WEDNESDAY, 21 OCTOBER 2009
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                PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
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The House met at 15:03.

The Deputy Speaker took the Chair and requested members to observe a moment of silence for prayers or meditation.

ANNOUNCEMENTS, TABLINGS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS – see col 000.

                      QUESTIONS FOR ORAL REPLY

THE DEPUTY PRESIDENT:

            Transformation of Bretton Woods institutions

1. Mr M B Skosana (IFP) asked the Deputy President:

   (1) With reference to the government’s call for the transformation of the Bretton Woods institutions, what specific institutions were referred to;

   (2) what specific transformation is required of these institutions;

   (3) what is envisaged to be the financial and economic impact of such transformation on the poor and developing nations of the world; and

   (4) whether the government is required to reciprocate the transformation of these institutions by simultaneously transforming its current economic system; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details? NO2119E

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Hon Deputy Speaker, hon members, hon M B Skosana, the call for the transformation of the Bretton Woods institutions refers directly to the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund, the IMF, which were established as specialised agencies of the United Nations in 1944.

The reforms that South Africa is calling for relate mainly to the following areas. Firstly, they relate to the review of the quota shares. This call is aimed at realigning the quota shares held by countries to reflect current global realities. The realignment will result in countries with higher GDPs having more shares, thus changing their relative weight in the institutions.

Secondly, the reforms relate to improving governance systems to enhance the voice of developing countries. The aim in this regard is to increase the representation of developing countries on the boards and to increase diversity at management and staff levels.

Thirdly, the transformation we are calling for is likely to improve the financial and economic conditions of developing countries. Already, some reforms were agreed to at the leaders’ summit in Pittsburgh in September 2009 regarding the quota shifts of 5% at the IMF and 3% at the World Bank. A quota shift to developing countries gives us, as a group, more voting power and additional resources to draw from as each country’s voting power and access to financing is determined by its quota share.

We have also secured an agreement on increased representation in decision- making bodies such as the IMF’s International Monetary and Financial Committee and the World Bank’s Development Committee. This gives developing countries an opportunity to exercise greater influence on global, economic, financial and development governance.

No member country of the World Bank or the IMF, including South Africa, is required to change its economic policies and systems as a result of transformation at these institutions. The planned reforms will impact on South Africa’s quota shares, which are expected to be realigned accordingly as underrepresented countries get more shares. South Africa will, however, have an increased voice as reforms are implemented. I thank you. [Applause.]

Mr M B SKOSANA: Thank you, Deputy President, for your reply. Your Excellency, if my assumption is correct, I think we are also calling for a new world economic order, and we are calling again for a review of continental economies. We are calling for a review of regional economies and a review of national economies, including that of South Africa.

My question then, Your Excellency, is: How are we preparing for these calls for reform at legislative and executive level? I am also interested in seeing how we deal with the idea propounded by the Minister of Economic Development, Minister Patel, on the recovery of African economies in terms of his support for the institution of social economies, community-based economies and co-operative economic ventures. Thank you.

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Thank you, hon Deputy Speaker and hon M B Skosana. The review of the world economy is a matter that is on the agenda of the leaders’ summit, particularly at the G20.

These institutions, particularly the Bretton Woods institutions, the World Bank and the IMF, were identified as key in terms of ensuring that the current economic recession is transformed into an opportunity. This is because these institutions have been dealing with developing countries for an extended period of time and their transformation should be speeded up to equip them for better utilisation to the benefit of developing countries.

So, that review is meant to be buttressed by the review of regional economies, as you would no doubt know that the Economic Community of West African States, Ecowas, SADC and the East African Economic Community also held a summit precisely to streamline themselves for better participation in the world economy.

In terms of the legislative and executive processes, it is still early days. These processes, on the African continent, are being led by Ministers of Finance as well as governors of central banks, and they are under the chairpersonship of the African Development Bank. I thank you.

Mr S N SWART: Hon Deputy President, in addition to what you said regarding the Bretton Woods institutions, the ACDP believes that there is also an urgent need to transform the global trade regime in order for developing countries to use trade to address developmental challenges.

In particular, hon Deputy President, would the speedy conclusion of the Doha Round of negotiations at the World Trade Organisation not be a major step towards releasing the full potential of international trade? And, therefore, should developed countries not do everything to unlock the deadlock that exists at the moment to deliver on its developmental promises? Would this step not place South Africa and the international community as a whole in a better position to meet the targets set in the Millennium Development Goals? Thank you.

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Thank you, hon Swart. That is indeed the way to go, and that is the route we are following. The Doha Round of negotiations has also received attention and the support of the G20; in fact, these negotiations should be concluded sooner than yesterday, precisely because of the understanding that this is the only way in which the current global economic meltdown can be turned into an advantage.

Of course, as you know, the European Union member countries, including the United States of America, have also committed themselves to oppose any form of protectionism. That augurs well for the conclusion of these negotiations. We are quite optimistic that indeed the conclusion would be one that enhances global trade and particularly promotes more meaningful participation by developing countries. I thank you.

Dr P J RABIE: Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. Hon Deputy President, in your reply you referred to the Bretton Woods institutions. You said that emerging countries would get additional quota shares. You also referred to the fact that the rising GDP would also play a role in that they would get a higher quota.

My question to you, hon Deputy President, is: What will the developing or emerging countries do with their increased leverage within the Bretton Woods institutions? Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker.

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Thank you very much, hon member. Well, the developing countries will ensure that these Bretton Woods institutions – the World Bank and the IMF – do not go back to their old habits and that, in dealing with developing countries, they are more supportive and completely abandon their know-it-all attitude and also seek to interact and engage with developing countries as equal partners.

I found that the attitude and spirit of the leaders of these institutions were very positive. This is one of the benefits of the shock that hit all of us when the financial institutions suffered losses that were primarily as a result of these rather fancy products they were trading in. So, there’s a soberness that is most welcome in these institutions.

With the additional votes, the developing world, which of course includes some economies that are quite sizable now and are growing, will be able to utilise these institutions in a more productive manner. Thank you. [Applause.]

Mr L S NGONYAMA: Hon Deputy Speaker, hon Deputy President, I must say that I highly appreciate the information that the Deputy President is sharing with us. It does actually give us some optimism with regard to these institutions.

However, my fear, Deputy President, is whether we are not seeing a superficial transformation at a structural level and even at a technical level rather than at a philosophical and content level with regard to these institutions aligning themselves in addressing poverty in the world.

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Thank you, hon Ngonyama. Well, I suppose the developing countries should not be passive in this matter. I think we also have the responsibility to participate - as I indicated - as equals and to identify our own strengths and guide these institutions accordingly.

The general thrust of the thinking within the regional economic communities on the continent is that these institutions should be invited primarily to invest in bulk infrastructure development so that trade within the continent itself can happen without the current difficulties. If you go through the Central African Republic, which I did a few weeks ago, their access to any seaport is through Cameroon, and yet there isn’t even a decent tarred road linking the capital of the Central African Republic to the seaport.

So, if these institutions could be directed to invest in the development of such infrastructure, that in itself would enhance the capabilities on the continent so that the developing countries don’t present themselves as weak, without ideas and without understanding their own countries and economies. They should participate more as masters of their own situations. Thank you. [Applause.]

   Attendance at, and outcome of, meeting called by the President

1. Mrs P de Lille (ID) asked the Deputy President:

   Whether he attended a certain meeting (details furnished) that was called by the President and to which the chief executive officer of a certain company (details furnished) was invited; if so, (a) what were the reasons for the meeting and (b) what was the outcome of the meeting? NO2118E

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Madam Deputy Speaker, the hon member should be aware that information regarding whether the Deputy President held a meeting with a person and, if he did, what was discussed at the meeting is not usually provided in reply to parliamentary questions. This is done in order to ensure the confidentiality of the meetings that the Deputy President has.

However, notwithstanding this, I would like to inform this House that I have already instructed my legal representatives to demand a retraction from the Financial Mail as the allegations contained in their article are devoid of any truth. At the time I was unaware of the ITWeb article that contained similar allegations until this question was tabled. I have now instructed my legal representatives to follow the same course of action in this regard. Thank you.

Mr L W GREYLING: Madam Deputy Speaker, unfortunately hon De Lille is at the Judicial Service Commission, JSC, therefore, I’ll take the follow-up question. The debacle of the Congress of South African Trade Unions, Cosatu, and the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa, Icasa’s, urgent court application to prevent the Vodacom deal from going through, have proved to be a great embarrassment and costly to the country. The rand loss of 3% of its value and the cost of the unsuccessful court application was alleged to have been in excess of R10 million.

Icasa’s low credibility sunk even lower as a result of a sudden about-turn and surprising stance on this issue. The ID therefore believes that it is imperative that we know the truth around who bears the ultimate responsibility for this entire charade.

I know that in your response you have stated that you weren’t at this meeting, but given that you signed off on the deal when you were President, it stands to reason that President Zuma would have consulted you on this matter. Are you therefore aware of anyone in the Presidency facilitating a meeting between Icasa and Cosatu in order to bring such a court application?

Can the Deputy President also explain why - given that it was in your previous capacity as President that you originally signed off on a deal - reservations were held by this new administration about this deal? Does this have anything to do with the fact that some members of Cope stood to benefit financially from this deal?

Finally, will the government be formulating a policy outlining the stance that the government will be taking towards the foreign listing of companies so that we can avoid embarrassing debacles like this in the future?

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Thank you very much, hon Greyling. Cabinet’s position with regard to this matter is very consistent. The Cabinet’s decision has not changed. Even during that court application, the Minister of Communications had instructed lawyers to oppose the stance adopted by Icasa and Cosatu. I don’t know how the rumour that is in the newspapers and so on has anything to do with Cabinet. Cabinet’s position is very consistent in that regard. Thank you.

Mr N J VAN DEN BERG: Madam Deputy Speaker and Deputy President, we all know that the Vodacom transaction, not only in South Africa but even worldwide, has attracted a lot of attention to South Africa. I want to hear from the Deputy President whether he does not feel that interfering in private business transactions is creating the image among possible international investors that the South African government imposes undue political influence on the outcome of private business transactions. Thank you.

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Thank you, hon Van den Berg. I am unaware of any interference in private business transactions. As I have already responded to hon Greyling, with regard to the Vodacom transaction in particular, government’s position has been very consistent. We promote the advancement of private business. We facilitate rather than retard and/or interfere in any business transaction.

Mr L RAMATLAKANE: Deputy President, in your response you emphasised the point that interference with the Chapter 9 Institutions is a problem and that government thus takes that into account, but I want you to be clearer about whether we are going to see less interference by government in the Chapter 9 Institutions.

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Madam Deputy Speaker, this is a new question and is unrelated to the question we are dealing with. But, nonetheless, it is worth stating that we respect the independence of the Chapter 9 institutions. I want to place that on record. We will not interfere in any manner with those institutions. On the contrary, government’s responsibility is to lead the nation in ensuring that everyone respects the Chapter 9 institutions. Thank you. [Applause.]

Plans to collaborate with civil society in instilling patriotism, nation- building and respect

1. Mr M L Fransman (ANC) asked the Deputy President:

   Whether the government has any plans to collaborate with civil society to instil patriotism, nation-building and a sense of respect for the unsung heroes who contributed to liberating South Africa; if not, why not; if so, what plans? NO2116E

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Deputy Speaker, hon Fransman, one of the ways in which government is endeavouring to instil patriotism, nation-building and a sense of respect for the unsung heroes and heroines who contributed to liberating South Africa is through the national legacy projects of the Department of Arts and Culture. These projects specifically support the development of new commemorative structures in the form of museums and monuments such as the Freedom Park Museum that consists of a memorial, interactive museum and Garden of Remembrance.

The Garden of Remembrance coherently narrates the journey of our humanity, survival and struggle for freedom and dignity. It reminds us of our struggle for land and resources, and of how these struggles have shaped our economic, political, social, cultural and historical landscape as a nation. The Freedom Park memorial facilitates the communal process of commemorating the pain and celebrating the victories of the past.

The Wall of Names, that accommodates a total of 120 000 names, currently has 75 names of fallen heroes and heroines inscribed on it. The Eternal Flame comprises a circular wall within which is nestled a flame surrounded by water. This flame symbolises eternity, and therefore, the monument pays tribute to the eternal remembrance of the heroes, both male and female, who perished without their names being recorded.

By preserving the memory of the fallen victims of previous wars, slavery, colonialism and racism, and by honouring the heroes and heroines of the apartheid struggle, we are essentially strengthening our unity as a nation. We are acknowledging our heritage, and this park is a reflection of the sacrificial achievements of our nation, thus ensuring that our children never forget those who gave their lives so that we could have our rights, freedom as well as social and cultural diversity.

Civil society comprising ordinary South Africans, political organisations, civil society groups and community organisations played a role in the memorial, particularly in identifying the names of the fallen heroes and heroines. However, more can be done, particularly at local, provincial and municipal level in commemorating our unsung heroes and heroines. It is, however, important that we use this process to build unity and to commemorate a shared history which we are all part of. I thank you.

