutions and practices which constitute a free market economy." The award ceremony was attended by the former South African
president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
,
Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African Internal resistance to apartheid, anti-apartheid activist who served as the President of South Africa, first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1 ...
. The FMF came out in opposition to the South African government's decision to expand South Africa's nuclear energy capacity in 2014, with executive director, Leon Louw, saying, "The government has shown conclusively that it is unable to manage electricity. It is entirely in the wrong hands." Louw, however, expressed approval of nuclear power in principle. Between 2013 and 2016 the FMF attempted to have section 23 of South Africa's Labour Relations Act, 1995 changed. The section "allows the minister of labour to extend a collective agreement concluded in the bargaining council to any non-parties to the collective agreement that are within its registered scope". The FMF's argument was that this section was detrimental to small businesses "which could not afford wage agreements reached in councils they are not affiliated with". In ''Free Market Foundation v Minister of Labour and Others'' 2016 (4) SA 496 (GP), Murphy J of the
Pretoria High Court The Gauteng Division of the High Court of South Africa is a superior court of law which has general jurisdiction over the South African province of Gauteng and the eastern part of North West province. The main seat of the division is at Pretoria, w ...
found against the FMF, holding that the section need not be changed and that the
Promotion of Administrative Justice Act, 2000 The Promotion of Administrative Justice Act (PAJA) is an important piece of South African legislation, and the cornerstone of administrative law in South Africa. Administrative action The South African Law Commission’s draft Administrative J ...
provided sufficient protection for small businesses wishing to review the labour minister's extension of agreements. In 2017, the FMF opposed the South African
Department of Justice and Constitutional Development The Department of Justice and Constitutional Development is the justice department of the South African government. The department provides administrative and financial support to the court system and the judiciary (which are constitutionally indep ...
's Prevention and Combating of Hate Crimes and Hate Speech Bill, 2016, arguing that the "right to free, uncensored communication was the foundation of a truly democratic society." The FMF also argued that the Bill falls foul of the section 16 protection of freedom of expression found in the
Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When ...
. When the Bill was updated in April 2018, the FMF welcomed the changes but continued to argue that the Bill was unnecessary. The FMF has opposed the South African government's plan to amend section 25 of the Constitution to enable the
expropriation Nationalization (nationalisation in British English) is the process of transforming privately-owned assets into public assets by bringing them under the public ownership of a national government or state. Nationalization usually refers to pri ...
of private property without compensation. Nolutshungu warned that expropriation without compensation would betray the victory of constitutional democracy over such legislation as the
Natives Land Act, 1913 The Natives Land Act, 1913 (subsequently renamed Bantu Land Act, 1913 and Black Land Act, 1913; Act No. 27 of 1913) was an Act of the Parliament of South Africa that was aimed at regulating the acquisition of land. According to the ''Encyclopæd ...
, and said that even though the current government might not wish to use the power to expropriate without compensation maliciously, the nature of constitutional change means any future government will have the same power. Professor Robert Vivian, who sits on the FMF's Rule of Law Board of Advisors, said in September 2018 that, contrary to the conventional belief that only two-thirds of the members of the
National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repre ...
would need to support the amendment for it to pass into law, 75% of the assembly's votes would instead be necessary. This is because according to Vivian, amending the requirement to pay compensation for expropriated property does not simply affect section 25 of the Constitution (in the Bill of Rights), but also affects section 1's (in the Founding Provisions) commitment to the advancement of human rights and freedoms. Provisions in the Bill of Rights require two-thirds of the assembly, and provisions in section 1 require 75%. The FMF has also voiced its concern over the
public participation Public participation, also known as citizen participation or patient and public involvement, is the inclusion of the public in the activities of any organization or project. Public participation is similar to but more inclusive than stakeholder en ...
process surrounding the adoption of the expropriation without compensation policy. It pointed out that the government had allocated more time for written submissions on a tobacco regulation bill than it did for the constitutional amendment. Later, the FMF condemned Parliament for not inviting the foundation to participate in the oral hearings before the National Assembly's constitutional review committee.


