Half of SA not aware of constitution
Dissatisfaction with MPs in parliament
Twenty-four years into democracy, half of the South African population are yet to hear of either the constitution or the Bill of Rights.
This is the finding of a major survey conducted by the Foundation for Human Rights (FHR) in 2016.
“The less knowledge people have of their rights, the less access they have to them. The finding that only 47% of females as opposed to 55% of males have knowledge of the constitution and Bill of Rights does not portend well in light of the massive inequalities presently existing,” the report says.
According to the survey, which conducted 24 897 interviews across all the provinces, covering more than 4 165 sites, levels of awareness were lowest among black females (47%) and people over 60 (43%). Younger people were somewhat more aware.
Among rural people aware of the constitution or Bill of Rights, over 70% judged it favourably. This suggests that knowledge by the poor does give people a sense that the system is on their side.
Despite the low levels of awareness of the constitution among vulnerable sections of the population, those who were aware of the law said they thought it was the best constitution SA could have.
“Those who thought it was the best South Africa could have, pointed to the existence of a ‘legal framework that provides for the rights and duties of all citizens’ and that ‘we are all equal now’ as the main reasons for their positive attitude to the constitution,” the report found.
Notably, most people questioned felt the electoral system is operating transparently, with a 61% satisfaction rate, while feeling that parliament is unaccountable, with 65% dissatisfied.
The report found this suggests that South Africans notice that their vote is still considered when it comes to selecting representatives but, once elected, members of parliament fail to represent their interests in the National Assembly.
Turning to discrimination, a third (32%) said this had transpired in a public place by an unknown person, followed by the work environment at 30% and, lastly, at home by 25%.
“Almost half (45%) of those who had experienced discrimination cited their race as the main reason for that discrimination, while a further quarter (27%) cited their language as being the factor behind the discrimination,” the report says.