Mr M L FRANSMAN: Deputy Speaker, Deputy President, thank you for actually highlighting the sterling work that government and South Africa, in particular, is doing around making sure that young people understand what happened in the past. A specific issue that we are concerned about, however, is that if 16 to 24-year-olds represent seven million young people in South Africa, will the government also just consider, through the Presidential co-ordinating council, reflecting on specific strategies at local, municipal as well as provincial level, to also take this forward?

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Deputy Speaker, yes, indeed, the task of nation- building is the responsibility of all institutions, including this august institution of Parliament, and we must all engage in civic education and ensure that the facts are known and disseminated, so that none of us should, in future, slide back into those challenges that divided our nation. So, lest we forget, it is important for all of us to do our bit to ensure that we know who we are and where we come from, always remembering the past we inherited and the future we have the capability to create. Thank you.

Mr D A KGANARE: Deputy Speaker, hon President, we are on the same wavelength as regards acknowledgement and appreciation of our heroes, but surely you’ll agree with me that those who joined the ANC during the floor- crossing period do not automatically qualify as heroes of the struggle; similarly, those who left the ANC do not automatically get disqualified as heroes.

The insults hurled at Prof Asmal cannot and will never obliterate his enormous contribution to the struggle for freedom. Therefore, the Deputy Minister of Police’s comments are merely indicative of badly brought-up children in the leadership of the ANC.

Deputy President, we believe that people like Prof Asmal, Archbishop Tutu, Dr Mamphela Ramphele, Chief Buthelezi and Robert Sobukwe also qualify to be regarded as unsung heroes. Can you inform this House whether or not the government has a database of the unsung heroes of the struggle and the criteria utilised to compile it, including the period covered? Thank you.

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Deputy Speaker, hon Kganare, as government, we confer honours on a number of prominent South Africans as well as members of other nations, and national orders, and the procedure for nomination is open to all South Africans. All South Africans, without exception, have a right to make submissions and motivations as to who should be honoured.

Therefore, the government does not have any database of heroes of our people. That rests with the people themselves, and that is why nominations have to come from the people. [Applause.] Political affiliation should play no role. If we speak of esteemed members of any of the national orders, that should be regardless of political affiliation. Thank you.

Ms L D MAZIBUKO: Madam Deputy Speaker, hon Deputy President, you’ve dealt with issues of history, but I would like to discuss the question of patriotism and nation-building in hon Fransman’s question. When prominent members of the ANC leadership are heard in public using language that is racist, sexist and that threatens others, and when they’re seen to do so without any kind of censure from the ANC, the government can’t, here today, claim to be committed to instilling patriotism and nation-building in South Africa, when its actions so clearly run counter to this ideal.

When the ANC Youth League refers to the Western Cape Premier as “a fake racist girl”; when the uMkhonto weSizwe Military Veterans Association issues a press release claiming that the Leader of the Opposition has “a wild whore libido”; when Nehawu, a Cosatu affiliate, threatens to “mobilise” its members against the University of Free State rector, Jonathan Jansen; when the Youth League President publicly states that if a rape victim asks her attacker for taxi money it means that she “had a nice time” and lastly, when a Cabinet member, the hon Mbalula, refers to a respected elder statesman as “a bitter old man” and “a raving lunatic”, these actions do nothing to enhance nation-building and social cohesion in South Africa, but instead, they do everything to tear this nation apart.

Does the government have any plans to end this divisive public rhetoric which undermines nation-building by bringing those within the ANC leadership to account for their irresponsible utterances? If not, why not; and if so, what are the details? [Applause.]

The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon Deputy President, clearly some of the questions are not supposed to be posed to the government as they are the ANC … Order! They are the ANC’s, but I’ll leave it up to you to decide if you want to answer them or not.

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Deputy Speaker, thank you very much. Hon Mazibuko, patriotism by definition means that one loves the piece of ground on which one lives, and therefore, to instil a particular conduct, among other things, would mean that you keep it as hygienically clean as possible.

The ANC government understands that there are uneven levels of consciousness and understands that generally speaking, there are many people who are conservative in the sense that they cling to the truths of yesterday and do not want to move with the times. The responsibility of all of us, regardless of political party affiliation, who commit ourselves to the noble goal of uniting all of our people into a nonracial society, carry the responsibility at all times to raise issues in a manner which points society in the direction of the creation of a nonracial society and, through our pronouncements and our actions, always strive to break down the barriers of division, so that we unite our people.

Of course, if we are prophets of doom, we will accept that aberrations in society represent all of us. Those of us who are committed to the principle of nonracialism carry the responsibility, at all times, to ensure that this is what we promote in our actions, in practice and by word of mouth. If anyone among us speaks out of turn, we also bear the responsibility to take them by the ear, pull them into line and through debate and by dint of superior arguments persuade them that the route to go is a nonracial one.

There are also other factors to be taken into account, because government as government has to accept that there is freedom of speech and that in the exercise of this freedom of speech, many people will say things that we do not agree with, but it is also a measure of our own political consciousness and maturity to defend their right to say what they say, otherwise if the ideas are simply embedded in their heads, we will never get to know who we are or where we are in this journey towards a nonracial society.

That is why rather than shooting down those who speak out of turn, be they to the left or to the right, it is our responsibility at all times to engage them and ensure that we present to society the efficacy and the nobility of nonracialism. A saint by definition is a sinner who continues to mend his ways. [Applause.]

We bear the responsibility to correct. That is why even the institutions in which known convicts, those who have been tried and convicted in courts of law, are kept are no longer called jails or prisons. They are now called correctional services, because we believe we have an abiding ability to correct each other and hopefully we can only abandon the most incorrigible.

We can only give up on those who when a piece of stone is cooked in one pot and they are cooked in the other the stone gets ripe first. We abandon those ones, but otherwise it is our responsibility; it is our burden to continue trying all the time, because if we do give up then there is no hope. I thank you.

Mr A M MPONTSHANE: Madam Deputy Speaker, your Excellency Deputy President, I’m pleased by the response that you have just given now. In your two previous lives, your Excellency, one as secretary-general of the ANC, you were part of a three-a-side between the IFP and the ANC which produced a document that spoke about the role of the IFP and Prince M G Buthelezi in the liberation struggle. And also in your life as the former President of this country, at the funeral of the late hon Cleopas Nsibande in Benoni, you spoke about the role of, particularly, Prince M G Buthelezi in the liberation struggle. What is it that government is doing to engage young people in this role in order for them not to cling to yesterday’s lies that the IFP was part of the system? Thank you.

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Deputy Speaker, hon Mpontshane, as I’ve already stated, we all carry the responsibility to ensure that the history that we inherit is presented as factually as possible. It is not easy to write contemporary history, because the temptation to embellish one’s role is always looming large.

However, it is important that the facts are always presented for what they are without suffering from false consciousness. In other words, we should always guard against living in the past, because that also carries certain dangers.

Government, through the Department of Arts and Culture and other departments, tries, within the limits of what it can do, to ensure that due recognition is given to those who played a prominent role in our country. That does not mean that that is only measured in terms of one’s involvement in the struggle for liberation, because the development of a society is a function of all contributions. When we participate in an election and register, such as one party that is not with us here, the Keep It Straight and Simple party, it was called the Kiss party, I think, that played an important role in our democracy, because they made their own effort to participate in the elections and even campaigned. The fact that they did not garner sufficient support does not, in any way, detract from their contribution, and that must be the attitude that guides us in recognising the roles of those who contributed in shaping our democracy.

We, in government, regard uMntwana kaPhindangene, one of the elder statesmen of our country, as one of the doyens of the struggle for freedom and for our parliamentary politics as well; we do. I thank you.

Query regarding return of exorbitantly priced vehicles in the face of the recession

1. The Leader of the Opposition (DA) asked the Deputy President:

   Whether, in light of his statement (details furnished) that it does not make economic or ethical sense for the government to be spendthrift with its financial management in the face of the recession, members of the Cabinet who have spent exorbitant amounts of money on purchasing vehicles will be requested to return those vehicles; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details? NO2112E

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Deputy Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition the hon Trollip, I stand by my statement that at a time of an economic crisis, when finances are under pressure, we all need to be careful about our expenses. Major commitments of government have to be considered very carefully in the light of the current economic conditions and the conditions of the poor and the unemployed.

To my knowledge, the vehicle purchases by members of Cabinet were all undertaken within the regulations set by the Ministerial Handbook, which sets out the benefits and privileges applicable to members of Cabinet, provincial executive councils and presiding officers of Parliament and provincial legislatures.

While some may hold the view that certain purchases were inappropriate in the current circumstances, these purchases were in fact planned and budgeted for. The purchases were not unethical in that they were not illegal or underhanded. For these reasons, we do not intend to request the return of the vehicles. In any event, as the hon Leader of the Opposition is aware, a used car is a used car. It has far less resale value than a new car, so returning the cars and buying cheaper ones would result in significant losses. While that may sound good, it is not particularly practical.

On 29 July this year, Cabinet agreed that a task team be constituted to prepare recommendations on developing measures for fiscal prudence, with specific reference to curbing wasteful expenditure, establishing cost- cutting measures and reviewing procurement practices. Furthermore, consideration will also be given to the possible adjustment of the existing guidelines for purchasing official vehicles for political office-bearers, as reflected in the Ministerial Handbook. This task team will report back to Cabinet in due course. I thank you. [Applause.]

The LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION: Madam Deputy Speaker, I thank the hon Deputy President. Notwithstanding the provisions of the Ministerial Handbook and your response, I’d like to point out that the continental adjudicators of the Mo Ibrahim award have embarrassingly decided not to award this prestigious award to the 11 qualifying candidates, including our own former President Thabo Mbeki.

Considering the public appeals by the President, the Deputy President and various Cabinet Ministers – past and present – to all public figures to lead by example of frugality in these times of economic difficulty, and further considering that Kenya, which notoriously figures far worse than South Africa on Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index – with South Africa placed 54th and Kenya 147th – and that Kenya has instructed all its Cabinet members to return for resale all excessively expensive ministerial vehicles and has placed a ceiling on vehicle engine capacity of 1800cc or 1,8 litres for all Ministers, is the ANC government going to allow the successive display of conspicuous consumption to continue unchecked or is it going to reverse this display of greedy avarice? Even if we get less for a second-hand motorcar, it would be a wonderful example to the people that are suffering under poverty in this country.

Can we have a timeframe, hon Deputy President, regarding when these recommendations are going to be made by this task team? Thank you. [Applause.]

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Thank you very much, hon Trollip. My understanding of an economic recession is that the levels of demand come to a standstill. Therefore, those who engage in commodity production end up with the commodities stacked up in their warehouses and/or on the shelves of their stores, without people buying them because consumption is a function of liquidity. That is why governments are called upon, when you are in a recession, to revive the economy by ensuring that demand … [Interjections.] … I will give you an opportunity to speak here. I think it would be helpful for you not to interrupt.

I’m just making a simple point, that government is not an individual. In a recession, governments are called upon to intervene to ensure that the wheels of the economy continue to turn. Once people who live by earning wages are laid off, it means that they will not be able to buy anything. That is why, in certain instances in history, governments have been known to employ people to dig a trench up a street and the following week others have been employed and paid by the same government to fill up the trench just so that they have liquidity. That’s how you deal with a recession, according to my understanding of a recession. [Applause.]

Now, let us deal with the issue of the calls for moderation, because that is the message we have received as government. That is why government has agreed to establish a task team to look at excesses, wastages and all of those things. This task team will be looking at the totality of expenses that may require review. Those excesses range from the procurement of vehicles right up to this expensive practice of having Parliament in Cape Town, when government is in Pretoria. [Applause.]

Cumulatively, there’s more wastage in the manner we have located the seat of government and Parliament. That is why the old Nationalist Party government used to spend half the year in Cape Town and half the year in Pretoria. Now, there is a lot of commuting and Ministers have two houses when they should be living in one house. That would be a major saving.

So, these are a range of wastage areas and linkages that this task team will be looking at and reporting on to Cabinet. Cabinet will then take a decision on those matters. You see, in South Africa there are people who are wallowing in riches – who can afford all kinds of toys and so on – which are privately owned. What we are concerned about is the public kitty. What is the public kitty used for?

The moral of this question is that we must not elevate poverty into virtue. Our thrust must be to empower the poorest of the poor not to live on alms, but to be able to eke out a decent living on their own. These, I think, are matters that we should make time to discuss so that at least there’s a common position that we adopt as Parliament rather than seeking to score points on little matters. I don’t think that helps us.

As I said earlier on, South African society is who we are. There are many classes and stratifications in this society and our role is not to put watertight fences around these, but to try and unite our people and give them a sense of pride and belonging as South Africans. By so doing, we can deal with the disabilities accumulated over the years. I think it is important to adopt that approach.