Activities


Khaya Lam Land Reform Project

Since 2013, the FMF have led a land reform initiative with First National Bank (FNB) originally called the Ngwathe Land Reform Project. FNB executive Simphiwe Madikizela explained: “When you release title deeds wealth is created for the community. Once people have the title deed, they can extend property and make a living off the property by renting the rooms. They can use their home as collateral to get loans for other personal purposes.” The project is now called the Khaya Lam Land Reform Project. Its stated mission is assist communities in the conversion of their
apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
-era leasehold title (tenancy) to freehold title (ownership). ''Khaya Lam'' is Xhosa for "My Home." The project makes use of the Upgrading of Land Tenure Rights Act (112 of 1991), or 'ULTRA', which "places an obligation on councils to transfer municipal land to tenants". On 25 July 2017, the FMF handed over 58 title deeds in Grabouw in the Theewaterskloof Local Municipality of the
Western Cape The Western Cape is a province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , and the third most populous, with an estimated 7 million inhabitants in 2020 ...
, which were sponsored by the Two-a-Day Group (Pty) Ltd and the Elgin Foundation. FMF director Temba Nolutshungu acted as master of ceremonies, and was accompanied by the Project Manager of the Khaya Lam Land Reform Project, Perry Feldman. On 16 January 2018, the FMF handed over 117 title deeds to beneficiaries from Kylemore‚ Le Roux‚
Cloetesville Stellenbosch (; )A Universal Pronounc ...
Khayamandi and Franschhoek, at the Stellenbosch Town Hall. Businessman Johann Rupert sponsored the deeds, which are intended to be the first of 1,000. In thanking Rupert for the sponsorship, FMF executive director Leon Louw criticized government for failing to systematically convert "‘council owned’ and ‘traditional community’ properties to full‚ unrestricted ownership". The FMF has expanded the title deeds initiative to large parts of the
Eastern Cape The Eastern Cape is one of the provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, but its two largest cities are East London and Gqeberha. The second largest province in the country (at 168,966 km2) after Northern Cape, it was formed in ...
and
KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN and known as "the garden province") is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu) and Natal Province were merged. It is locate ...
.


Civil aviation and South African Airways

The FMF has favored deregulation of civil aviation in South Africa since at least 1980. One of its chief aims was to have
South African Airways South African Airways (SAA) is the flag carrier airline of South Africa. Founded in 1934, the airline is headquartered in Airways Park at O. R. Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg and operated a hub-and-spoke network, serving ten destin ...
(SAA) denied the power to prohibit potential competitors in the airline industry entry, a power granted to SAA by the Air Services Act (51 of 1949). Terry J. Markman argued that the Act should be repealed and domestic civil aviation "should be deregulated immediately" and that SAA should be denationalised and required to make a profit. The Air Services Act was repealed by the International Air Services Act (60 of 1993) during a time of
liberalization Liberalization or liberalisation (British English) is a broad term that refers to the practice of making laws, systems, or opinions less severe, usually in the sense of eliminating certain government regulations or restrictions. The term is used m ...
in South Africa. Markman, a transportation consultant, often represented the FMF in public on this topic. Markman blamed the government's intervention in the finances of
Union Airways Union Airways of South Africa was the first South African commercial airline. It operated as an independent company for five years, from 1929 to 1934, before being taken over by the government as South African Airways. History Union Airways w ...
(subsequently becoming SAA) in 1933 as the cause of South Africa's heavily-regulated civil aviation industry. As of 2017, the FMF has been involved in a campaign to have SAA either privatized or
liquidated Liquidation is the process in accounting by which a company is brought to an end in Canada, United Kingdom, United States, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, and many other countries. The assets and property of the company are redistrib ...
in the wake of billions of rands in bailouts and guarantees being granted to the airline by government, arguing that the continued financing of the airline is a subsidy by the poor in favor of the rich. The FMF however believes that it may be too late for privatization given the state of SAA's finances. In early June 2018, Louw publicly challenged SAA chief executive officer, Vuyani Jarana, to a wager of R100,000 ($7,440) that SAA would not be profitable within the period Jarana claimed it would. In terms of the wager, if SAA is not profitable by 31 March 2021, Jarana would have to pay R100,000 to a charity of Louw's choice, and if SAA is profitable, Louw would have to pay the money to a charity of Jarana's choice. Jarana agreed to the wager. By 22 June, however, Peter Davies, the airline's chief restructuring officer, told the ''Financial Mail,'' "It will take us five years until 2022 to break even", a timeline apparently approved by SAA's board and by the
National Treasury A treasury is either *A government department related to finance and taxation, a finance ministry. *A place or location where treasure, such as currency or precious items are kept. These can be state or royal property, church treasure or in ...
; casting doubts on whether the terms of the wager would be adhered to. On 31 March 2021 however, Jarana conceded the wager as a "technical knockout" and made the relevant donation to Louw's Khaya Lam charity.


