South Africa

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Revision as of 23:11, 27 June 2008

Republic of South Africa
Flag	Coat of arms
Motto "Ex Unitate Vires" (Latin) "From Unity, Strength"
Anthem The Call of South Africa
Capital Largest city	Cape Town (legislative) 33°55′S 18°27′E Pretoria (administrative) 25°43′S, 28°17′E Bloemfontein (judicial) 29°06′S, 26°13′E Johannesburg
Official languages	English
Recognized regional languages	Afrikaans, German, Herero, Nama, Northern Ndebele, Northern Sotho, Oshivambo, Shona, Sotho, Southern Ndebele, Swati, Tsonga, Tswana, Venda, Xhosa, Zulu
Demonym	South African
Government  - State President  - Prime Minister	Parliamentary republic Festus Mogae Josh Latimer
Establishment  - Union  - Statute of Westminster  - Republic	May 31, 1910 December 11, 1931 May 31, 1961
Area  - Total  - Water (%)	3,954,932 km² 2,037,753 sq mi 1.4
Population  - July 2008 estimate  - Density	88,958,386 20.48/km² 53.06/sq mi
GDP (PPP)  - Total  - Per capita	2007 estimate $1.854 trillion $31,072
GDP (nominal)  - Total  - Per capita	2007 estimate $2.017 trillion $39,752
Gini (2005)	40.8 (medium)
HDI (2007)	0.920 (high)
Currency	South African pound (ZAP)
Time zone - Summer (DST)	WAT, SAST (UTC +1 to +2) not observed (UTC +1 to +2)
Internet TLD	.za
Calling code	+27

Politics

South Africa is a unitary republic that uses the Westminster system. However, South Africa is increasingly becoming a de facto federal state. For example, the South African Constitution allows provincial councils to make ordinances in relation to "Generally all matters which, in the opinion of the State President, are of a merely local or private nature in the province." The current State President, Festus Mogae, has liberally interpreted this to mean that powers not delegated to the national government are reserved for the provinces (excepting those powers prohibited by the Constitution). Many South Africans are clamoring for the country to adopt de jure federalism, and the State President has promised a "comprehensive and meticulous study" of the idea.

Other issues popularly debated by the South African government and public include the merits of replacing the ceremonial presidency with an executive one (akin to the President of the United States, for example), and whether the Constitution should be amended to allow direct election of Senators. With a populace as diverse ideologically as it is ethnically and linguistically, South Africa has literally dozens of political parties of every ideology, and political debate is a popular pasttime among the young and old alike, but especially among college students.

Executive

State President

The State President is the head of state of South Africa. Although he theoretically holds vast power, in practice he is a figurehead limited to performing mainly ceremonial duties. In addition to serving as commander-in-chief of the South African Defence Force, he also has the power to:

1. Dissolve the Senate or the House of Assembly, or both simultaneously;
2. Appoint Ministers and deputies to Ministers;
3. Confer honors;
4. Appoint and accredit, and receive and recognize, ambassadors, plenipotentiaries, diplomatic representatives and other diplomatic officers, consuls and consular officers;
5. Appoint the times for the holding of sessions of Parliament and prorogue Parliament
6. Pardon or reprieve offenders, either unconditionally or subject to such conditions as he may deem fit, and to remit any fines, penalties, or forfeitures;
7. Enter into and ratify international conventions, treaties, and agreements;
8. Proclaim and terminate martial law;
9. Declare war and make peace;
10. Make such appointments as he may deem fit under powers conferred upon him by any law, and to exercise such powers and perform such functions as may be conferred or assigned to him by the Republic of South Africa Act or any other law

The State President is elected by an electoral college consisting of the members of the Senate and the House of Assembly, at a meeting presided over by the Chief Justice of South Africa or a judge of appeal designated by him. The State President's term is seven years long, and he cannot be re-elected.

In the event that the office of the State President is vacant or the State President is otherwise unable to fulfill his duties, the President of the Senate serves as Acting State President.

Prime Minister

The Prime Minister is the head of government and is the de facto wielder of executive powers in the South African government, exercising many of the executive functions nominally vested in a head of state. According to constitutional convention, the Prime Minister and the Cabinet (which he or she heads) are accountable for their actions to Parliament, of which (by convention) they are members. The State President appoints the leader of the party which has a majority in the House of Assembly to be the Prime Minister; if no party has a majority, two or more groups may form a coalition, whose agreed leader is then appointed Prime Minister.

Parliament

The bicameral Parliament serves as the legislative branch of the South African government. It is comprised of two houses: the House of Assembly (the lower house) and the Senate (the upper house).

According to the Constitution, the Parliament has "full power to make laws for the peace, order and good government of the Republic."

House of Assembly

The House of Assembly consists of no fewer than 350 and no more than 400 members elected for a five-year term on the basis of a common voters’ roll. It is presided over by a Speaker, assisted by a Deputy Speaker.