As for the resale of second-hand vehicles, I know that in a recession in particular, if you buy a car for R1 million and you drive out in that car, and in a week’s time you try to find a buyer for it, you would struggle to find a buyer who is willing to pay R600 000 for that vehicle.

I don’t know the economics of the Kenyan government or the management of finances … [Applause.] … but I think this is not a good example to follow. Thank you. [Applause.]

Rev K R J MESHOE: Deputy Speaker, about two months ago President Zuma pledged to curb excessive government spending in the wake of the scandal over ministerial cars. That has, unfortunately, not happened.

About two months earlier, on 24 June to be exact, during the debate on the Presidency Budget Vote, the hon Deputy President made a statement that appears in today’s Question Paper, in essence, correctly saying that excessive government spending does not make economic and ethical sense. We agree with him that financial mismanagement by government is unethical, wrong and insensitive to millions of South Africans who struggle to put a decent meal on the table.

What we want to know is whether the above statements by both the President and the Deputy President were discussed with the Cabinet. If yes, were there any agreements and what were the agreements about these statements? If not, why not, because the public outcry is loud and clear as a result of the difficult economic conditions they find themselves in? And as the Deputy President correctly said, they want to see moderation in government spending. Thank you.

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Thank you, hon Meshoe. As I have already stated, yes indeed, we stand by those statements. This is work in progress, and I’ve tried to illustrate the range of areas that the Cabinet task team is going to look into and report back to Cabinet on. Once Cabinet receives that report, it will be able to take decisions and act on the basis of those decisions. I thank you. [Applause.]

Prince M G BUTHELEZI: Madam Deputy Speaker, His Excellency the Deputy President, hon colleagues, I want to speak as a mediator today. [Laughter.] I think that His Excellency the President and the government, meaning the Cabinet, are not surprised that people from the opposition parties are raising this issue. I’m sure if they were in the same position, they would do the same.

However, I think the point has been made. If we look and think back to the days when our people were oppressed and consider the vehicles that were used by government then, I don’t know how much fuss came from that. [Applause.]

My fellow opposition leaders mustn’t say that I’m spoiling their case, but I think the point has been made. But, at the same time, I think we should balance these things, look at what happened in the past and compare the poverty and oppression that our people suffered at that time. We should also look at the money per capita that was spent on white children and black children. [Applause.] In other words, I’m not saying that the point should not have been raised, but that this cow has run dry; we have been milking it and milking it. I think the point has been made, but I don’t think that we should really do this as if we didn’t live in South Africa before.

My former colleagues in the Cabinet, such as Minister Manuel, Minister Sisulu and others will know that I, as Minister, used the cars that I had used as chief minister right through in Cape Town. So, I have a very clear conscience. However, I don’t want to be judgmental to the extent that I forget about the past and overreact on the matter we are dealing with now.

So, I’m speaking as a mediator now. This point has been made and we are tired of it. [Applause.]

The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon Deputy President, that was a comment.

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Madam Deputy Speaker, yes, it was not a question.

Siyabonga, Shenge. [Thank you, Shenge.] [Applause.]

Adv T M MASUTHA: Hon Deputy Speaker, I would like to concur with hon Shenge on this point. I think, from where we stand as the ANC, whilst it is okay for people to ask questions about any policy decisions of government, what is of critical importance to us is that that should not deflect us from the primary task of focusing on service delivery and on the better life that the rest of our people have long been waiting for.

In that regard, I’d like to ask the Deputy President if he will ask the Ministers to assure him that they’ve chosen the best and most reliable cars that will take them more quickly and more reliably to where our people are who need the services that the Ministers need to provide. I thank you. [Applause.]

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Thank you, hon Masutha. The Ministers have heard the message and that is why Cabinet has this task team to look at where it can make savings in order to redirect them towards service delivery. The task team will also look at wastage, to ensure that we get value for money and that money that is allocated is expended for the purposes for which it was intended. That message has been heard loud and clear. Thank you.

The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Thank you very much, Deputy President.

Undijamele uMnu Trollip apha. Ndiyabona ukuba akakoneli. Undijamele, kodwa bendimnikile ithuba lokuba abuze umbuzo. Uyazi ukuba bane qha abantu ekufuneka bebuze imibuzo. Ngoko, ukuba akakoneli, uya kuphinda athethe noSekela-Mongameli ngelinye ixesha. (Translation of isiXhosa paragraph follows.) [Mr Trollip is staring at me here. I can see he is not yet satisfied. He is staring at me, but I’ve given him the opportunity to ask a question. He knows that there are only four people who are supposed to ask questions. Therefore, if he is not satisfied, he can talk to the Deputy President some other time.]

                           SOCIAL SERVICES
                              Cluster 2

MINISTERS:

Plans to ensure no disruptions at schools during exam preparation period

1. Ms N Gina (ANC) asked the Minister of Basic Education:

   Whether any plans are in place to ensure that schools are not disrupted by service delivery protests at this critical period when learners need to prepare for examinations; if not, why not; if so, what plans? NO2095E

The MINISTER OF BASIC EDUCATION: Deputy Speaker, the reply to the question is that indeed provinces have taken all reasonable and necessary steps to ensure that learning and teaching take place without disruptions in our schools. As the department, we share the concern that service delivery protests may already have impacted negatively on school activities. We advise that in areas affected by service delivery protests, provincial departments put measures in place.

For instance, in Limpopo, Moutse, two camps were established to accommodate learners. Boys were moved to the Makhado multipurpose community centre in the Vhembe region and girls were moved to the Tivumbeni multipurpose community centre in Mopane. Since the establishment of these camps the committee has also expressed its commitment to supporting learners in writing their exams. However, in case there are any disruptions, the provincial department will set up a writing centre outside Moutse and provide learners with transport to the centres.

In Mpumalanga, again, where we had reports of disruptions, the circuit managers are on high alert to move learners to other schools within the circuits in case there are any disruptions. The provincial legislature was briefed yesterday about the details of planned interventions in order to afford learners an opportunity to write their exams. Thank you.

Ms N GINA: Chairperson, there is no follow-up question. I just want to thank the Minister for all the efforts she has made. Thank you very much, Minister. [Applause.]

Dr J C KLOPPERS-LOURENS: Chairperson, the DA is of the conviction that under no circumstances should schools be disrupted by protest action during final examinations. Learners should also not be prevented from attending school and writing their exams.

We know that the ANC leadership made promises regarding the improvement of municipal service delivery, the filling of critical vacancies, the correction of underspending and the rooting out of incompetent and corrupt officials. But, Minister, is the ANC government also prepared to keep these promises and, more importantly, take action against its alliance partners, the SACP and Cosatu, who are in most instances organising these service delivery protests or dictating the destructive and violent ways in which these protests are conducted?

The MINISTER OF BASIC EDUCATION: Chair, I fully agree with the DA that schools should not be disrupted or disturbed. On the next matter I think the member is being opportunistic and is raising things that have nothing to do with the question – the ANC and its commitment to service delivery. I think she should refer the question to the ANC. I was asked a question as a Minister on whether we have made plans in this regard. We have indeed made plans. But on matters of what the ANC has done and wants to commit to, I can give you the address of Luthuli House. You can then refer this to the ANC because I can’t answer that. [Applause.]

Ms A MDA: Hon Minister, I do concur with you about the commitment of the ANC to making sure that schools are provided with education and when education is provided to learners that no disruptions occur.

I want to draw your attention to last year’s experience in Khutsong and Merafong where students were taken out of the province as a result of the protests and taken to the Northern Cape, the issue never having been resolved. Assuming that the ring leaders of the protests currently taking place may not be arrested as soon as you think they will, what measures are in place to ensure that under no circumstances will examinations be interrupted or not written as a result of the protests? Thank you.

The MINISTER OF BASIC EDUCATION: I assume the member is referring to the North West and not the Northern Cape. I just want to correct that. For the rest -

… angithwasi. Angilona ithwasa. Angazi ukuthi yini ezokwenza ukuthi abantu bangabhali. Angikwazi ukuqinisekisa ukuthi ngeke kube nezidubedube angazi ukuthi iLungu lifunani kimina. Angikwazi ukuqinisekisa ukuthi akuzuba nezidubedube eziphazamisa izingane ukuthi zibhale ukuhlolwa ngaphandle uma ngingathwasa. Angithwasi mntanami, angithwasi nkosikazi! [Ihlombe.] (Translation of isiZulu paragraph follows.)

[… I am not a sangoma. I won’t know what will cause people not to write their examinations. And I cannot guarantee that there will not be any protests. I do not know what the hon member wants from me. I cannot guarantee that there will not be any protests which will disturb the learners when they write their examinations unless I become a sangoma. I am not a sangoma, my child, I am not a sangoma, madam! [Applause.]]

Mr A M MPONTSHANE: Hon Minister, teaching time has not only been lost through service delivery protests, but through other factors as well. For instance, prior to the 2009 elections, teachers, especially those aligned to Sadtu, abandoned their classrooms to campaign for the ruling party. Would the Minister know how much time was lost through such actions? I thank you.

The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms M N Oliphant): That is a new question, hon Mpontshane. But I will allow the Minister to respond if she feels like responding.

The MINISTER OF BASIC EDUCATION: I was going to ask the member to put that question to me in writing.

Bengizocela iLungu lingibhalele lo mbuzo ngizoyofuna impendulo ngoba lombuzo awuhambisani nalokhu esikhuluma ngakho. Enye into yakudala le. [I would ask the hon member to put that question in writing so that I can go and look for an answer because that question is irrelavant to what we are talking about here. That is something else that happened a long time ago.]

Mr A M MPONTSHANE: I will do so.

Query regarding whether calendars accord with government’s plans for 2010 Fifa World Cup Soccer tournament

1. Mrs C Dudley (ACDP) asked the Minister of Higher Education and Training:

   Whether calendars issued by his department to Members of Parliament indicating only one extra day of holiday during the 2010 Fifa World Cup Soccer tournament is in accordance with government’s plans for school holidays around this event; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details? NO2081E

The MINISTER OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND TRAINING: Chairperson, the school calendar is the responsibility of the Minister of Basic Education, therefore the question should be redirected to the Department of Basic Education.

However, I think this is a reflection of a problem and a challenge that this Parliament will have to deal with at some stage. Firstly, I don’t understand how a member of this Parliament would not know that this is not a question for higher education.

We need to look at a number of these questions, some of which are really a waste of time because they are inappropriately asked. Some of them have very little to do with what they are purported to be about. However, I’m sure that the member will be able to direct the question to the Minister of Basic Education. Thank you.

The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms M N Oliphant): Thank you, hon Minister. Hon Dudley is not well, so I was informed that hon Swart will ask a follow-up question.

Mr S N SWART: House Chair, firstly, may I apologise on behalf of Mrs Dudley for her absence today, owing to illness. Clearly, if a question is directed to the wrong Minister, the questions office could also redirect it.

In any case, Minister, the reasoning behind closing schools for five weeks during the Fifa World Cup followed concerns relating to, inter alia, additional strains on infrastructure and transportation, and absenteeism. The proposal was widely supported by hospitality stakeholders, teachers’ unions and the national Department of Transport, and we, as the ACDP, support this proposal as long as the actual time spent in classrooms is not affected.

Now, the follow-up question is whether, hon Minister, you have been engaging universities to adopt a similar calendar as surely similar considerations will apply, albeit on a smaller scale. Or do universities’ calendars in any event accommodate the five weeks during the Soccer World Cup? This should make sense as university students could then try to earn extra money during the Soccer World Cup and hostel rooms could be utilised for accommodation, again, clearly, as long as academic standards are not compromised during this position.

The MINISTER OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND TRAINING: Surely, Chair, we appreciate being asked and answering questions, but, we can’t change tack in the middle of a question and ask something new about universities. Nevertheless, as the hon member … [Interjections.]

Angixakwa nje imibuzo ephuma kwilunga kwilungu eliphikisayo uTrollip nangelilodwa ilanga. Angiyenqeni nemibuzo yenu le eniyibuzayo. [I have never been puzzled by the member of the opposition hon Trollip’s questions, not even for a single day. So, I am not avoiding the questions that you are asking.]

Anyway, you know that universities set their own calendars each year. Perhaps what you are raising is an idea that is well worth considering, that in the light of the 2010 Soccer World Cup, maybe we should engage universities around some kind of synergies so that university students can get some holiday or vacation jobs and be able to earn a little bit of money. I think that is a very good idea, hon member; it’s something that we will consider as a department. [Applause.]

Dr W G JAMES: Hon Chairperson, there are 199 school days in 2009. In 2010 there will be 196 days, or 195 days if a public holiday is added. The school year begins a week earlier in 2010. Mid-year there is a five-week- long holiday and schools close a week later in December.

The top public secondary schools in the country have leaders who believe that it is ludicrous to have a five-week break in the middle of the year. A Naptosa, National Professional Teachers Organisation of SA, spokesperson is more understated. Still, she says that it is not, I quote: “… ideal that teachers and learners down tools for five long weeks as this may have a paralytic effect on their learning”. [Time expired.]

