Madam Speaker and hon members of this House, section 9 of the Constitution provides for the enactment of national legislation to prevent and prohibit unfair discrimination and to promote the achievement of equality. The Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act was passed in 2000 to give effect to this constitutional requirement by prohibiting practices that perpetuate inequality and by promoting equality in all spheres of South African life.
In 2006, ten years after the passing of our extraordinary and far-reaching Constitution, Parliament embarked on a process of reviewing the impact of the Equality Act on the lives of women and people with disabilities. Public hearings were held and a report was issued on the findings of that review process.
The concept of equality and its implementation impacts on every aspect of human life. It is what humanity is all about, it is what democracy is all about and it is what true justice is all about. There is no doubt that within the human framework that constitutes what we know as society, huge inequalities exist everywhere. Some of these inequalities are there from birth and I would like to spend a few moments speaking on this subject.
Through absolutely no fault of their own, there are children born with visual or hearing impairments or profound intellectual disabilities. Others have disabilities such as epilepsy, cerebral palsy or other physical handicaps. For them playing fields are never going to be level. In fact, the great majority of them are never ever going to get onto any playing field. For them, from day one, life is going to be a fearful and exhausting battle - and not only for them, but also for their families.
Yet, each and every one of these children have the same rights as you or I and that is the right not to be discriminated against because of his or her disability. It is critically important for them to receive a basic education that will maximise his or her capabilities so that he or she can experience a good quality of life and in many cases be able to become a useful member of society.
It must be noted that so often these special members of communities, perhaps because of the massive obstacles they have had to face and overcome, make just as great, and indeed time and again, far greater contributions to the common good than do our able-bodied citizens. A prime example of this is the ongoing commitment and dedication our disabled Members of Parliament give to their responsibilities. I would like to take this opportunity to salute you, honourable comrades and colleagues.
In 2005, our Department of Education issued guidelines for inclusive learning. This was a follow-up to Education White Paper 6 of 2001 on an inclusive education and training system. The challenges confronting the implementation of inclusive education nationwide are extremely daunting and it is clear that the current situations leave much to be desired. It means the buy-in and the will of the provinces to implement, yet some provincial departments are reluctant to campaign, to get the out-of-school youth back into public and/or special schools.
Given the will and desire to implement, it requires a secure funding, which is lacking, and implementation capacity as well as training policies. In addition, serious gaps still exist with regard to accurate numbers of potential learners, which makes it very difficult to set targets and annual benchmarks. The infrastructure provisioning in public schools to deal with students with special needs remains extremely precarious.
I could continue at length but I am aware that the issue of the education of children with disabilities is but one of the challenges facing our education department at this time. I'm aware too that resources are limited and fought over vigorously with the inevitable result that what gets done does not emanate from stated policy but rather from available financial and other capacity. But my plea is that the situation of these children must not be allowed to remain on the drawing board.
It is a well-known medical and sociological fact that the earlier a child's disability is identified, the sooner remedial treatment can begin on a pathway established for his or her education. It is also a well- known fact that in both financial and social terms, it will cost far less to maintain an adult who as a child was enabled to care for himself and received the appropriate education or skills training that would help him to earn a living as he/she would not be dependent on the state.
The target set within the inclusive education policy can never be attained without the allocation of appropriate resources, training of personnel, data for monitoring and evaluation of programmes and, most importantly, raising awareness amongst and the buy-in of implementers at national and provincial level to take the process forward more vigorously.
Without the aforementioned, children and youth with special educational needs will not benefit optimally from attaining their right to education. I don't think those of us fortunate enough to be able- bodied have any real idea of what it is like to live in the world of the disabled. I would like to talk briefly on just one aspect: the situation of deaf people in South Africa. In our country approximately 500 000 of our citizens use sign language as their first language and yet, despite fine and dedicated work by DeafSA and other NGOs, there remains in both the public and the private sector a lack of interest, of funding, of education, of knowledge and indeed of caring for their situation. In particular there is a critical need for trained sign language interpreters.
Without signers to interpret in a hospital, how does a deaf person communicate his or her condition or problem? In the courts or at the departments of social development and in the rural areas, where literacy is also a factor, the person who is deaf and illiterate can only communicate and express himself/herself in sign language. Without appropriate resources, support and education a deaf person is at risk of leading a life encapsulated in a world of silence. For those of us in the hearing world this seems unimaginable, but it is a fact.
