The Constitution of 1983 (formally the Republic of South Africa Constitution Act, 1983) was South Africa's third

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 entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these princi ...

. It replaced the republican constitution that had been adopted when South Africa became a republic in 1961 and was in force for ten years before it was superseded by the Interim Constitution on 27 April 1994, which in turn led to the current

Constitution of South Africa The Constitution of South Africa is the supreme law of the Republic of South Africa. It provides the legal foundation for the existence of the republic, it sets out the rights and duties of its citizens, and defines the structure of the Govern ...

, which has been in force since 1997.

Background

The creation of the 1983 constitution was spearheaded by then-Prime Minister

P.W. Botha Pieter Willem Botha, (; 12 January 1916 – 31 October 2006), commonly known as P. W. and af, Die Groot Krokodil (The Big Crocodile), was a South African politician. He served as the last prime minister of South Africa from 1978 to 1984 and ...

. It was approved by

white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

voters in a referendum on 2 November 1983, in which 66.3% of ballots cast were in favour of the new constitution.

Provisions

Among the 1983 constitution's most controversial provisions was its establishment of the

Tricameral Parliament The Tricameral Parliament, officially the Parliament of the Republic of South Africa, was the legislature of South Africa between 1984 and 1994, established by the South African Constitution of 1983, which gave a limited political voice to t ...

, a legislative arrangement that would permit the

Coloured Coloureds ( af, Kleurlinge or , ) refers to members of multiracial ethnic communities in Southern Africa who may have ancestry from more than one of the various populations inhabiting the region, including African, European, and Asian. South ...

and Indian race groups to be represented in parliament on a segregated basis, and the abolition of the office of

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is n ...

in favour of an executive State Presidency under ruling Prime Minister

P. W. Botha Pieter Willem Botha, (; 12 January 1916 – 31 October 2006), commonly known as P. W. and af, Die Groot Krokodil (The Big Crocodile), was a South African politician. He served as the last prime minister of South Africa from 1978 to 1984 and ...

Opposition

Bill of Rights proposal

The constitutions saw significant opposition from the anti-apartheid

Progressive Federal Party The Progressive Federal Party (PFP) ( af, Progressiewe Federale Party) was a South African political party formed in 1977 through merger of the Progressive and Reform parties, eventually changing its name to the Progressive Federal Party. For it ...

. While opposing the utility of white rule, the PFP attempted to incorporate a 'Bill of Rights' into the new constitution proposed by the National Party. The motion was first submitted in August 1983, by Shadow Finance Minister

Harry Schwarz Harry Heinz Schwarz (13 May 1924 – 5 February 2010) was a South African lawyer, statesman and long-time political opposition leader against apartheid in South Africa, who eventually served as the South African Ambassador to the United States ...

. He stated that the Bill should guarantee freedom from discrimination on the ground of race, colour, sex or creed, freedom of conscience and religion, of thought, belief, opinion and expression, including freedom of the press, of association, peaceful assembly and movement, and freedom to pursue the gaining of a livelihood. It also included freedom from deprivation of life, liberty, security and property, except in accordance with the principles of fundamental justice. It would also guarantee equality before the law and equal protection and benefit of law. Schwarz argued that if included in the constitution of the republic, it would act as a “protector of rights many people had struggled to achieve in South Africa” as well as to “act as an inspiration” to the people of South Africa and would “be a unifying factor in a country in which unity of people is essential for survival”.

Helen Suzman Helen Suzman, OMSG, DBE (née Gavronsky; 7 November 1917 – 1 January 2009) was a South African anti-apartheid activist and politician. She represented a series of liberal and centre-left opposition parties during her 36-year tenure in th ...

, Shadow Law and Order Minister, argued that the exclusion of the bill would lead to "a further loss of civil liberties by all South Africans - in short, to one-party, one-group dictatorship in this country". It was also argued that the bill would be a statement of intent demonstrating that the days of discrimination on the grounds of race or colour had come to an end. While virtually all MPs of the

supported the bill, no other party in Parliament supported it. Rejecting Schwarz’s proposal,

Daan van der Merwe Daan may refer to: People * Daan (given name), Dutch short form for Daniel * Saumya Daan (born 1982), Indian voice actor *Serge Daan (1940–2018), Dutch zoologist * DAAN, a Belgian band led by Daan Stuyven * Da'an, a character in the television s ...

of the Conservative Party stated that the bill, based on a “leftist-liberal political philosophy”, would jeopardise the freedom of the white man. New Republic Party leader

Vause Raw Wyatt Vause Raw, DMS (21 September 1921 – 13 March 2001) was a conservative opposition South African politician of the Apartheid era. He was a prominent member of the United Party from the 1940s to the late 1970s, and the leader of the succe ...

said Schwarz “a master at platitudes” was seeking idealistic freedoms that did not exist anywhere in the world. Following the rejection of Schwarz’s bill, fellow PFP MPs'

Colin Eglin Colin Wells Eglin (14 April 1925 – 29 November 2013) was a South African politician best known for having served as national leader of the opposition from 1977–79 and 1986–87. He represented Sea Point in the South African Parliament from 1 ...

Ray Swart Ray Albert Francis Swart (28 February 1928 - 14 January 2020) was a white liberal South African politician who spent his life in opposition to the apartheid policies of the government . He was educated in Durban at Glenwood High School and th ...

and

Dave Dalling Dave may refer to: Film, television, and theater * ''Dave'' (film), a 1993 film starring Kevin Kline and Sigourney Weaver * ''Dave'' (musical), a 2018 stage musical adaptation of the film * Dave (TV channel), a digital television channel in the ...

attempted a further four times to introduce a Bill of Rights. The Bills were effectively blocked by the National Party by placing them at the end of the order paper.

References

External links