Parliament, Sunday 5 August 2018 – On Saturday, Parliament’s multiparty Joint Constitutional Review Committee completed its 34 provincial public hearings in all nine provinces, on section 25 of the Constitution, at the Friend of God Church in Goodwood in the Western Cape.

The National Assembly and National Council of Provinces mandated the committee to determine whether a review of section 25 of the Constitution and other clauses is necessary to make it possible for the state to expropriate land in the public interest without compensation and to propose constitutional amendments, where necessary.

Before the public hearings in all nine provinces started, the committee had received hundreds of thousands of written submissions. The committee will now assess these written submissions and invite those submitters, who indicated they also wanted to make oral submissions, to make oral presentations at Parliament. Once the public hearings process is concluded, the multiparty joint committee will deliberate extensively on the matter it was mandated to review before it reports to both the National Assembly and National Council of Provinces on 28 September.

On Thursday, 9 August, the nation will commemorate the courageous contribution of women to the struggle for a democratic South Africa, founded on non-racialism and non-sexism, the advancement of human rights and freedoms, among other things.

It was on 9 August 1956 when about 20 000 women of all races converged at the Union Buildings in Pretoria. They let JG Strijdom, Prime Minister of the apartheid-era National Party government know that by wanting to strike the women he had struck a rock. Ms Albertina Sisulu, renowned campaigner for freedom whose centenary birthday we celebrate this year, was a key organiser of the march.

At Parliament on Tuesday, the Multi-party Women’s Caucus steering committee will be briefed about the Conference on the Review of the 1954 Women’s Charter and the 1994 Women’s Charter for Effective Equality. The conference is scheduled to happen on 20 and 21 August at Parliament.

The Federation of South African Women, a leading organisation in the 1956 women’s anti-pass march, adopted the 1954 Women’s Charter at its launch on 17 April 1954. The Women’s National Coalition (WNC), formed after the unbanning of political parties in South Africa, successfully promoted inclusion of women during the Codesa (Convention for a Democratic South Africa) negotiations. The WNC also developed the Women’s Charter for Effective Equality, which identified protection and guarantees for freedom and equality of women in the new political dispensation and the Constitution. Former President Nelson Mandela received this charter on 9 August 1994.

Other committee meetings scheduled at Parliament on Tuesday and Wednesday include:

Select Committee on Economic and Business Development: Deliberations and finalisation of the Labour Laws Amendment Bill, the Basic Conditions of Employment Amendment Bill, the National Minimum Wage Bill and the Labour Relations Amendment Bill – Tuesday

Select Committee on Land and Mineral Resources: Briefing from the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform on the Communal Property Association Amendment Bill – Tuesday

Ad-hoc Committee to inquire into Intervention in the North West Provincial Government in terms of section 100 of the Constitution: Briefing from committee researchers and content advisor on consolidated report of all information and evidence received, with recommendations for way forward with the intervention in North West Provincial Government – Tuesday

Select Committee on Communications and Public Enterprises: Consideration of final mandates and possible finalisation of the Protection, Promotion, Development and Management of Indigenous Knowledge Bill – Wednesday

The Portfolio Committee on Transport concludes its provincial public hearings on the Road Accident Benefit Scheme Bill on Tuesday (in Free State) and on Wednesday (in Northern Cape). Public hearings have already been held in seven of the nine provinces. The provincial hearings follow those held earlier at Parliament. The Bill is intended to replace the Road Accident Fund Act,

to improve administration of benefits and payments for road accident victims, among other things.

To keep up to date with the schedule of committee meetings (updated regularly), please

click https://www.parliament.gov.za/whatson

ISSUED BY THE PARLIAMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA
Enquiries: Moloto Mothapo