''Economic Freedom of the World'' report

The Free Market Foundation publishes the South African edition of the
Fraser Institute The Fraser Institute is a libertarian-conservative Canadian public policy think tank and registered charity. The institute describes itself as independent and non-partisan. It is headquartered in Vancouver, with additional offices in Calgary, Tor ...
's annual ''
Economic Freedom of the World ''Economic Freedom of the World'' is an annual survey published by the Canadian think tank Fraser Institute. ; ; The survey attempts to measure the degree of economic freedom in the world's nations. It has been used in peer-reviewed studies som ...
'' report. The FMF is listed as a "full member" in this partnership with the Fraser Institute. FMF director Temba Nolutshungu said for the 2016 edition that it "is tragic that a country ranked 42nd in the world in 2000, just outside the top 25% of countries in the world, should have fallen 63 places in the rankings in 15 years to a point where it now ranks in the bottom 35%." According to Nolutshungu, research shows that "there is a significant though not immediate correlation between economic freedom, economic growth and human welfare so a steady and dramatic decline in economic freedom in the country should not be taken lightly".


''Enterprise Africa!''

Between 2006 and 2010, the FMF, the Mercatus Center at
George Mason University George Mason University (George Mason, Mason, or GMU) is a public research university in Fairfax County, Virginia with an independent City of Fairfax, Virginia postal address in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area. The university was origin ...
,
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
, and the
Institute of Economic Affairs The Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) is a right-wing pressure group and think tank registered as a UK charity Associated with the New Right, the IEA describes itself as an "educational research institute", and says that it seeks to "further t ...
,
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, ran the ''Enterprise Africa!'' initiative. Supported by a grant from the John Templeton Foundation, the project investigated, analyzed, and reported on enterprise-based solutions to poverty in Africa. Most of the studies and analyses were all written primarily by Mercatus Senior Fellow Karol Boudreaux.


Health policy

The FMF's health policy unit has opposed the South African government's attempts at introducing single-payer
national health insurance National health insurance (NHI), sometimes called statutory health insurance (SHI), is a system of health insurance that insures a national population against the costs of health care. It may be administered by the public sector, the private sector ...
, arguing that with South Africa's narrow tax base and low economic growth, such a scheme would be unaffordable. Economist and FMF director, Jasson Urbach, has argued that South Africa spends as much on healthcare as is "equal to many developed economies' health expenditure as a proportion of GDP," and said that spending more will not solve the problem of a "dysfunctional" system.


Minimum wage

The FMF has long opposed the introduction of a national
minimum wage A minimum wage is the lowest remuneration that employers can legally pay their employees—the price floor below which employees may not sell their labor. Most countries had introduced minimum wage legislation by the end of the 20th century. Bec ...
, claiming that it would be harmful for South Africa's large number of
unemployed Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work during the referen ...
people. According to former FMF board chairman Herman Mashaba, "a minimum wage makes it illegal to employ anyone for a lower wage. The result is that many people are denied the right to decide for themselves about job opportunities". FMF director Jasson Urbach has claimed that large businesses tend to support minimum wage laws because "it protects them from competition from small businesses". In February 2017 the South African government resolved to adopt a national minimum wage by 1 May 2018, at R20 ($1,50) per hour, or roughly R3,500 ($261,52) per month. A commission will be set up to review the wage level annually. Louw has argued that if a minimum wage is implemented, government must create "job seekers' exemption certificates" (JSEC) which would allow individuals who have been unemployed for an extended period of time to exempt themselves from the application of the minimum wage, in order to find employment below the minimum wage. FMF director Eustace Davie authored ''Jobs for the Jobless'' in 2003'','' which set out the comprehensive JSEC proposal. The Atlas Network awarded the FMF the " Templeton Freedom Award" in 2009 for the book.