The Equality Act is guided by the principles of equality, fairness, equity, social progress, justice, human dignity and freedom. On this occasion I would like to use this platform to make a special plea for our government, the private sector and society in general to turn the vision of the Equality Act into a vibrant and effective reality in order for those living with disabilities to be enabled to enjoy a richer and better quality of life; after all, it is their constitutional right. Thank you.
Deputy Speaker, one of the fundamental values espoused in our Constitution is equality. Equality in the South African abstraction is a highly problematic concept riddled with all kinds of difficulties, of which affirmative action is but one. However, this is not a new problem. The genesis of equality jurisprudence lies in the definition of equality which Aristotle crafted 2 400 years ago. He said that things that are equal should be treated equally, but things that are not equal can be treated unequally in proportion to their inequality.
In the Oxford Dictionary, equality is defined as the condition of being equal in quality, amount, value and intensity, etc. In other words, it is something that can be measured in one way or another. In the Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act, equality is defined as follows:
..."equality" includes the full and equal enjoyment of rights and freedoms as contemplated in the Constitution and includes de jure and de facto equality and also equality in terms of outcomes.
Reading all these definitions made me realise that equality, like happiness, means different things to different people - like the cook who made horse and rabbit pie, who, when he was asked in what proportion he mixed the horse and rabbit, said, "Fifty-fifty: one horse and one rabbit".
To illustrate this, I as a full member of this Parliament was only allocated four minutes in this debate, but my ANC colleague got 11 minutes. To me its inequality, to them it's obviously not. For us in the DA, equality means a free and open-opportunity society for all the people. In such a society your path in life is not determined by the circumstances of your birth or the colour of your skin, but by your talents and efforts.
In a free and open society, a child born in poverty should, notwithstanding the circumstances of his or her birth, be able to become a brain surgeon, a rocket scientist or whatever he or she chooses, provided he or she has the talent and the will to succeed. In such a society it won't be necessary to have different entry standards for students as is happening at our universities today.
My point is that the DA, as a party for all the people, cares equally about the identity issues and concerns of all the people in this beautiful country and our key message to all is to promote equality and sharing for all, not only for some. I thank you.
Madam Deputy Speaker, in dealing with Parliament's equality review process, the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Constitutional Development convened hearings with the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development and the SA Human Rights Commission in order to assess the effectiveness of the Equality Act. Subsequent to the hearings the committee made the following recommendations:
That the Minister for Justice and Constitutional Development and the Chief Justice, together with the Judicial Services Commission, the Magistrate's Commission and the Justice College must ensure that ongoing training in respect of the implementation of ... Act 4 of 2000 takes place;
That the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development and the Justice College must ensure that support staff are appropriately trained in respect of the Act;
That the Department ... and the SA Human Rights Commission must embark on a public education campaign to increase awareness of the existence and procedures of equality courts and to raise awareness of sectors and practices ... that unfairly discriminate against the poor and vulnerable;
That the Department must table regular quarterly reports in Parliament pertaining to the details and progress on the designation and equipping of equality courts in the remaining magisterial districts by the end of April 2008 and the training of court staff and judicial officers;
That the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development must table annual statistics and analysis of cases dealt with in the equality courts throughout the country ...
And so it goes on. The IFP fully endorses these recommendations and wishes to request regular updates on the progress being made with the implementation. We accept the report. Thank you, Chairperson.
Hon Deputy Speaker, hon members, 53 years ago the Freedom Charter was adopted, as I said, on 26 June 1955. It outlined a vision that South Africa belongs to all of us regardless of race, colour, religious belief, economic status and, importantly, irrespective of whether we have a disability or not.
Indeed, the principle of equality as contained in the clause which states, "All shall be equal before the law", is enshrined in our Constitution and the Bill of Rights. In fact, the Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act gives legislative effect to this principle of equality and outlaws discrimination on the basis of race, sex, religion or disability.
This Equality Act, together with the Employment Equity Act, the Skills Development Act, the Skills Development Levies Act, the Social Assistance Act and our Constitution, is part of a basket of legislation introduced by the ANC-led government to protect and advance the rights of disabled people who, for decades if not centuries, were treated as people with lesser dignity, objects of pity, a burden to society and as not being able to contribute to the good of humanity.