The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms M N Oliphant): Hon members, hon Swart has admitted that the question was directed to the wrong Minister. Nevertheless, I will allow the hon Minister to say something, if he wants to.

The MINISTER OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND TRAINING: Thank you, Chairperson. I think that this issue of the 2010 Soccer World Cup and schooling is something that my colleague, Minister Motshekga, would be happy to engage around. Therefore, it would be proper that, as I’ve said, this question is actually redirected to her so that we are able to deal with these matters better. Thank you.

Query regarding (i) progress made iro a single coherent school sport system and (ii) civil body representing school sport

1. Mr C T Frolick (ANC) asked the Minister of Sport and Recreation:

   (1) What progress has his department made in the (a) establishment and (b) implementation of a single coherent school sport system;

   (2) which body in civil society (a) is recognised by his department as the legitimate representative of school sport and (b) represents South African school sport at international forums? NO2105E

The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms M N Oliphant): Hon members, we will now proceed to Question 198 that was put by the hon Frolick to the Minister of Sport and Recreation. I have been informed that the hon Minister has requested that the question stand over. Therefore, hon Frolick, we will proceed to the next question.

  Identification of reasons for worsening maternity mortality rate 178.  Mr M Waters (DA) asked the Minister of Health:


  (1)   What was the maternal mortality rate in (a) 1995 and (b) 2008;


  (2)   whether his department has indentified the reasons for the
        continuing worsening of health indicators such as the maternal
        mortality rate despite rising expenditure on public health care;
        if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the
        reasons?               NO2077E

The MINISTER OF HEALTH: Hon Madam Chair, the maternal mortality rate is typically measured every few years. The best baseline estimate of maternal mortality that we have post-1994 is that recorded in the first ever demographic and health survey conducted in South Africa in 1998. The maternal mortality rate in 1998 was estimated at 150 per 100 000 live births. We do not have any figures for 1995.

The most recent estimate for the maternal mortality rate provided by Statistics SA was 124 per 100 000 live births for 2002. The recently released triennial report for the period 2005 to 2007 by the National Committee on Confidential Enquiries into Maternal Deaths estimated that the health-facility-based maternal mortality rate is 140 per 100 000 live births.

These figures are significantly lower than the estimated 400 per 100 000 live births used by the United Nations Statistics Division, the 2008 global progress report on the Millennium Development Goals and the report on maternal and child health published in the international medical journal, The Lancet, in August this year. The difference between the facility-based maternal mortality rate and the estimate by the UN Statistics Division is that the UN-based figures take into account maternal deaths that occurred in communities that did not attend our health facilities, whether private or public. We do not have such figures.

Whatever figures you take, whether from Statistics SA, our own confidential enquiries into maternal deaths, or from the United Nations, we are not satisfied with the maternal mortality rate and we are going to do something about it. That is why, when I received the report on the confidential enquiries, I convened a national summit on August 25. It was a national summit of national and provincial practitioners responsible for maternal health, and of representatives of health professional organisations, especially those that represent doctors and nurses and other stakeholders. We called them together to discuss the maternal, perinatal and under-five mortality rates.

This summit reviewed all the ministerial reports and put forward a series of recommendations. We have processed these recommendations and shared them with provincial managers for action. We have also started a process of in- service training for doctors and midwives in the essential steps in the management of obstetric emergencies, which the National Committee on Confidential Enquiries into Maternal Deaths found to be weak in some of our hospitals.

In addition, during this month I met with representatives of the SA Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists before an international conference which was held in Cape Town two weeks ago. I also met with the Society of Midwives of SA and we are developing partnerships on what to do. [Time expired.] [Applause.]

Mrs S V KALYAN: Thank you, House Chair. Minister, I thank you for your frank answer. South Africa has made very little progress and, really, we are not going to be able to reach the Millennium Development Goals of reducing the maternal mortality rate by three quarters. In September, ministers of health worldwide met at the United Nations to discuss the poor progress.

I would like to ask the hon Minister: What is your new commitment to meeting the goal with specific reference to providing and sustaining antiretrovirals for HIV-positive pregnant women, especially in view of the recent statement by the Department of Health that at least three provinces in our country are in danger of not having an adequate budget to provide antiretroviral treatment?

The MINISTER OF HEALTH: Indeed, that is so. But I must also add that it is not only South Africa which is in danger of not reaching the Millennium Development Goal on maternal mortality. This fact was discussed very thoroughly at the World Health Organisation Regional Office for Africa in Kigali in August, where all the ministers of health in Africa met. We accepted this fact and that we needed to do something about it. We are doing something about it.

In South Africa, I must also agree with you that of the big five causes of maternal mortality, HIV and Aids is number one at 43,7%. It is definitely number one. To this extent, I have submitted very clear plans to Cabinet and we will make an announcement very soon. It is not just three provinces in South Africa that are likely to run out of antiretrovirals before the end of the financial year, but in fact eight provinces.

We are doing something about it, and we will make sure that that does not happen. If we do not act, yes, it is going to happen in eight provinces except for the Northern Cape. But because we are taking particular action, we believe that it is not going to happen. Thank you.

Ms M J SEGALE-DISWAI: Chairperson, hon Minister, how is the Department of Health ensuring that national maternal health protocols, guidelines and strategies that are given to health facilities are not only put up in the halls, filed or shelved but are used to prevent maternal deaths? Thank you.

The MINISTER OF HEALTH: Indeed, hon Chairperson, when I was given the statement for the first time, before it was submitted as a question, I alluded to the fact that the report from the professors involved in the national confidential enquiries did mention that one of the reasons for high mortality was the fact that some of our health facilities did not follow the normal protocols.

I have already said that I have met with the people who are responsible for that. I have met the gynaecologists and the midwives. I also intend to meet all the clinical managers and the CEOs of the hospitals because, indeed, it is true: These protocols do exist and people have been ignoring them. We want to make them accountable. Thank you.

Mr D A KGANARE: Hon Minister, the maternal mortality rate is an international barometer to evaluate the efficacy of any public health system. Today we are celebrating Africa Human Rights Day, and our Constitution confers the right “of health care services, including reproductive health care”. But the government is expected to guarantee this. In light of the masses of our mothers who are dying like flies, do we have a new reason to celebrate Africa Human Rights Day?

The MINISTER OF HEALTH: Chairperson, I am sure we have not been talking about two things that are completely unrelated. I have been talking about the rate of maternal mortality and what we are actually doing about it, on the whole continent, and that ministers of health met in Kigali because there is maternal mortality in all the countries on the continent and we do not accept that. As to whether, in light of this, we should not be celebrating, I will leave that up to the rest of the leaders on the continent to decide. I don’t think it is for me to answer. Thank you.

   Query regarding the impact of Dinaledi schools as well as their
                     identification and support

1. Mr D A Kganare (Cope) asked the Minister of Basic Education:

   (1) Whether any assessment has been done on the impact of Dinaledi schools; if not, why not; if so, when;

   (2) whether she will make the findings available to the public; if not, why not; if so, when;

   (3) whether there is a programme to increase the number of Dinaledi schools; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, which criteria will be applied to determine which schools qualify as Dinaledi schools;

   (4) whether provinces play any role in identifying schools; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details; and

   (5) whether her department or provincial departments provide any support to ensure the success of these schools; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details? NO1294E

The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms M N Oliphant): Hon members, with regard to follow- up questions I appeal to you that they be within the context of the question asked on the Question Paper.

The MINISTER OF BASIC EDUCATION: Chair, the preliminary assessment of the impact of Dinaledi schools has been positive. We have 500 Dinaledi schools, which are principally based in rural and township areas with a learner population of approximately 7%. These schools contribute almost 24% of passes, which is about 50% in matric. This clearly indicates a positive result. Furthermore, there has been an increase in the participation of girl-learners in the learning areas of maths and science, which, again, was one of the objectives of Dinaledi schools.

Given the positive results of Dinaledi schools, the department has embarked on an in-depth study to ascertain the positive aspects which contributed to the success of Dinaledi schools and the extent to which they could be expanded. The answer to the next question is: Yes, the results of the study will be made available to interested parties and stakeholders when the study has been concluded.

The department has decided to keep the number of Dinaledi schools at 500 and to increase the support for these schools. We will increase the number after we have completed the assessment.

The choosing of the Dinaledi schools is done in collaboration with provinces. The national department only sets the criteria and, jointly, with the provinces, we choose the schools.

The Department of Education provides support and oversight over these schools. It monitors them, keeps a database of support for the schools and has provincial co-ordinators in different provinces. These schools are given extra textbooks, study guides, scientific calculators and science kits - and the teachers in those areas are trained in content knowledge which has, ostensibly, impacted positively on the results.

Learners from Dinaledi schools are also made to participate in the Mathematics Olympiad. Approximately 250 of these schools have been adopted by the private sector and parastatals, and this initiative has also impacted positively on and contributed to the success of the Dinaledi schools.

Mr D A KGANARE: Thanks, Minister, but I won’t say for the comprehensive response. The focus of the Dinaledi School Project was to enhance the performance of young South Africans in maths and science.

Yesterday we had the family of Ché Guevara and the ambassador of Cuba in the House. Cuba revolutionised their country’s standing in maths and science within a matter of two years. My understanding is that it is not the job of revolutionaries only to sing praises to Cuba, but also to learn lessons from them. I want to know whether the department and the government have embarked on a programme to learn from Cuba.

We cannot have a pilot project forever. The number of Dinaledi schools has been frozen at 500, and this is therefore no longer a project because it has been running for five years now. Is there any programme to ensure that the teaching of maths and science is revolutionised along Cuban lines?

The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms M N Oliphant): Mhlonishwa Kganare uyayilahla manje. [Hon Kganare, you are out of order.]

I will allow the Minister to respond if she wishes to do so, because in this question there is nothing that relates to Cuba.

LETONA LA THUTO YA MOTHEO: Ntate Kganare, bonnete ke hore o bua nnete empa se teng ke hore dikolong tsena, thutadipalo ha e etswe feela dikolong tsa Dihodi-naledi, e etswa dikolong kaofela. Kahoo, hore ha di a ata ho ba makgolo kapa sekete ha se tsietsi hakaalo mme dinaledi re e etsa dikolong tsa batho ba kobo di mahetleng mme palo ya makgolo a mahlano ha o e bapisa le dikolo tse ding tse ikgonang tseo di ntseng di etsa thutadipalo, o tla fumana hore ha re a ema hampe hakaalo.

Seo re sa batleng ho se etsa, ke hore re atise lenane la dikolo tsena re e so tebe ho fumana dintho kaofela tseo re di hlokang lenaneng lena. Kahoo le tla teba, re sa ntsane re etsa diphuputso re utlwisise hore di kgonneng jwang ho atleha. Ha re se re fumane maele ana kapa tsebo eo, lenane le tla ata ka tsela e nepahetseng. O se ke wa kgathatseha, le tla ata ntate. [Mahofi.] (Translation of Sesotho paragraphs follows.)

[The MINISTER OF BASIC EDUCATION: Hon Kganare, what you are saying is true, but maths is taught in all the schools and not only the ones that are part of the Dinaledi Schools Project. So, whether they do not increase to hundreds or thousands is not really a problem, because we carry out this project at previously disadvantaged schools with poor resources. If you look at the figure of 500, as compared to that of well-resourced schools that also do maths, you will find that it is really not that bad after all.

We don’t want to increase the number of schools without knowing exactly what is needed in the project. We are still conducting research to understand how others have succeeded and then the project will expand. It will expand accordingly once we have received the necessary advice or knowledge. It will expand, sir, don’t worry. [Applause.]]

Rev K R J MESHOE: Chairperson, of the 500 schools in the 9 provinces that are part of the Dinaledi Schools Project, only schools from four provinces, that is the Western Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng and Limpopo, made it onto the list of the 10 best state schools.

In the assessment that was done on the impact of Dinaledi schools, I want to know from the Minister whether any reasons were found why, in general, schools in the Western Cape are achieving better results than schools in other provinces, and whether her department is going to provide more support and resources to the schools in the other five provinces to ensure that there is a drastic improvement in matric results, so that very soon we have schools in all nine provinces appearing on the top 10 list.

UNGQONGQOSHE WEMFUNDO EYISISEKELO: Sihlalo, ubuke washo nje. Baba Mfundisi noma lungu,izikole eziyikhulu eziphezulu azihambelani neDinaledi, manje umhlonishwa uthatha ufaka into nje engahlangani neDinaledi uyayihlohla nje indaba yezikole eziyikhulu ezihamba phambili, azihambelani. Uma ufuna sixoxe ngezikole eziyikhulu asixoxe ngazo, uma ufuna sixoxe ngeDinaledi asixoxe, singazihlanganisi zingahlangani. Baba ngiyabonga. (Translation of isiZulu paragraph follows.)