Criticism

The trade union SAMWU has accused the FMF of being against South Africa's
collective bargaining Collective bargaining is a process of negotiation between employers and a group of employees aimed at agreements to regulate working salaries, working conditions, benefits, and other aspects of workers' compensation and rights for workers. The i ...
system, likely referring to the FMF's 2013-16 attempt to have a provision of the Labour Relations Act changed. Irwin Jim, general secretary of NUMSA, has similarly accused the FMF, writing, "The FMF’s attack on collective bargaining is based on its devotion to the neoliberal capitalist perspective and is part of a broader campaign to defend the neoliberal orientation of the ANC government". In March 2018, journalist
Eusebius McKaiser Eusebius McKaiser (28 March 1979 – 30 May 2023) was a South African political analyst, journalist, and broadcaster. Among others, he wrote for the ''Mail & Guardian'', the '' Sunday Times'', '' Foreign Policy'', ''The Guardian'', ''The New Yo ...
referred to the FMF as "libertarians who care little for group identities, structural analysis and protection of workers at the mercy of amoral labour markets". Kate Wilkinson, senior researcher at
Africa Check Africa Check is a non-profit fact checking organisation set up in 2012 to promote accuracy in public debate and the media in Africa. The organisation's goal is to raise the quality of information available to society across the continent. Africa ...
(an organization founded "to promote accuracy in public debate and the media in Africa") criticized and debunked some of the FMF's claims about transformation in South Africa in 2015. Louw wrote two columns in ''Business Day'', the first on 26 August 2015, "SA's bizarre transformation denialism", and the second on 4 November 2015, "Transformation denialism is an extreme form of racism". Of Louw's five claims in the first column, two were "unproven" and three were "incorrect". Of Louw's fourteen claims in the second column, five were "incorrect", three were "unproven", two were "unable to verify", three were "mostly correct" and one was "correct". Wilkinson criticized the FMF for the long delay in providing her with sources for the claims, and when provided, for the quality of the sources. She accused the FMF of providing no
primary source In the study of history as an academic discipline, a primary source (also called an original source) is an artifact, document, diary, manuscript, autobiography, recording, or any other source of information that was created at the time under ...
s and doing "horse-before-the-cart research", by making claims first and looking for evidence after. In January 2018, researchers from the
Institute for African Alternatives An institute is an organisational body created for a certain purpose. They are often research organisations (research institute, research institutes) created to do research on specific topics, or can also be a professional body. In some countr ...
criticized the FMF for its response to
Oxfam Oxfam is a British-founded confederation of 21 independent charitable organizations focusing on the alleviation of global poverty, founded in 1942 and led by Oxfam International. History Founded at 17 Broad Street, Oxford, as the Oxford Co ...
's 2018 report. Among other things, the FMF claimed that the poor were empowered by free enterprise, a claim the researchers said "is made repeatedly by the foundation and conservative economic commentators in South Africa". In contrast, the researchers say that liberalization in Africa has failed where it has been tried. Where the FMF claimed that wealth generation is legitimate if
coercion Coercion () is compelling a party to act in an involuntary manner by the use of threats, including threats to use force against a party. It involves a set of forceful actions which violate the free will of an individual in order to induce a desi ...
was not used to accrue that wealth, the researchers argue that in a market economy, "one is compelled to sell one’s labour in order to survive". The researchers conclude that the FMF's rejection of the Oxfam report is on "flimsy grounds" and that "Oxfam should be praised for continuously alerting the global public to the threat that rising inequality poses to social and political stability".