This legislation not only prohibits discrimination on the basis of someone's disability, but together with key policies also introduced by our ANC-led government such as the Integrated National Disability Strategy, creates opportunities for employment, education, the right to independent living, restoration of one's dignity and achieving one's dreams despite one's disability.
Deputy Speaker and hon members, it is with a great sense of pride that we realise that our beloved South Africa is looked upon as a leader in the enactment of progressive legislation that impacts positively on the lives of people with disabilities and that advanced democracies such as the USA are learning from our experience.
This is without a doubt thanks to the visionary leaders of our ANC-led government, led by President Thabo Mbeki and his predecessor, Nelson Mandela. President Mbeki has pioneered the White Paper on Disability Rights as well as the Integrated National Disability Strategy. And he is also the patron of the leading disability rights movement in South Africa, namely Disabled People South Africa.
These two statesmen, both past presidents of the ANC - which as a liberation movement consistently demonstrated over the decades of struggle for a just society and a nonracial, nonsexist, democratic and prosperous South Africa - emphasised that the struggle faced by disabled people to overcome societal barriers is interwoven in the struggle for a just and humane societal order and that disabled people are not excluded from the efforts of a better life for all.
The ANC at its national conference held in Mafikeng in 1997 expressed its commitment to the integration of disabled people into the broader South African society and also supported the White Paper on disability that, among other things, sought to ensure that the full integration and empowerment of disabled people in our South African society takes place.
The 51st conference of the ANC held at Stellenbosch in 2002 built on this point by stating in its strategy and tactics document that its vision for building a national democratic society must give greater acknowledgement to the rights, dignity and prominence of disabled people as equal members of South African society.
These points are entrenched in the ANC post-Polokwane programme of action that, among other things, strives towards the equalisation of opportunities, life-long learning and economic opportunities for people with disabilities. Previous policy biases towards institutionalisation, social exclusion and deprivation of disabled people from mainstream society and opportunities to live productive lives have been done away with by successive ANC governments. And we are confident that the future ANC government under the leadership of Comrade Jacob Zuma will continue to pursue policies of the mainstreaming, integration, inclusion and empowerment of disabled people into all facets of South African society.
The struggle for the improvement of the status and quality of life of disabled people is essential to remove all societal barriers that prevent disabled people from developing to their fullest potential and break the shackles of poverty, underdevelopment and disempowerment. People participating in the equality review processes in the public hearings and the People's Parliament in Oudtshoorn raised the question of social and economic barriers very sharply. Overcoming some, if not all, of these barriers holds the key to unshackling the chains of poverty, inadequate education, disempowerment and despair.
The former director of the World Bank's Social Protection Department, Mr Robert Holzmann, once said, and I quote:
Poor people are disproportionately disabled, and people with disabilities are disproportionately poor.
Indeed, there is no doubt that societal barriers generally banish disabled people to lives of poverty where their only possible means of income is a disability grant. And due to administrative deficiencies even this income becomes unreachable.
An article in one of our national newspapers reported on the plight of a disabled woman whose attempt to obtain an identity document was frustrated by the fact that the official of Home Affairs demanded her fingerprints when in fact she has no hands. It goes without saying that this disabled woman will not be able to access government services and, indeed, will not be able to receive disability grants as a result of having no identity document. This, indeed, constitutes a definite violation of the rights and dignity of this disabled woman. Home Affairs must surely find other ways of identification processing, because the loss of one's hands cannot be used as a basis to deny one an identity document.
Deputy Speaker and hon members, disabled people rank amongst the poorest of the poor. Some of the factors that contribute to the state of poverty among disabled people include lower skills levels due to inadequate education, discriminatory attitudes and practices of employers, past discriminatory and ineffective labour legislation, lack of enabling mechanisms to promote employment opportunities, inaccessible public transport, inaccessible and unsupportive work environments, inadequate and inaccessible provision for vocational rehabilitation and training and generally high levels of unemployment.
A Development Bank of South Africa case study on the employment of people with disabilities in our first decade of democracy found that disabled people continue to face significant challenges with respect to employment opportunities. At the root of these challenges are attitudinal and institutional barriers that perpetuate a cycle of dependency, segregation, isolation and exclusion.
More specifically, some of the constraints and challenges relating to employment that impact negatively on disabled persons include negative attitudes of others in the workplace leading to isolation and separation as well as feelings of depression. Many respondents in the study felt anger and frustration at the fact that despite many years of service they had not been integrated into the mainstream work environment.