[The MINISTER OF BASIC EDUCATION: Chairperson, like you said before, Reverend or hon member, the top 100 schools have nothing to do with the Dinaledi Schools Project. The hon member is just confusing the issues. The top 100 performing schools have nothing to do with the Dinaledi Schools Project. If you want us to talk about the top 100 performing schools, let us do that, and if you want us to talk about the Dinaledi Schools Project, let us do that. Let us not confuse two issues that do not go together. Thank you.]

Mr D C SMILES: Thank you, Chairperson. Hon Minister, with regard to performance in maths and science, I would like to agree with what the hon Meshoe said about the top 10 schools.

As the department provided the Sunday Times with that information to make those results known, I would like to ask the Minister whether there is any evidence from the department to say that the Dinaledi Schools Project is successful. Secondly, I would like to know whether the Maths911, which is also contributing to the improvement of maths in schools, isn’t a duplication of the Dinaledi project.

The MINISTER OF BASIC EDUCATION: Chair, perhaps the member didn’t understand because I was speaking in isiZulu. I said the top 100 schools have nothing to do with the Dinaledi School Project. The reasons those schools succeeded have nothing to do with the fact that they are part of the Dinaledi School Project. Those are separate issues that have to be addressed differently with regard to schools that work and succeed.

The Dinaledi Schools Project specifically targets rural and township schools - I don’t think even 10 of those 100 schools are township and rural schools. That is why I am saying that those are separate issues.

The Dinaledi Schools Project is meant to address rural and township schools where maths and science uptake has been very low. It is a special programme to intensify areas we would not have been able to succeed in had we not made the necessary interventions.

Hon member, you are quite right to say that it is important that we have maths and science. Unfortunately, you are linking two things which are not linked. If you want to talk about the 100 schools survey, then let’s talk about it, but let us not link the issues because they are not linked.

Rev K R J MESHOE: Madam Chairperson, on a point of order: The Minister says schools that are part of the Dinaledi Schools Project are not part of the 100 top schools survey. Mbilwi High School is in Limpopo and it is part of the Dinaledi project. So, I don’t think it is correct for the Minister to say that none of those schools in the top 100 are part of the project.

The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms M N Oliphant): Hon Meshoe, I didn’t hear anyone mentioning that school.

Rev K R J MESHOE: Chair, if you listened carefully to what she said, you would recall that she said that none of the 100 top schools was part of the Dinaledi Schools Project. And this school I am referring to is part of the Dinaledi project.

The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms M N Oliphant): Hon member, the Minister has responded to those questions. Therefore let us proceed.

Mrs F F MUSHWANA: Chairperson, the ANC cannot ignore the fact that the Minister responded appropriately to all the questions posed by the hon Mr D A Kganare, and it must be noted that we applaud the Minister’s well- informed leadership.

However, we note that all our schools could be transformed and be of Dinaledi quality if the textbooks and study guides supplied could replace the unnecessary duplication of the three levels of lesson planning, which overburden our educators, something the Minister also alluded to in her interaction with education departments. Does the Minister have any timeframes within which the supplied textbooks and study guides could be accepted as sufficient resources for teaching so as to enhance quality contact time and ensure timeous assessment of learners by educators? When can the department expand its supply of scientific calculators and science kits to all our rural schools and not just to Dinaledi schools? [Time expired.]

The MINISTER OF BASIC EDUCATION: Chair, indeed, we intend to expand the resources that we are supposed to provide schools with. The Presidency has already given us more than R500 million to top up schools and make sure that we provide schools with textbooks and deal with all the problems the member has raised. In January we will be able to top up schools in order to provide more textbooks to 60% of all our poor schools to solve the problems those schools are experiencing. We are working on it. In January, when the schools reopen, we’ll be ready with those textbooks and other resources for the 60% of our schools in poor areas.

Steps taken to remove the burden of the cost of education and to transform the NSFAS

1. Mr Z S Makhubele (ANC) asked the Minister of Higher Education and Training:

   (1) What steps have been taken to remove the burden of the cost of education from poor families, especially in the light of the underspending by the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS); and

   (2) to what degree is the further expansion of the services and the transformation of the NSFAS receiving priority? NO2097E

The MINISTER OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND TRAINING: Chairperson, the National Student Financial Aid Scheme has requested institutions to provide information on underspending in order to redistribute funds to needy students within the current academic year, that is those funds that have not been spent. The Department of Higher Education and Training has also been monitoring this matter very closely. Secondly, as I have pointed out before, I appointed a review committee to look into the National Student Financial Aid Scheme in July 2009, and I expect the report before the end of this year.

The overall purpose of the review is to assess the strengths and shortcomings of the current scheme and to be advised on the short, medium and long-term needs of student financial aid in order to promote the twin goals of equity of access and the provision of free undergraduate education for students from working class and poor communities who cannot afford further or higher education.

The review will evaluate different modules of student financial aid and make recommendations on the policy and operational changes required to ensure the effective and efficient achievement of these goals, which will enable South Africa to produce graduates with the qualifications and skills required to build our developmental state. Ngiyabonga. [Thank you.] [Applause.]

Mr Z S MAKHUBELE: Chairperson, hon Minister, we thank you for the response given. However, we want to emphasise that the ANC has identified education as one of its priorities in its manifesto, and access to higher education by deserving students, in particular, is its main focus.

We urge the department, accordingly, to prioritise this matter in order to ease the burden on poor households regarding the overall cost of higher education. The portfolio committee’s recent oversight visits to the areas of Giyani, Muyexe, amongst other areas, exposed the members to the urgent need for us to attend to this challenge facing our students.

Higher education institutions should be monitored closely to ensure that the implementation of the National Student Financial Aid Scheme, NSFAS, is fair, consistent and efficient, as is required. Thank you.

The MINISTER OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND TRAINING: Chairperson, hon member Makhubele, thanks for that comment. We fully agree with you. And as I have said, we are indeed monitoring very closely how the National Student Financial Aid Scheme is performing.

In addition, once the report and its recommendations reach my office - much as we are aware that we need to move fast on this matter - I will make sure, nevertheless, that we publish that report and try to provide an opportunity for the public, especially the affected constituencies, to be able to comment on those recommendations and to enrich them so that we are able to ensure that what Mr Makhubele is concerned about is addressed. Ngiyabonga. [Thank you.] [Applause.]

Mr A M MPONTSHANE: Chairperson, hopefully my question this time around won’t be ruled a new question. Hon Minister, many universities, if not all of them, require registration fees to be paid upfront, which many students can’t afford. And, often, financial aid comes too late to assist these students. What plans does the Minister have to assist such disadvantaged students? I thank you.

The MINISTER OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND TRAINING: Sihlalo, ngiyabonga baba uMpontshane, cha ngizokuphendula, awuphambuki. [Chairperson, thank you, hon Mpontshane, I will respond to you, and yes, you are on the right track.]

I would like to mention two things. The matter that you are raising is a very valid matter. For instance, we are concerned as a department that many students, including poor students, sometimes have to apply to eight or nine institutions with each requiring an admission fee. That is where the problem starts.

That is why my department, amongst other things, is seriously exploring the question of having a central admissions office so that students can apply to one centre, and we then send those applications to different institutions.

Secondly, coming directly to the question that you are asking, one of the things that we want the review of the National Student Financial Aid Scheme to look into is precisely the problem of many institutions requiring registration fees that are not covered by the financial aid scheme, and for very poor students, that rules them out because that becomes a condition for actually accessing a loan. We would like the review committee to look into all that in order to ensure that poor students who are deserving and capable are not, by any means, excluded through this upfront demand for a registration fee when they cannot afford it. Thank you. [Applause.]

Ms A MDA: Thank you, hon Minister. I think it is a well-known fact that the current financial aid that is provided to students, more especially the underprivileged and needy ones, continues to be even more of a burden than it is to access financial aid, because in terms of the number of students that have accessed financial aid until now, the system has not been able to provide a clear track record of those students that are qualified and obtained their qualifications as a result of having obtained this financial aid. After having obtained this financial assistance, they continue to be burdened by having to repay the loan without having qualified.

I want to check with the Minister if there are any plans in place to design a mechanism to be more flexible and better able to make sure that these students, after they have attained this assistance, are able to be tracked and that they get their qualifications and get to repay their loans.

The MINISTER OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND TRAINING: Sihlalo, cha Anele ubuza kahle ke namhlanje ntombi, engathi nokho kuyazamazama kona, uyakhula ntombi. Siyabonga. [Ihlombe.] [Uhleko.] [Chairperson, Anele, you asked a good question today, my girl. You are getting better and better, and that is a sign of maturity, my girl. Thank you. [Applause.] [Laughter.]]

The question that you are asking is very important in the sense that one of the things that we are looking at is to further capacitate the National Student Financial Aid Scheme to be able to track students – those who complete their studies and those who drop out. We do that, but we do recognise that the information system still needs to be strengthened. Secondly, on the issue of the burden, I just want to say that part of the review committee’s work is precisely to look into all those things. For instance, let me give you an example which you might not have mentioned. I know of a case of a student who was assisted 10 years ago by the National Student Financial Aid Scheme. She was given a loan of R3 000 and now she owes R16 000.

Firstly, it is illegal to charge interest on the original capital that you had actually loaned. We are also looking at blacklisted students to find out the reasons for that blacklisting, and that is one of the tasks that we have actually given to the review committee. But we are not waiting for the review committee to finish. Where we pick up problems, we will deal with them in such a way that if there are any specific issues or problems that you want to raise …

… hhayi, umnyango waloMnyango Wemfundo Ephakeme ntombi uvulekile. Siyabonga. [Ihlombe.] [… our doors at the Department of Higher Education and Training are open, my girl. Thank you. [Applause.]]

Dr W G JAMES: Chair, I think the Minister is hiding behind his review committee. He is unresponsive to the needs. The question is: Why doesn’t he take emergency measures and change the current threshold by making a simple change in the regulations or by proclamation. The current income threshold levels do not meet the needs of the working class or the lower middle class. The English poet Edward Young once said that “Procrastination is the thief of time.” In the case of the hon Minister’s slow response to the student financial aid question, Carl Marx would have added that “Procrastination in the action of the bourgeoisie state denies the working class.” Of course, Marx had Catholic habits. Thank you.

The MINISTER OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND TRAINING: Chair, Catholics usually make good communists like Chris Hani, because of the discipline of the Catholic Church and its commitment to the working class and the poor.

Hon James, I think that it’s unfair to actually say that we are procrastinating. We are also singling out the issue of a R120 000 threshold being too low. You may well be right, but in our wisdom, we said there are many challenges that are facing the National Student Financial Aid Scheme.

We can’t act in a fragmented manner and say we are now going to raise the R120 000 threshold – to whatever figure, and on the basis of whatever assessment of the nature and extent of the need that we are facing. This is because I need to get that from the review committee.

For instance, there are other dilemmas that we are faced with. Do you give financial aid to as many poor students as possible but cover between 50% and 90% of their needs, or do you focus on fewer students and provide complete loans or complete bursaries? All those are issues that we have to deal with. I can’t be accused of procrastinating. I am expecting a report in early December.

Let’s deal with the problem in its totality, and once the report is out, as I have said, you will be able to engage with it and add your views and all that. This committee was appointed precisely because we have identified that there are a number of problems. So, I can’t be forced to just act rationally, and so on. Rather, give yourself a bit more time in order to provide a better solution. Thank you. [Applause.]

See also QUESTIONS AND REPLIES.

                          NOTICES OF MOTION

Mr G G BOINAMO: Chairperson, I hereby give notice that I shall move the following on behalf of the DA:

That the House debates the need to establish well-resourced schools and FET colleges for poor and disabled persons and come up with possible solutions.

Dr P J RABIE: Madam Chair, I hereby give notice that I shall move the following on behalf of the DA:

That the House debates the serious threat illegally imported and exported goods pose to the South African economy and come up with possible solutions to curb this trend that results in serious loss of revenue and loss of jobs.

Ms L D MAZIBUKO: Madam Chairperson, I hereby give notice that I intend moving the following motion on behalf of the DA:

That the House debates the recent exorbitant purchase of vehicles by certain Cabinet Ministers and the appropriateness of these purchases in these difficult economic times, as well as the benefits of amending the Ministerial Handbook to curb such wasteful expenditure in the future.

                  BEST WISHES FOR 2009 MATRICULANTS

                         (Draft Resolution)

The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Chairperson, I move without notice:

That the House-

(1) notes that 26 October 2009 will mark the official commencement of the 2009 National Senior Certificate Examination; (2) further notes that acquiring the Senior Certificate represents a very important qualification for young people in that it gives them the option of going to a university or Further Education and Training (FET) College where they can pursue various careers and contribute to building a successful country and economy;

(3) recognises that many of the Grade 12 learners have been learning under the most trying circumstances, but the fact that they are now preparing for this examination says much of their character and determination;

(4) reminds all Grade 12 learners that their parents, families and communities support them and stand by them as they prepare for the examinations;

(5) urges the Grade 12 learners not to take their eye off the ball but to stay focused and use the final few days to go over subject areas they are unsure of and be proud of the fact that they have made it this far and have confidence in their ability to overcome this last hurdle; and

(6) wishes 2009 matriculants and tertiary students success in their examinations.