Leadership

Directors *
Leon Louw Leon Louw is a South African intellectual, author, speaker and policy advisor. He is the executive director and cofounder of the Free Market Foundation, a nonprofit organisation ranked at number 123 in a CEOWorld's 2017 list of the most influen ...
(Executive Director) * Eustace Davie * Temba Nolutshungu * Jasson Urbach Honorary Life Vice President * Dr. Sam Motsuenyane Presidents * Prof. SP du Toit Viljoen: 1977–1981 * Prof. Jan A. Lombard: 1981– ~1991 * Prof. Themba Sono: 1997–2000 Chairmen * Dirk Hertzog (Chairman: Executive Committee): 1976–???? * Lu Sher: 1977–1978 * Michael C. O'Dowd: 1978–2005 * Dr. Brian Benfield: ????–2012 *
Herman Mashaba Herman Samtseu Philip Mashaba (born August 26, 1959) is a South African politician, entrepreneur and the current president of ActionSA, a party he launched on 29 August 2020. He served as the Mayor of Johannesburg from 2016 to 2019. He is the fo ...
: 2012–2014 * Ayanda Khumalo: incumbent"About us – Board of Directors". http://www.freemarketfoundation.com/About-Us-Board-Of-Directors Board As of 2018, the FMF Board consists of: * Don Ncube * Johanna McDowell * Nic Frangos * Phumlani Michael Majozi * Unathi Kwaza Academic advisors As of 2018, the FMF has the following people as academic advisors: * Prof. Brian Kantor * Prof. Charles W. Baird * Prof. Deepak Lal * Prof. Duncan Reekie * Prof. Israel Kirzner * Prof.
Pascal Salin Pascal Salin (born May 16, 1939) is a French economist, professor '' emeritus'' at the Université Paris-Dauphine and a specialist in public finance and monetary economics. He is a former president of the Mont Pelerin Society (1994 to 1996). Bio ...
* Prof.
Patrick Minford Anthony Patrick Leslie Minford (born 17 May 1943) is a British macroeconomist who is professor of applied economics at Cardiff Business School, Cardiff University, a position he has held since 1997. He was Edward Gonner Professor of Applied E ...
Rule of Law Board of Advisors As of 2018, the FMF's Rule of Law Project's Board of Advisors consists of the following: * Judge (Ret.) Rex van Schalkwyk (Chairman) * Judge
Douglas H. Ginsburg Douglas Howard Ginsburg (born May 25, 1946) is an American jurist and academic who serves as a senior judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. He was appointed to that court in October 1986 by President Ro ...
* Adv. Norman M. Davis SC * Adv. Greta Engelbrecht * Adv. Frans Rautenbach * Prof.
Richard Epstein Richard Allen Epstein (born April 17, 1943) is an American legal scholar known for his writings on torts, contracts, property rights, law and economics, classical liberalism, and libertarianism. He is the Laurence A. Tisch Professor of Law at ...
* Prof. Robert Vivian * Candice Pillay * Jonathan Goldberg


Awards

* 2009: The FMF was awarded the " Templeton Freedom Award" by the Atlas Network for its book ''Jobs for the Jobless''. * 2017: The FMF was awarded the "Africa Liberty Award" by the Atlas Network for its Khaya Lam Land Reform Project. * 2017: The FMF was awarded the "Impumelelo Social Innovations Award" by the Impumelelo Social Innovations Centre for its Khaya Lam Land Reform Project.


Publications


Papers

* "Law and the Market" by John Hospers (1985) * "The Final Constitution for the Republic of South Africa: A Critique of the Interim Constitution" (FMF Occasional Paper No. 1) by
Bruce Fein Bruce Fein (born March 12, 1947) is an American lawyer who specializes in constitutional and international law. Fein has written numerous articles on constitutional issues for ''The Washington Times'', ''Slate.com'', ''The New York Times'', '' ...
(September 1995) * "New Zealand's Remarkable Reforms" (FMF Occasional Paper No. 2) by
Don Brash Donald Thomas Brash (born 24 September 1940) is a former New Zealand politician who was Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the New Zealand National Party from October 2003 to November 2006, and the Leader of ACT New Zealand from April to No ...
(1996) * "Diamonds: The Competitive Cartel" (FMF Occasional Paper No. 3) by Prof. Duncan Reekie (June 1999) * "Liberal Reflections" (FMF Occasional Paper No. 4) by Michael O'Dowd (December 1999) * "Smoked Out: Anti-Tobacco Activism at the World Bank" (FMF Occasional Paper No. 6) by Richard Tren and Hugh High (August 2000)
"Cartels, spontaneous price discrimination and international pharmacy retailing"
(FMF Occasional Paper No. 9) by Prof. Duncan Reekie (August 2001)
"Undermining mineral rights: An international comparison"
(FMF Occasional Paper No. 10) by Johan Biermann (December 2001)
"Capital gains taxation and its applicability to South Africa"
(FMF Occasional Paper No. 12) by Roger Baxter (October 2002)
"The real reason for the fall of the rand"
(FMF Occasional Paper No. 13) by Dr. Richard Grant (November 2002)
"Innovation, Information & the Poverty of Nations"
(FMF Occasional Paper No. 15) by Prof. Robert Cooter (October 2006)
"Constitutionality of South Africa’s competition policy"
by Prof. Robert Vivian (September 2011) * "A Guide to Laws and Regulations Affecting Cloud Computing in South Africa" by Terence Davie (June 2013)
"An Analysis of the Principle of Public Participation in Policy-Making, including Socio-Economic Impact Assessments, and their Application in South Africa"
by Martin van Staden (March 2017)
"The market for jobs in South Africa – why it performs so poorly and what can be done to improve it"
by Prof. Brian Kantor (October 2017)