We as the ANC support the recommendations in this report. Thank you.
Thank you, Deputy Speaker. Since 1996 government has strived to turn South Africa into a true democracy, based on the values and principles enshrined in our Constitution. Equality and freedom were our key principles in addressing and amending legislation to pave the way for gender equality and equal opportunities for women and the physically challenged.
It was soon realised that constructive nation-building is dependent on the contributions of all citizens and the creation of equal opportunities. Poverty has been one of our greatest challenges, and while legislation and policy have served to address gender shortfalls the mindset of our people remains rigid and not open to handing over the market to all.
The MF acknowledges that all departments took on a challenge to address all imbalances pertaining to gender and the physically challenged. Some have met their targets and others are still trying. But in reality it is discouraging to note that after 14 years of our democracy, serious gender inequalities exist and the disabled are not as represented in society as they should be.
It is important that with changing legislation we filter the mindset of the communities so that we may open the way for effective gender equality and opportunities for the physically challenged. We need to also reach these groups in society and lead them to realise the opportunities that await them.
It is most unfortunate that many of the physically challenged are not invited to explore their talents and skills. Many of them do not even know their value to society.
The MF finds these reports a vital measurement of the progress we have made in the arena. It is clear that many loopholes still exist and this allows us a window through which to explore how we may address our shortfalls and speed up the process to gender equality and equal opportunity for all. The MF supports all three reports. I thank you.
Madam Deputy Speaker and hon members, the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development has an important role to play in providing fair, accessible and effective administration of justice. As the Constitution stipulates -
... to lay the foundations for a democratic and open society in which government is based on the will of the people and every citizen is equally protected by law ...
To achieve this purpose, it therefore designates the equality courts in terms of the Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act, Act 4 of 2000. These courts have to deal inter alia with issues and complaints from the public, with emphasis on issues of women and people with disabilities.
Notwithstanding the separation of powers of the executive, the judiciary and the legislature, Parliament has to play an oversight role over all these components. It is for this reason that Parliament took the initiative to undergo a Parliamentary Equality Review Process to determine the impact of the equality courts on persons with disabilities and women.
The SA Human Rights Commission was given a mandate to undertake these investigations. The Institute for Democracy in South Africa also conducted its own research on the functioning of the equality courts.
According to the review and the reports that have been made, the following observations have been made. An average of three to six equality courts in all provinces have been established. A legal framework has been put in place and also presiding officers, clerks and assessors have been appointed. All these members are trained and continue to be trained.
There is a relationship between the Equality Act and criminal proceedings in all the courts. All High Courts in the Republic are equality courts. Magistrates' courts act as equality courts at the insistence of the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, according to the norms of the department.
Out of the 220 magistrates' courts designated as equality courts, only 47 were listed in the department during the time of review. In some provinces, these courts are dysfunctional. According to reports, the public is not well informed about the existence of the courts, and there is no proof that they have been advertised.
It is observed that the equality courts are faced with numerous challenges. Equality courts are not properly publicised, as I have indicated. In some provinces, some officials are not even aware that there are equality courts. In other provinces, questionnaires that have been distributed for the purpose of the survey are not returned by the recipients.
It is reported that amakhosi and even SA Police Service members are not acquainted with the Act, and they are not even able to determine certain cases involving discrimination, racism and sexism. Even some political parties, it is reported, are not aware that there are equality courts in their areas.
Very few complaints had been registered at the time of the review. There were only 12 that were registered and yet people are still subjected to various forces of discrimination, racism and sexism.
It is clear that some measures have to be adopted so as to ensure that equality courts are known to the public and are well-publicised. I would like, therefore, to submit that Parliament should take some further steps to ensure that equality courts provide the services for which they were intended. I thank you. [Applause.]
Madam Speaker, even though South Africa celebrated the 12th anniversary of the new Constitution this year, it is still faced with many challenges in achieving a society that is free of discrimination on the basis of physical disability, race and gender. Gender inequality, racism and discrimination against physical or mental disability are some of the problems which government still lacks the capacity to fully solve implement in its policies.
The IFP believes that in order for the country to be able to effectively implement such policies, it must undergo a paradigm shift with regard to how resources are allocated and how people relate to each other. The government and all relevant stakeholders, whether public sector or private sector, need to be thoroughly trained with regard to people with disabilities and their different requirements as well as the importance of addressing gender mainstreaming.