Agreed to.

CONGRATULATIONS TO NEWLY ELECTED PRESIDENT OF BOTSWANA, PRESIDENT IAN KHAMA

                         (Draft Resolution)

Mrs S V KALYAN: Chairperson, I move without notice:

That the House–

(1) notes that Ian Khama has been elected as Botswana’s President;

(2) congratulates him and his Botswana Democratic Party most warmly on their victory in the elections, which have been widely praised for being peaceful and transparent;

(3) wishes President Khama strength and confidence in the exercise of his duties; and

(4) trusts that the cordial relations between our two countries will be maintained and strengthened during his term in office.

Agreed to.

CONGRATULATIONS TO TEAM SA ON THEIR PERFORMANCE IN FINA/ARENA SWIMMING SHORT COURSE WORLD CUP

                         (Draft Resolution)

Mrs S V KALYAN: Chairperson, I move without notice:

That the House-

(1) notes the terrific performance of Team South Africa during the Fina/Arena Swimming Short Course World Cup at the Kings Park Aquatic Centre in Durban on 16 and 17 October 2009;

(2) further notes the superb performances of Roland Schoeman, Heerden Herman, Darian Townsend, Cameron van der Burgh, Kathryn Meaklim, Jessica Pengelly and George du Rand who all won gold medals in their respective events;

(3) congratulates these athletes and the rest of the team that managed to secure several more second and third places on their sterling performances and for doing the country proud; and

(4) wishes them well during the rest of their season and trusts that they will continue to do the country proud in the exceptional way they have over so many years. Agreed to.

                        MOTION OF CONDOLENCE

                      (The late Mr P O Moloto)

The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Chairperson, I move the draft resolution printed in my name on the Order Paper as follows:

That the House-

(1) notes with shock and profound sadness the passing away of Mr Pape Otukile Moloto on 8 October 2009 after a short illness;

(2) recalls that his political career started at Fort Hare where he was studying for a BSc degree, joined the South African Student Organisation (Saso) as a student activist and was expelled while participating in various projects initiated by Saso, especially the adult learning project;

(3) remembers that towards the end of 1974 he left for exile in Botswana where he joined a small Black Consciousness Movement group, went for military training in Libya in 1975, returned briefly to Botswana, joined the ANC and left Botswana for Lusaka in 1977;

(4) further remembers that Mr Moloto returned to South Africa following the unbanning of the Liberation Movement and, as a member of the MK Veterans Association, was appointed a Rear Admiral in the South Africa Navy Reserve, chaired the Military Bargaining Council and in 2009 was briefly deployed as a Member of Parliament for the African National Congress; and

(5) conveys its heartfelt condolences to his wife, Motlalepule, his children and sisters.

Agreed to.

                        MOTION OF CONDOLENCE

                       (The late Mr M Mphehle)

The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Chairperson, with leave, I wish to move the draft resolution printed in my name on the Order Paper, with amendments, as follows:

That the House-

(1) notes with profound sadness the untimely death on Sunday, 4 October 2009, in the Eastern Cape, of former South African ambassador to Morocco, Mr Mtutuzeli “Ginyizembe” Mpehle; (2) further recalls that Mr Mpehle, a qualified teacher, fled the country in 1962 to join the exiled ANC and its military wing, uMkhonto weSizwe;

(3) further remembers that he and his then wife Joy left Ghana for Zambia in 1965 where he became involved in the political education of young cadres in Lusaka, was later the ANC’s chief representative in Zimbabwe and India, returned to South Africa in 1993, worked at the Department of Foreign Affairs until 1995, became a Member of Parliament and from 2001 to 2006 was the South African ambassador to Morocco;

(4) recognises that at the time of his death Mr Mpehle had been widely regarded as one of the ANC’s respected elders;

(5) believes that he has discharged his responsibilities with dedication, discipline, diligence and humility; and

(6) conveys its condolences to the Mpehle family, the African National Congress and the South African Communist Party.

Motion, as amended, accordingly agreed to.

                       AFRICA HUMAN RIGHTS DAY

                              (Debate) The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Hon House Chairperson and hon members, let me start by welcoming and saluting Mesdames Nonceba Molwelwe and Mahlomola Mabote, Chief Whips from Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni, and their delegations. [Applause.]

We are sharing insights on co-operative governance in the legislative arm of the state and the doctrine of the separation of powers at municipal level and we are looking forward to further interactions, which should contribute to the turnaround strategy that the hon Sicelo Shiceka, the Minister for Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs, is developing.

Twenty-three years ago, on 21 October 1986, the African continent witnessed the coming into force of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, which was adopted on 27 June 1981 by member states of the Organisation of African Unity as a solemn undertaking to promote and safeguard freedom, justice and equality and human dignity in Africa.

The creation of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights will strengthen the hand and complement the mandate of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights established in terms of the charter. Moreover, the anticipated synergy and collaboration between the court and the commission should enhance the promotion and protection of peoples’ rights and freedoms as enshrined in the charter. Today, as the peoples and nations of Africa celebrate African Human Rights Day, we must remember that everyone’s human rights in the modern world were born out of selfless and protracted struggles for the recovery of human dignity and its inherent values of freedom, equality and justice for all. These human rights did not come to us like manna from heaven.

Our failure and/or neglect to recall the heroic struggles waged by the founding mothers and fathers of our democracy for the recovery of our human and peoples’ rights opens the door for narrow and sometimes ridiculous interpretations of the concepts of law, justice and human rights.

The African concept of the rule of law cannot be divorced from the Pan- African ideal that gave birth to it. The African quest for freedom and justice manifested itself in the resistance of Africans and native Indians to slavery and in the slave rebellion which led to the liberation and creation of the state of Haiti and the defeat of the fascist Italian army by the Ethiopian forces at Aduwa in 1896. This quest for freedom led to the first Pan-African Conference in London from 23 July to 26 July 1900.

In his address to the nations of the world, W E B du Bois, the African American revolutionary intellectual, observed that:

In the metropolis of the modern world, in this the closing year of the nineteenth century, there has been assembled a congress of men and women of African blood, to deliberate solemnly upon the present situation and outlook of the darker races of mankind. The problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the color line, the question as to how far differences of race - which show themselves chiefly in the color of the skin and the texture of the hair - will hereafter be made the basis of denying to over half the world the right of sharing to utmost ability the opportunities and privileges of modern civilization. To be sure, the darker races are today the least advanced in culture according to European standards. This has not, however, always been the case in the past. And certainly the world’s history, both ancient and modern, has given many instances of no despicable ability and capacity among the blackest races of men.

It is this glorious African past that inspired Dr Pixley ka Isaka Seme to call for the regeneration of Africa and the creation of a unique civilisation for Africans.

The Pan-African Conference in London had been attended by people of African descent from three continents. At this conference, strong attacks were made on the desire of the English capitalist to re-enslave the black man, especially in South Africa, and on the Boer atrocities against Africans in the Anglo-Boer War of 1899 to 1902, also known as the South African War. In this war, Africans fought on both sides hoping that, in the event of victory, civil and political rights would be granted to them.

Instead, the racial ideology of Cecil John Rhodes and capitalist interests brought the Boers and Britons together to conclude the Treaty of Vereeniging in 1902, which legalised the colour bar foreseen by Du Bois in

1. This colour bar found definite and emphatic expression in the South African Act of 1909 which established the racist and white supremacist Union of South Africa.

At the end of the first Pan-African Conference in 1900, delegates from this conference arrived and settled amongst coloured people here in Cape Town, strengthening the settlement of officials of the African Methodist Episcopal Church led by Bishop Coppin. The delegates from this conference, notably the Ghanaian-born journalist F Z S Peregrino and Henry Sylvester Williams took the message of Pan-African pride and political awareness into the interior of Southern Africa.

The Ethiopian Church of South Africa and the AME Church – the African Methodist Episcopal Church - also became the vehicle for Pan-Africanism, also known as Ethiopianism in Africa. Ethiopianism was the first national movement which linked African colonies and interior republics even before South Africa was united by British conquest.

This Pan-African or Ethiopian ideal inspired the formation of the African People’s Organisation, APO, here in Cape Town, as well as native congresses which came together in 1912 to form the African National Congress for the defence of civil and political rights of African people.

The fundamental tenets of the Pan-African and Ethiopian movement were self- worth, self-reliance and freedom.

According to our icon, Nelson Mandela, the Ethiopian movement culminated in the formation of the ANC in 1912. “It is in this sense,” said our icon, “that in the ANC we trace the seeds of the formation of our organisation to the Ethiopian movement of the 1890s.”

The influence of the Pan-African ideal on the ANC found expression in the description of this glorious movement as a Pan-African organisation in its 1919 constitution.

The teachings of Marcus Garvey during the interwar years and the 1935 invasion of Ethiopia by fascist Italy gave impetus to the spirit of Pan- Africanism. Pan-African leaders Sol Tshekisho Plaatje, Kwame Nkrumah and Mnandi Azikiwe – the first President of Nigeria – were profoundly influenced by Marcus Garvey, the author of the slogan “Africa for Africans”

• “Mayibuye iAfrica”.

More specifically, these leaders were impacted upon by the Harlem Renaissance, which was inspired by the teachings of Marcus Garvey. The Harlem Renaissance drew attention to the glories of ancient Africa to validate African achievements.

Under the influence of the Harlem Renaissance, Azikiwe wrote a book in 1937 entitled Renascent Africa, which was another landmark in the gradual recovery of a history that had been forcibly denied and therefore forgotten during the same period when massive exploitation of the continent’s human and natural resources went hand in hand with a refusal to honour and respect its cultural achievements.

Azikiwe, who had studied in the United States of America when the Harlem Renaissance was in full swing, and who later became the Federal Republic of Nigeria’s first President, refused to accept that Africa’s future had been blighted forever by the impact of European colonialism. According to him, the wellbeing of Africa depended firstly on reactivating a spiritual balance through respect for others; secondly, on the achievement of social regeneration through the triumph of democracy; thirdly, on mental emancipation through a rejection of racism; and fourthly, on striving for economic prosperity through self-determination.

William Nkomo, one of the founders of the ANC Youth League, told a women’s conference in the 1930s that Africans are not a subhuman race and that they too desire the right to self-determination. During World War II, the defence of the right to self-determination and human rights of peoples and nations became the grounds upon which the war by the Allied forces was justified. However, the Atlantic Charter that guaranteed these rights in the event of victory denied Africans these rights, despite the fact that they fought on the side of the Allied forces. This act of naked racism forced Kwame Nkrumah to declare that, after the war, Africans would demand nothing less that the right to self—determination and human rights.

Even before the end of the war, the ANC national conference held on 16 December 1943 adopted the Africans’ Claims in South Africa in response to the Atlantic Charter. This was the first home-grown human and people’s rights charter on the African continent.

The African Claims document preceded the UN Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Human and Peoples’ rights in Africa received impetus from the Freedom Charter and the Bandung Conference resolutions of 1955.

At the 1958 Pan-African Conference held in Akra, Ghana, the right to self- determination and human rights of African peoples and nations became the principal driving force. African jurists realised that the Bill of Rights incorporated in the constitutions of newly independent African countries sought to preserve minority rights to land, natural resources and privileges. Thus, in 1961, the African Commission of Jurists developed the concept of the rule of law in the African context. The adoption of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights stemmed from the home-grown African concept of law and justice. It represents a movement away from liberal concepts of human rights which place the individual above collective or people’s rights. In the African context, with its legacy of apartheid, colonialism and exploitation, the liberal concept of human rights entrenches class, gender and racial divides and impedes social and economic transformation.

As we celebrate this Africa Human Rights Day, we must recall the words of President Jacob Zuma who told us in the state of the nation address that we could only recover the humanity of all South Africans through the creation of decent jobs and the provision of quality education and health care services.

Here, the President made it abundantly clear that the realisation of the socioeconomic rights of the historically disadvantaged black communities who lived in shacks and other degrading and dehumanising conditions was extremely urgent.

In his address to the judges, the President also called for the Africanisation of the law to embody the philosophy of ubuntu and its underlying values of human, social and international solidarity. Many of the English and Roman Dutch common laws and their underlying legal philosophies negate the humanity of black people and need urgent transformation.

It is hoped that this Parliament will develop a transformation agenda in line with the 10 strategic priorities of President Jacob Zuma’s administration which have been adopted by this Parliament.

Let us take this opportunity to congratulate Justice Ngcobo on his appointment as the Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court and to call on him to lead the Africanisation of the law and transformation of our criminal justice system to make it accessible to the poor and downtrodden.