Books & monographs

* ''The Fallacy of National Control'' by Dr. Richard Grant (1991) * ''Exchange Controls Must Go'' by Dr. Richard Grant (1992) * ''The Social Market Trap: The Destructive Illusions of Social Democracy'' by Prof. Christopher Lingle (1992) *
The Importance of Political Traditions
' by Prof.
Leonard Liggio Leonard P. Liggio (July 5, 1933 – October 14, 2014) was a classical liberal author, research professor of law at George Mason University and executive vice president of the Atlas Network in Fairfax, Virginia. Career In 1965, Liggio gave lectu ...
(1992) * ''The Environment: Rights and Freedom'' by Prof. Christopher Lingle (1992) * ''Affirmative Action, Apartheid and Capitalism'' by Jim Peron (1992) * ''On industrial policy'' by Prof. Duncan Reekie (1992) * ''Damage by Debt'' by Symond Fiske (August 1995) * ''Health-care options for South Africa: Lessons from the UK and USA'' by Prof. Duncan Reekie (1995) *
The world revolution in economic policy 1945–1995
' (FMF Monograph No. 11) by Michael O'Dowd (1996) * ''The Urban Housing Issue'' (FMF Monograph No. 12) by David Dewar (1996) * ''The O'Dowd Thesis and the Triumph of Democratic Capitalism'' by Michael O'Dowd (1996) * ''Equality for the labour market: An appreciation of WH Hutt'' (FMF Monograph No. 13) by Prof. Charles Baird (1996) *
Monopoly and competition policy
' (FMF Monograph No. 14) by Prof. Duncan Reekie (1996) *
Is privatisation a public good? A review of recent literature
' (FMF Monograph No. 15) by Candice Perlmann and Prof. Harry Zarenda (1997) *
Industrial policy: A critique
' (FMF Monograph No. 16) by Prof. Duncan Reekie (1997) *
Labour markets and economic growth: Lessons from the UK
' (FMF Monograph No. 17) by Prof.
Patrick Minford Anthony Patrick Leslie Minford (born 17 May 1943) is a British macroeconomist who is professor of applied economics at Cardiff Business School, Cardiff University, a position he has held since 1997. He was Edward Gonner Professor of Applied E ...
(1998) * ''Chronically large federal budget deficits: The American experience'' (FMF Monograph No. 18) by Prof.
Roger Garrison Roger Wayne Garrison (born 1944) is an American professor of economics at Auburn University, and an adjunct scholar of the Ludwig von Mises Institute. He is a proponent of the Austrian School of economics and wrote the book ''Time and Money,'' w ...
(1998) * ''Unjustifiable dismissal – The economics of an unjust employment tax: The New Zealand Employment Contracts Act'' (FMF Monograph No. 19) by Prof. Charles Baird (1998) *
South Africa as an “Open Society”?
'' (FMF Monograph No. 20) by Michael O'Dowd (1998) *
Privatisation: A UK success story
' (FMF Monograph No. 21) by Thomas O’Malley (1998) *
The Meat Board "carve-up"
' (FMF Monograph No. 22) by Nils Dittmer (1998) * ''Real Money'' by Dr. Richard Grant (1999) *
Capital structure and the business cycle
' (FMF Monograph No. 23) by Pierre le Roux (1999) *
Monopoly and competition policy
' (FMF Monograph No. 24) by Prof. Duncan Reekie (April 2000, 2nd ed.) *
Deregulation of agricultural marketing in South Africa: Lessons learned
' (FMF Monograph No. 25) by Prof. Nick Vink and Prof. Johann Kirsten (May 2000) * ''Smoke gets in your eyes: The economic welfare effects of the World Bank-World Health Organisation global crusade against tobacco'' (FMF Monograph No. 26) by Prof. Deepak Lal (May 2000) * ''Money, central banking and monetary policy in the global financial arena'' (FMF Monograph No. 27) by Dr. Jerry Jordan (2001) *