Furthermore, with regard to gender mainstreaming, one cannot deal with gender discrimination without tackling the issues of socialisation and culture. They both play an important role in shaping our society.
The Equality Act has been in place for eight years now but, in reality, it has not yet had the desired effect on our people. The IFP calls for a renewed effort by all South Africans to consign discrimination to the dustbin of history. The IFP accepts the report. I thank you.
Chairperson, the SA Constitution is very clear on the rights and the protection of the rights of persons with disabilities. Specifically paragraphs 9(3), 9(4), 10, 21(1), and 32(1) in Chapter 2, dealing with the Bill of Rights, emphasise that persons belonging to the disability sector have enshrined rights, and not the privileges some people make them out to be. Furthermore, the Employment Equity Act and the Equality Act are supposed to ensure that persons with disabilities enjoy the benefits emphasised by the intentions of these Acts.
Voorsitter, die DA het herhaaldelik die Parlement en onderskeie Ministers daarop gewys dat hoewel die regering baie goeie wetgewing asook indiensnemingsdoelwitte het, die praktyk ons keer op keer daarop gewys het dat genoegsame erns vir seker nie getoon word nie.
Ongeag die regering se indiensnemingsdoelwitte, toon die jaarverslae die regering slaag steeds nie in sy doelwit van slegs 2% indiensname van persone met gestremdhede nie. Verskonings sluit in dat dit 'n onvoltooide aaneenlopende proses is; dat persone met gestremdhede glo nie geklassifiseer wil word as gestremd nie en daarom kan die oudits nie voltooi word nie, ens.
Natuurlik wil hierdie persone nie kwotas wees nie en wil hulle op meriete aangestel word. Hoewel baie Suid-Afrikaners nie as swart Afrikaan, swart, bruin, wit of Indir geklassifiseer wil wees nie, moet daar steeds oor die rasse- en geslagsamestelling verslag gedoen word. Dit is dus 'n onaanvaarbare verskoning om nie oor die indiensname van persone met gestremdhede verslag te kan doen nie. Die regering behoort dit verpligtend en afdwingbaar te maak en natuurlik die voorbeeld te stel. Slegs Sars het, volgens my wete, openlik die uitdaging aanvaar om noemenswaardig meer gestremdes aan te stel in die volgende jaar.
Voorsitter, die verslag toon baie duidelik dat die staat nie genoegsame erns toon om die regte van persone met gestremdhede te verseker nie. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraphs follows.)
[Chairperson, the DA has repeatedly pointed out to Parliament and various Ministers, that although the government has very good legislation and employment objectives, in practice we have seen time and again that it is not treated with the seriousness it deserves.
Irrespective of the government's employment objectives, the annual reports indicate that the government is still not successful in its objective of no more than 2% employment of persons with disabilities. Excuses include that it is an unfinished continuous process; that persons with disabilities apparently do not want to be classified as disabled and therefore the audits cannot be completed, etc.
These persons obviously do not want to be quotas and want to be appointed on merit. Although many South Africans do not want to be classified as black African, black, coloured, white or Indian, the race and gender composition still has to be reported on. It is therefore an unacceptable excuse not to be able to report on the employment of persons with disabilities. Government should make it compulsory and enforceable and, of course, set the example. It is only Sars, to my knowledge, that has openly accepted the challenge of appointing significantly more persons with disabilities in the next year.
Chairperson, the report clearly shows that the state is not taking the protection of the rights of persons with disabilities seriously enough.]
The report highlights the following as being of particular importance. Firstly, access to employment: We know that many able- bodied persons still don't understand the challenges the disabled are facing, and don't know how to deal with this group.
Secondly, access to information: Due to, amongst other things, the inaccessibility of facilities, and the inability to effectively communicate with persons with a disability, they are denied access to important information.
Thirdly, access to transport and buildings: South Africa is still trailing far behind other countries. Enforceable minimum standards should be implemented. Fourthly, access to quality education: Mainstreaming is often very challenging for many disabled learners, and can easily marginalise them.
Lastly, access to housing: Special standards must apply for allocating housing units, as well as special tax concessions for extra costs. Housing schemes should always allocate special units to disabled persons and their families as a priority.