We have the fullest confidence in Chief Justice Ngcobo and his colleagues and have no doubt that they will move our courts away from the liberal interpretations of the concepts of law, justice and human rights which negate the humanity of the majority of South Africans, impede the realisation of the socioeconomic rights of black people and seek to make South Africa an outpost of Europe on the southern tip of the continent. Thank you. [Applause.]

Mr K S MUBU: House Chairperson, hon members, the Organisation of African Unity’s Assembly of heads of African states and of governments met in July 1979 in Monrovia, Liberia, to discuss a preliminary draft on the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. Two years later, in July 1981, they adopted the draft document and exactly 23 years ago today, on 21 October 1986, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights came into force.

This noble idea of a charter came with the promise of hope for the promotion of human dignity for the peoples of Africa. It was supposed to be the onset of a new dawn for the protection of human rights, freedom, justice and equality on a continent that had experienced some of the most deplorable and atrocious violations of human rights the world had ever seen.

Ironically, the host country for those preliminary discussions of the charter, Liberia, several years later, was to be the scene of one of the most brutal civil wars ever seen in Africa, which claimed the lives of thousands of people and maimed and displaced several thousand others within and outside the borders of that country. Today, as we all know, the instigator and architect of that atrocity, Charles Taylor, former President of Liberia, is facing various charges for crimes committed against humanity at the International Criminal Court at The Hague.

In article 2, the charter of the then OAU promises to eradicate all forms of colonialism from Africa, to co-ordinate and intensify co-operation and efforts to achieve a better life for the people of Africa and to promote international co-operation, having due regard to the UN charter.

Two decades later, can we rightly say that the charter has changed the lives of the people of Africa? In my view, the answer is a resounding “no”. This is because very few of the countries on this continent can claim to have lived up to the promise to uphold the rule of law and to respect people’s rights. If anything, in my view, the charter was a false promise to the millions of Africans who have perished over the years and for those who today continue to suffer at the hands of those who profess to be their leaders.

In a number of cases, human rights violations arise because of the failure of the state to provide adequate security and protection to its own citizens, which results in these violations. However, in most cases, it is actually the state itself that is the perpetrator of serious human rights abuses and violations.

In 2003, the UN Commission on Human Security observed that the state remains the fundamental purveyor of security, but often fails to fulfil its security obligations and at times has even become a source of threat to its own people.

Ultimately, such a state has characteristics that define it as a “failed state”. A “failed state” is one that has failed to provide some of the basic conditions and responsibilities of a sovereign state.

Noam Chomsky, in his book of 2006 called Failed States: The Abuses of Power and Assault on Democracy, identifies four characteristics that define a failed state, namely: One, the loss of control over its territory; two, erosion of legitimate authority to make collective decisions; three, the inability to provide reasonable public services such as education, health care and other public amenities; and four, the inability to interact with other states as a full member of the international community. Other conditions include widespread corruption, criminality, refugees or displaced persons and involuntary movement of people and a sharp economic decline.

In 2007, the Mo Ibrahim Foundation recognised that there is a connection between good governance and sustainable development and introduced an index which ranks the performance of sub-Saharan countries. These are graded on factors such as security, levels of corruption and respect for human rights. This view is supported by the former Prime Minister of Portugal and current President of the European Commission, who says that “Sustainable development requires states to be legitimate in the eyes of their citizens and to deliver the core functions of states.”

According to the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, in 2009, seven of the 10 failed states of the world were found in Africa. These include Somalia, Zimbabwe, Sudan, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Central African Republic and Guinea. On the other hand the foundation listed Mauritius, the Seychelles and Botswana as the best governed countries in Africa. [Time expired.]

Mr L S NGONYAMA: Hon Chair, I am who I am because of each one of you. Today, as we focus on Africa Human Rights Day, let us put the spotlight on the importance of the humanity of each of us so as not to diminish our own humanity or reduce our own ability to enjoy unfettered fundamental human rights. How often, as human beings, have we trampled on our fellow beings on account of race, religion, gender, economic competition or blind pursuit of political power? Umntu ngumntu ngabantu. [No man is an island.]

The African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights underscores the point that every human being shall be entitled to respect for his life and the integrity of his person, and that no one may be arbitrarily deprived of this right. Albert Einstein bemoaned the fact that unfortunately our technology has exceeded our humanity. Thus today we can oppress and kill brutally on a massive scale, and despoil our environment to the extent of endangering all human life.

Speaking of technology, geneticists tell us that we are the descendents of one mitochondrial Eve who lived in Southern Africa. Our skin colours may be different, but our mitochondrial genes are the same. Under the skin, we are the children of one common mother. This is an astounding revelation with major implications for the cohesiveness of humanity. That is why Cope advocates the realisation of one common national identity to overcome all manner of prejudices, bigotry and discrimination. Umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu. [No man is an island.]

On this Africa Human Rights Day, let us also recognise South Africa as the cradle of humanity. This places on us a great responsibility for ensuring that human rights flourish everywhere in Africa and the world. Thus we will pay fitting homage to that great ancestral mother who gave life to all of us.

We have a steep challenge. After the exciting years of Mandela and then of former President Mbeki, who famously pronounced on what being an African meant, we demeaned ourselves through pockets of infamous xenophobic attacks and intolerance. These took away the gloss of that historic declaration, “I am an African”, and stigmatised us after the first years of our early democracy. It also took much from the credibility of our struggle.

On this day we humbly apologise for the loss of life and for the harm that befell the victims. It was then that we failed as South Africans to be our brothers’ keepers. We say, “Motho ke motho ka batho.” [No man is an island.]

Just last week Cope’s president, Mosiuoa Lekota, was prevented from addressing a party meeting in Humansdorp, which was his constitutional right. How would our struggle heroes have reacted to this? The gain of the mob was short-lived, but the loss to the country is incalculable. Does government condone this?

On this Africa Human Rights Day, we must also share the anguish of our brothers and sisters in Zimbabwe. When we were in chains, they were enjoying their new-found liberty. Today we are free, whilst they are languishing. Let us give them encouragement and support so that they can reclaim their lost rights and freedom. The need to extend the frontiers of human freedom is always a task that we must take on collectively as fellow Africans.

On account of practising ubuntu, leaders such as Nyerere, Lumumba, Mandela, Nkrumah and Machel, among others, strode over Africa like giants sowing seeds of humanity. ’n Mens is ’n mens deur ander mense. [No man is an island.]

For ubuntu to manifest in every walk of life, we need to see an activist state with an agenda supporting citizen democracy. From this honourable podium we say, muthu ndimuthu nghavhato. [No man is an island.] [Time expired.] [Applause.]

Prof C T MSIMANG: Hon House Chair, hon members, the 21st day of October, Africa Human Rights Day, is an important date in the promotion and protection of human rights in Africa.

On this particular day we remember the year 1986 when the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights came into effect. The charter is more than a statement of rights; it is a signpost for what Africa aspires towards. It entrenches the right to life, liberty, protection from slavery and degrading punishment; the right to trial by impartial courts and freedom of conscience; and the right to receive information; and the right to participate freely in government business.

In our view as the IFP, the charter remains a leading document that guarantees the virtues of ubuntu. The challenge is always to ensure that the commitments on paper are matched in practice. The premise of this input is that there are more debilitating challenges than success stories. Africa remains poverty-stricken and beset with disease in spite of the hot air coming from African leaders in the G8 promising poverty reduction.

Millions of Africans live as refugees or internally displaced persons, often without the bare necessities of life and without hope. It’s impossible to accurately quantify routine patterns of abuse. All this happens despite African Union member states having ratified the charter.

The recent tragic outbreak of xenophobic killings on our own soil and the continued ill-treatment of African foreigners remain a mammoth challenge for the South African government in this regard. Respect for human rights goes deeper than free and fair elections. It is directly linked to the question of good governance.

A human rights culture cannot flourish on a continent that is beleaguered by improper governance, corruption and lack of service delivery. More importantly, if Africa is to succeed, the attitude towards corruption has to change - stripped from partisan politics - and presented to society not only as a moral illness but as an infringement of the right to development of the African people.

We therefore call on civil societies and activists across Africa, including those who are raising their voices – whether in calls for a new constitution for Zimbabwe, a firmer response to HIV and Aids, service delivery in South Africa or the violation of human rights in Kenya – to celebrate Africa Human Rights Day with honour and dignity. I thank you. [Applause.]

Mr J J MCGLUWA: Chairperson, Africa Human Rights Day is an opportunity to take stock of the progress we have made since the adoption of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights in 1986. If we are honest with ourselves today in terms of the charter’s guarantees of civil, political and socioeconomic rights, we must be sufficiently bold to admit that we have not done enough for the people of our continent.

But the ID believes that today we must also reflect on the poor treatment meted out in public to some of our continent’s greatest sons and daughters by international bodies like the International Association of Athletics Federations, the IAAF. The ID would like to reiterate that until we stand united against racism, fellow Africans like Caster Semenya will continue to have their rights violated. I thank you.

Ms H H MALGAS: House Chairperson, hon Ministers – I see two of them are still here – Deputy Ministers present, hon members, I greet you. I am humbled but at the same time it gives me great pleasure to participate in this important debate today as we celebrate Africa Human Rights Day, which was a recommendation by the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights in April 1986. The Chief Whip of our party, the ANC, spoke ably about the historical background.

But I must indicate that as far back as 1943, the ANC played a leading role in the development of the African Charter and the drawing up of a bill of rights for the African continent which promoted democracy; development; respect for human rights; fundamental freedoms, including the rights of women and children; and the elimination of conflicts which have a negative effect on both sexes, particularly women.

In South Africa, being an integral part of Africa, it is like the saying goes: “Charity begins at home.” We at the southern tip celebrate Human Rights Day on 21 March annually. To reflect on that day, which has a long history of apartheid, is of critical importance to all South Africans. That day is associated with atrocities; massacres; oppression; and the banning of the liberation movements, including the ANC and the consequent devastation of the lives of all South Africans.

Women’s rights are human rights. Black women in South Africa, regardless of their status in life, experienced triple oppression. They faced oppression not only because of their race, but also because of their gender. Women received lower wages than their male counterparts and they were always the first to be retrenched. As opposed to men who played a productive role, heading households and determining the status of women, the traditional role of women was that of being a reproductive being, rearing children and working in the homestead.

With the dawn of the new democracy in 1994, the interim Constitution of South Africa made the discriminatory roles and some of the legacies of patriarchy a thing of the past. A legal framework was put into place. The Bill of Rights of South Africa’s Constitution to me is but an extension of the Freedom Charter which was adopted at the true congress of the people on 26 June 1955. The Bill of Rights is in line with the objectives as spelt out in the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

The African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights was adopted on 27 June 1981 by member states of the Organisation of African Unity. It is in line with the ANC’s quest for a better Africa and a better world, namely, that there shall be peace and friendship.

Looking at postcolonial Africa, it has always been subjected to dictatorships, armed conflict, ethnic wars and genocide resulting in the displacement of our people. Wars and armed conflict in Africa continue to make women vulnerable to rape and violence, HIV and Aids, starvation and slavery. Furthermore, because of cultural practices like Sharia law, women are sometimes perceived to bring dishonour to their families and can be murdered. This happens in spite of the fact that there is a protocol in place on the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

This protocol recognises socioeconomic and cultural rights for both men and women since it speaks to peoples’ rights. This includes the right to freedom from discrimination, equality of persons, freedom from slavery, the right to a fair trial and freedom of religion. However, these rights are considered by learned scholars to be inadequate since, among other things, the right to privacy and the right to freedom from forced labour are not explicitly recognised. This protocol was adopted in 2003 and enforced in

1. It is in line with the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, Cedaw.

The SADC Protocol on Gender and Development of 2007 is a ground-breaking instrument of member states to elevate the Declaration on Gender and Development as legally binding on member states. Activists both in our country and in the region hail this protocol as an important step towards the full empowerment of women.

Timelines attached to its goals include gender equality and equity in all national institutions; the repeal of discriminatory laws; and 50% female representation in political and decision-making bodies by 2015.

Although gender-based violence is identified in the protocol, it does not address marital rape which is a common feature of domestic violence. I think it will be important for all members to read these protocols, know and understand them.

I would like to recount something that happened not so long ago. The Sharia law in Nigeria sentenced a woman to death by stoning for having sex out of wedlock. There was a loud outcry from the outside world because Sharia law codified unjust and unequal treatment for men and women in such cases.

The ANC Women’s League ran a campaign to withdraw the death sentence and appealed for the acquittal of Amina Lawal of any wrongdoing. The campaign was successful and she was acquitted, thanks to the contribution of the ANC Women’s League which was proactive with the human rights activists that regarded the punishment not only as barbaric but severely discriminatory against women.

Similarly, I wish to remind the House about the execution of a South African citizen in Botswana by hanging a couple of years ago. Clearly these executions are contrary to the spirit of Africa Human Rights Day, the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and the Constitution of South Africa and cannot be condoned. We commend the ANC Women’s League for being so proactive on issues regarding human rights in Africa. But as the ANC government we have our own role to play with regard to Chapter 9 institutions as enshrined in our Constitution.