Capital Gains Tax: The pros and cons
' (FMF Monograph No. 28) by Olimpia Staszczuk (June 2001) *
Gold, the euro, the dollar and the rand
' (FMF Monograph No. 29) by Dr. Richard Grant (June 2001) * ''Investment, employment and South African labour laws: An international comparison'' (FMF Monograph No. 30) by Prof. W.S. Siebert (August 2001) * ''Growth Theories and their Application to the Beloved Country'' (FMF Monograph No. 31) by Henry Kenney (2001) *
Ideal matter: Globalisation and the intellectual property debate
' (FMF Monograph No. 32) by Julian Morris, Rosalind Mowatt, and Prof. Duncan Reekie (November 2001)
The Calculus of Consent and Madisonian democracy
(FMF Monograph No. 33) by Henry Kenney (May 2002) *
Misguided virtue: False notions of corporate social responsibility
' (FMF Monograph No. 34) by Prof. David Henderson (September 2002) *
Prejudice is free, but discrimination has costs: The holocaust and its parallels
' (FMF Monograph No. 35) by Dr. Steven Farron (October 2002) *
Jobs for the Jobless: Job seekers exemption certificates for the unemployed
' by Eustace Davie (December 2003) *
The real digital divide: Convergence and South Africa’s telecommunications and broadcasting policy
' (FMF Monograph No. 36) by Neil Emerick (August 2003) *
The deconstruction of privatisation: A wake up call for South Africa
' (FMF Monograph No. 37) by Prof. Zane Spindler (March 2004) *
Globalisation and economic growth: Evidence from emerging market economies and South Africa
' (FMF Monograph No. 38) by Prof. Elsabé Loots (May 2004) *
Military expenditure in Sub-Saharan Africa: Why guns cost more than butter
' (FMF Monograph No. 39) by Prof. Geoff Harris (November 2004) *
Is central banking the best monetary regime for South Africa?
' (FMF Monograph No. 40) by Maureen Bader and Prof. Zane Spindler (July 2005) * ''Unchain the child: Abolish compulsory schooling laws'' by Eustace Davie (September 2005) *
Paying for Intervention! How statutory intervention harms South African health care
' by Jasson Urbach (September 2009) *
Nationalisation
' by Temba Nolutshungu (ed.), Leon Louw, Dr. Richard Grant, Eustace Davie, Jasson Urbach, and Vivian Atud (January 2011, 1st ed. and June 2011, 2nd ed.) *
Jobs Jobs Jobs
'' by Temba Nolutshungu (ed.), Richard Pike, Loane Sharp, Leon Louw, Eustace Davie, Lawrence Mavundla, Michael Bagraim, Ann Bernstein, Martin Brassey SC, Prof. Darma Mahadea, Dr. Richard Simson, Vivian Atud, Graham Giles, and Daan Groeneveldt (November 2011) * ''The Economic Impact of Cloud Computing in South Africa'' by Mike Schüssler and Jasson Urbach (June 2013) * ''The Regulatory Environment Affecting Cloud Computing in South Africa'' by Gary Moore (June 2013) *
The Real Digital Divide: South Africa's Information and Communication Technologies Policy
' by Martin van Staden and Neil Emerick (March 2017)


References

{{authority control Think tanks established in 1975 Organisations based in Johannesburg Think tanks based in Africa Think tanks based in South Africa Foundations based in South Africa Economy of South Africa Political and economic think tanks based in South Africa Classical liberalism Libertarian think tanks