The House of Assembly seats are allocated using a proportional representation system with closed lists. Voters have one vote at elections to the House of Assembly. One half of the members are allocated via regional party lists in multi-member constituencies. The other half are allocated via a national party list in one national multi-member constituency. Parties decide whether they want to set up a national and regional lists or regional lists only.

Senate

Unlike the House of Assembly, which is directly elected, most of the Senate is indirectly elected by an electoral college consisting of members of each of the eleven Provincial Councils and members of the House of Assembly; the remaining Senators are appointed by the State President on the advice of the Prime Minister.

Supreme Court

The judicial system is headed by the Supreme Court, the decisions and interpretations of which are considered an important source of the law. The Supreme Court comprises an Appellate Division and six provincial divisions. Each provincial division encompasses a judge president, three local divisions presided over by judges, and magisterial divisions presided over by magistrates.

The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court is the highest court in the country and is seated in Bloemfontein, the country's judicial capital. The Appellate Division is composed of the chief justice and the judges of appeal, whose number varies, as determined by the State President. Supreme Court members can be removed only on grounds of misbehavior or incapacity. The Appellate Division's decisions are binding on all lower courts, as are the decisions — within their areas of jurisdiction — of the provincial and the local divisions. Lower courts, which are presided over by civil service magistrates, have limited jurisdiction in civil and criminal cases.

Provinces

South Africa is divided into eleven provinces, which are listed as follows:

• Bechuanaland
• Cape Province
• Lesotho
• Natal
• Northern Rhodesia
• Nyasaland
• Orange Free State
• South-West Africa
• Southern Rhodesia
• Transvaal

Administrators

Each province is headed by a chief executive, appointed by the State President, known as an administrator. All executive acts relating to provincial affairs are done in his name. An administrator serves a five year term, and his salary is fixed and provided by Parliament and cannot be reduced during his term in office. An administrator cannot be removed from office before his term expires, except by the State President for cause assigned which shall be communicated by message to the Senate and to the House of Assembly within one week after the removal, if Parliament is in session, or, if Parliament is not in session, within one week after the commencement of the next ensuing session. If the administrator is absent, ill, or otherwise unable to fulfill his duties, the State President may appoint a deputy-administrator to perform the duties of the administrator's office. A deputy-administrator may also be appointed while the appointment of an administrator for the province concerned is pending.

Provincial councils

The legislatures of the provinces are known as provincial councils. Each provincial council consists of the same number of members as are elected in that province for the House of Assembly. However, if the province's representatives in the House of Assembly are less than twenty-five in number, the province's provincial council consists of twenty-five members. Members are elected by persons qualified to vote for the election of members of the House of Assembly in the province, voting in the same electoral divisions delimited for the election of members of the House of Assembly. The tenure of provincial councillors is five years.

Provincial councils may make ordinances in relation to matters coming within the following class of subjects, namely:

1. Direct taxation within the province in order to raise revenue for provincial purposes;
2. The borrowing of money on the sole credit of the province with the consent of the State President and in accordance with regulations framed by Parliament;
3. Education, other than higher education;
4. Agriculture to the extent and subject to the conditions defined by Parliament;
5. The establishment, maintenance, and management of hospitals and charitable institutions;
6. Municipal institutions, divisional councils, and other local institutions of a similar nature;
7. Local works and undertakings within the province, other than railways and harbors, and other than such works as extend beyond the borders of that province and subject to the power of Parliament to declare any work a national work and to provide for its construction by arrangement with the provincial council or otherwise;
8. Roads, outspans, ponts, and bridges, other than bridges connecting two provinces;
9. Markets and pounds;
10. Fish and game preservation, subject to the provisions of section fourteen of the Sea Fisheries Act, 1940;
11. The imposition of punishment by fine or imprisonment for enforcing any law or any ordinance of the province;
12. Generally all matters which, in the opinion of the State President, are of a merely local or private nature in the province;
13. All other subjects in respect of which Parliament may by law delegate the power of making ordinances to the provincial council

United Party (centrism)
African National Congress (social democracy)
Democratic Party (conservatism)
Progressive Federal Party (centrism, moderate classical liberalism)
Shaka Party (conservatism)
Liberal Party (centrism, social progressivism)
Pan Africanist Congress (socialism, black nationalism)
National Party (conservatism, populism, protectionism, Afrikaner rights)
Democratic Socialist Movement (socialism)
Independent Democrats (centrism)
African Christian Democratic Party (Christian democracy)
South African Communist Party (Marxism-Leninism)
Economic Freedom Movement (libertarianism)
United Christian Democratic Party (conservatism, Christian democracy)
Azanian People's Organisation (socialism, black separatism)
Minority Front (centrism, minority rights)
Green Party (environmentalism)
United Democratic Movement (centrism)
New Labour Party (centrism, social democracy)
Workers International Vanguard League (Trotskyism)
Communist Party of South Africa-Marxist-Leninist (Maoism)
Socialist Party of Azania (Trotskyism, black separatism)
Conservative Party (far-right, white nationalism)