Let me conclude by saying that as the Portfolio Committee on Women, Children and People with Disabilities we were privy to an input that would advance the struggle of women on the African continent in particular, and the global village in general, to deepen human rights and to entrench democracy. Both the Commission on Gender Equality and the SA Human Rights Commission have shortcomings in relation to their constitutional mandates, and as Parliament we should engage them. I thank you. [Applause.]

Rev K R J MESHOE: Chairperson, when one looks at the human rights record on the African continent in general, one has to look down with shame because it is appalling. There is sufficient evidence to prove that most African leaders pay lip service to human rights and that they are allowed to get away with it.

The African Union and SADC have failed our people, particularly the people of Zimbabwe, by protecting and defending dictators such as President Mugabe and President al-Bashir, rather than demanding that they respect the rule of law, justice, democracy and human rights in their countries.

As Zimbabwe is on the verge of sliding back into chaos, the ACDP urges SADC leaders to show some political muscle and will by calling for an urgent regional summit to help save the fragile Zimbabwean coalition. We agree with leading political analyst and University of Zimbabwe lecturer Eldred Masunungure who said: “… if SADC has any conscience still left, it should move swiftly to salvage what is left of the unity government.”

We call on African leaders to stop paying lip service to human rights and start setting a good example for their people to follow. Thank you.

Mrs I C DITSHETELO: Hon Chair, we should acknowledge the fact that powerful countries in the past have been known to violate the human rights of citizens of poorer countries. We, in South Africa, should not fall into that moral dilemma through greed, war and a lack of value for other people’s human rights.

There is a long way to go before we can have a just society because of the unfair application of human rights. The rights of some people should not impinge on those of others. We should be tolerant of one another.

The youth must be aware of human rights, but should not take advantage of them by losing respect, dignity and discipline. They should bear in mind that their rights as human beings have no colour or creed and are nonpolitical, and that they should not be used as a political platform.

We may quote dates, times, reasons when it comes to human rights, but it is meaningless if we do not check our own internal individual values for the rights of our fellow human beings. I thank you. [Applause.]

Mr S MOKGALAPA: House Chairperson, the role of the state in the protection of human rights is to foster the rule of law and provide security for its citizens; maintain an independent judiciary; adopt stable economic policy; hold regular, free and fair elections; invest in social service infrastructure; protect the environment; and most importantly, protect human rights. These are the fundamental roles of a functional democratic state in ensuring that civil liberties are observed and promoted.

The Vienna Declaration stipulates that all human rights are universal, interdependent and interrelated. It also reaffirms the important and constructive role played by national human rights institutions.

The World Conference on Human Rights recommended that each state consider the desirability of drawing up a national action plan, identifying steps in terms of which that state would improve the promotion and protection of human rights. The state should, furthermore, strengthen and support the work done by human rights institutions by providing public education and training in human rights, by offering technical assistance programmes and by drafting legislation in conformity with international standards. These institutions should be independent and effective so that they can hold the state to account on human rights issues.

The declaration of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights in 1981 led to a new way of thinking as this charter was laid down by Africans themselves recognising their traditions and cultures. There is no excuse not to follow the charter as it was crafted by Africans.

This African treaty emphasised the need for equality before the law; the inviolability of the human being; freedom for all from exploitation and degradation, especially torture and inhumane punishment; and freedom from arbitrary arrest or detention – things that are happening in some African countries as we speak. For lasting political stability on the continent of Africa, measures are needed to strengthen the protection of individual rights.

According to the report of the International Commission on Intervention and State Sovereignty, the basic principle of the responsibility to protect is grounded in the assumption that state sovereignty implies primary responsibility for the protection of people’s lives within a state itself. Where a state fails to protect its citizens, then the people and the principle of international interference is valid.

In Guinea, for example, the military government is brutalising human rights groups. Zimbabwe is a classic example. The Gambian president has now also declared war on the human rights commission. In the Democratic Republic of Congo, rape is being used to instil fear.

The International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for the president of Sudan, principally for the violation of human rights. The list goes on and on in Africa, with daily violations of the human rights this charter was supposed to prevent. Regional bodies should be more active in protecting citizens and intervene where necessary.

Africa should grow to realise the importance of human rights bodies and not just demonise and sabotage them. As we celebrate Africa Human Rights Day, we should embrace these bodies because Africa needs strong institutions. These bodies should ensure harmonisation between domestic legislation and international treaties, encourage the involvement of various sectors of society in the formulation, implementation and review of relevant policies and contribute to reports submitted to regional, international and intergovernmental bodies. It is their duty to be visible and raise public awareness in so far as human rights violations occur.

As we observe Africa Human Rights Day, we want to be able to say today that we are really proud of Africa, but we are not. We need to start by popularising this charter and reverting to the noble principles that formed the cornerstone of this document, for there is interdependence between peace, development, respect for and observance of the rule of law and human rights and a state’s function to ensure that each and every citizen enjoys civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights.

The charter of the Gaborone Declaration on democracy, elections and governance also highlighted the fact that democracy in Africa is threatened by a lack of respect for human rights, intolerance, unconstitutional changes of government, the re-emergence of one-man rule and the deployment of unconstitutional means to stay in power.

What is a cause for concern is that this charter has only been ratified by two African countries. South Africa has not ratified this charter. And the question is: Why has South Africa not ratified the charter on democracy, elections and governance?

Democracies must express solidarity with democratic governments and nonstate actors that work for democracy and human rights and must extend solidarity to those who are victims of human rights violations at the hands of undemocratic regimes. I thank you, Chairperson. [Applause.]

Adv T M MASUTHA: Chairperson, colleagues and comrades, it is special occasions such as this one that afford us an opportunity to pause and reflect on the long road we have traversed as a nation – reflect on where we are and the road ahead.

It is especially those amongst us who are most vulnerable – women, particularly girl-children and children in general, the disabled, the elderly, people affected and infected by HIV and Aids – on whom we should focus, owing to the particular and peculiar circumstances that confront them, the challenges that they have to overcome and the need for us as a people to ensure that human rights give meaning to their everyday lives. The ANC has been, and continues to be, committed to the principles and values of human rights. Way back in 1955, in Kliptown, we led our people in the adoption of the Freedom Charter. Even today the principles enshrined in the Freedom Charter are still valid and, in fact, many of them can still be found in the founding principles of our Constitution.

In nearly a century of leading the struggle against oppression, the ANC challenged apartheid laws such as the Group Areas Act, which limited where a person could live, and many other similar laws that restricted people’s ability to live their lives to their fullest potential. Our people were restricted from accessing equal and quality education because of race. They were even limited in whom they could marry or fall in love with. That’s how absurd the apartheid regime or system was in seeking to take social, political and economic engineering to the very extreme.

Today we enjoy liberty. Many amongst our people are now experiencing a better quality of life. But it is important not to forget those amongst us for whom the African sun has not yet shone. The challenge is upon all of us to ensure that in everything we do, we do not lose sight of the primary goal, which is the vision that we should be sharing irrespective of political affiliation or bias - and that is to ensure that all amongst our people eventually get to enjoy a better life.

As the ANC, in our manifesto with regard to this year’s elections, we particularly emphasised three key priorities, namely, promoting access to education and health care; protecting our people from crime, especially violent crime; placing particular emphasis on rural communities and ensuring that economic prosperity reaches them as well. All of this was because we were inspired by our unwavering commitment to ensuring that our people enjoy the same rights and the same quality of life irrespective of where they live, irrespective of the colour of their skin or their gender.

We still have a long road ahead. It is important to recall the words of some of our forebears like O R Tambo who reminded us that a nation that does not give particular attention to its children has no future. That is where I would want to suggest we focus as a point of departure: The quality of life of our children – ensuring that their survival is promoted, that their nutritional needs are taken care of, that they have access to education, that they have access to health care and that their general wellbeing is improved.

We have to ensure that in all our endeavours we promote a culture of tolerance amongst our people, recognising cultural and social differences and not allowing them to be the basis of division but rather the basis for promoting what we call a rainbow nation. We need to celebrate our diversity rather than see it as a weakness.

The challenges in our country remain, amongst other things, domestic violence in which women and those that are considered weak are subjected to unfair and unjust humiliation through violence, whether psychological, physical or otherwise.

As we approach our commitment to the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children campaign, we must take all the necessary steps, both in government and civil society, to mobilise our resources and our energies to ensure that, especially in this period, women and children live lives that are free from violence.

Our society is particularly endowed with resources of different kinds, but it is especially our cultural heritage of ubuntu that should guide us and that should give us strength in addressing issues of equality and equity and ensuring that all of us have access to all that we most treasure, namely, economic prosperity, social equality and a better life in general. I thank you. [Applause.]

Debate concluded.

The House adjourned at 18:10. ____

            ANNOUNCEMENTS, TABLINGS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS

ANNOUNCEMENTS

National Assembly

The Speaker

1. Referral to Committees of papers tabled

   1) The following paper is referred to the Committee on Public Accounts for consideration: a) Report of the Auditor-General on the Financial Statements and Performance Information for The Presidency for 2008-09.

   2) The following paper is referred to the Portfolio Committee on Higher Education and Training for consideration and report. The Report of the Auditor-General is referred to the Committee on Public Accounts for consideration:

   a) Report and Financial Statements of the National Student
      Financial Aid Scheme for 2008-09, including the Report of the
      Auditor-General on the Financial Statements and Performance
      Information for 2008-09.
   

   3) The following papers are referred to the Portfolio Committee on Public Service and Administration for consideration:

   a) Report of the Public Service Commission (PSC) on the Evaluation
      of the Implementation of the Batho Pele Principle of Courtesy
      [RP 41-2009].
   b) Report of the Public Service Commission (PSC) on the Evaluation
      of the Implementation of the Batho Pele Principle of Information
      [RP 64-2009].
   

   4) The following paper is referred to the Portfolio Committee on Communications for consideration and report. The Report of the Auditor-General is referred to the Committee on Public Accounts for consideration:

   a) Report and Financial Statements of the Independent
      Communications Authority of South Africa for 2008-09, including
      the Report of the Auditor-General on the Financial Statements
      and Performance Information for 2008-09 [RP 219-2009].
   

   5) The following paper is referred to the Standing Committee on Finance for consideration and report:

    a) Report of the Registrar of Pension Funds for 2006-07 [RP 244-
       2007].
   

2. Letter from President

   1) A letter dated 19 October 2009 has been received from the President of the Republic, informing Parliament that –

   a) the following persons have been appointed to the Independent
      Commission for the Remuneration of Political Office-Bearers in
      terms of section 3 of the Independent Commission for the
      Remuneration of Public Office-Bearers Act (Act No 92 of 1997):
      Mr Justice Willie Seriti (Chairperson), Ms Tshidi Mokgabudi
      (Deputy Chairperson), Dr Mark Herbert Raymond Bussin, Dr
      Mpilenhle Pearl Sithole, Ms Philisiwe Buthelezi and Mr Blake
      Keith Mosley-Lefatola;
   
   
   b) the new commissioners join two commissioners who are currently
      serving a five-year term: Ms Nicky Newton-King (appointed on 10
      March 2006) and Mr Raphael Martin (appointed on 24 November
      2005); and
   
   c) Mr Justice Phineas Mojapelo declined the offer of appointment to
      this position on 6 August 2009.
   

TABLINGS

National Assembly

1. The Speaker

   (a) The President of the Republic submitted the following letter dated 19 October 2009 to the Speaker of the National Assembly, informing Members of the Assembly of the extension of the employment of the SA National Defence Force for a service in fulfillment of the International Obligations of the Republic of South Africa towards the Government of the Republic of Mozambique in support of the national elections on Mozambique:

   EMPLOYMENT OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN NATIONAL DEFENCE FORCE FOR SERVICE
   IN FULFILLMENT OF THE INTERNATIONAL OBLIGATIONS OF THE REPUBLIC OF
   SOUTH AFRICA TOWARDS THE GOVERNMENT OF MOZAMBIQUE IN SUPPORT OF THE
   NATIONAL ELECTIONS IN MOZAMBIQUE
   
   
   This serves to inform the National Assembly that I have employed
   the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) personnel, for
   service in fulfilment of the international obligations of the
   Republic of South Africa towards the Government of the Republic of
   Mozambique, in support of the national elections in Mozambique.
   This employment is authorised in accordance with the provisions of
   section 201(2)(c) of the Constitution of the Republic of South
   Africa, 1996, read with section 93 of the Defence Act, 2002 (Act No
   42 of 2002).
   
   
   40 Members of the SANDF will be employed from 21 October 2009 until
   05 November 2009.
   
   
   I will communicate this report to members of the National Council
   of Provinces and wish to request that you bring the contents hereof
   to the attention of the National Assembly.
   
   
   Regards
   
   signed
   J G ZUMA