The one aspect to always take into consideration when deciding on anything that might affect the lives of persons with a disability is to involve them and to consult them. I have a 22-year old multiple and severely disabled daughter, which certainly qualifies me to have a very good understanding of their circumstances, but even I cannot have 100% empathy with their challenges because I myself am not disabled.
My plea is for us to interact with them in order to understand their circumstances and their needs better. They are 100% able, in my opinion, to give advice on their real requirements. They have a saying: Nothing about us without us.
We must certainly not accommodate these very able and capable persons purely because they are disabled, but rather see it as an additional positive characteristic of their abilities that they can execute any task as well as or even better than any able-bodied person can.
Dit is nie net belangrik dat persone met gestremdhede in die drie sfere van regering verteenwoordig moet wees nie, maar dit is ook belangrik om hierdie persone te sien, en na waarde te skat, vir die ekonomiese bydrae waartoe hulle absoluut in staat is. Ek hoop werklik dat die regering die voorbeeld sal stel tot daadwerklike verbetering van die lewenskwaliteit van alle persone met gestremdhede. Die DA ondersteun hierdie verslae. Dankie. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraph follows.)
[It is not only important that persons with disabilities should be represented in the three spheres of government, but it is also important to see these persons, and to value them for the economic contribution that they are absolutely capable of. I sincerely trust that the government will set the example and play an active part in improving the quality of life of all persons with disabilities. The DA supports these reports. Thank you.]
Chairperson, hon members, it is an honour to participate in such a debate, as this is the year in which we celebrate the 60th anniversary of the formation of the ANC Women's League, which galvanised women within the ANC into an organised grouping capable of advancing the interests of women within the movement and society. I'll be upfront in acknowledging the challenges facing domestic workers, farmworkers and casual workers, among others.
During the inaugural meeting of the UN General Assembly in London in February 1946, Eleanor Roosevelt, a UN delegate, read an open letter addressed to the women of the world, stating:
To this end, we call on the governments of the world to encourage women everywhere to take a more active part in national and international affairs and on women who are conscious of their opportunities to come forward and share in the work of peace and reconciliation as they did in war and resistance.
It was as if she was aware that some years later, on 17 April 1954, the women of South Africa would adopt the Women's Charter, which stated:
We, women of South Africa, wives and mothers, working women and housewives, African, Indian, European and coloured, hereby declare our aim of striving for the removal of all laws, regulations, conventions and customs that discriminate against us as women and that deprive us in any way of our inherent right to the advantages, responsibilities and opportunities that society offers to any one section of the population.
It is because of such things that today, under the leadership of the ANC, we are debating the impact of some of the progressive legislation we have adopted as a country.
If we accept that the right to equality contained in section 9 of the Constitution is the remedy for the systematic patterns of social and economic inequalities of the past, then government is faced with the responsibility of ensuring that every single citizen of this country is in a position to exercise this right. It is in this context that the promotion of equality and the prevention of unfair discrimination enacted in February 2000 is intended to give full effect to the right to equality, as contemplated in the Constitution.
The Act consequently deals with the prevention and prohibition of unfair discrimination, as well as the promotion of equality. The objects of the legislation are, among other things, to give effect to the letter and spirit of the Constitution; prevent and prohibit unfair discrimination and provide redress in cases of unfair discrimination; and provide for measures aimed at ensuring the eradication of unfair discrimination and harassment, with special focus on race, gender and disability.
The ANC, as the ruling party, realises that the deeply ingrained and institutionalised inequalities will not disappear of their own accord, even when confronted by progressive legislation and policies. Our approach to inequality is guided by the Freedom Charter and the founding document for a democratic South Africa, the Constitution.
When we drafted this country's Constitution the aim was to ensure that equality and the preservation of human dignity form the basis of our human rights and human development programme. Naturally, then, the Constitution prohibits unfair discrimination in any form and in any facet of our society. It also calls upon government to institute measures that address inequality whenever and in whatever form it manifests itself.
The 2007 ANC conference again pledged its commitment to successfully address the important challenges of persistent racial and gender inequalities, the disempowerment of our youth and people with disabilities and proper care for children and the elderly.
It is this commitment that ensured that the promotion and protection of equality become integral to the long-term development of South Africa. These equality policies and legislation attempt to mitigate the impact of years of discrimination and oppression through decisive measures that focus on the full participation of all South Africans in all facets of our society.
Clearly, in the South African context, equality can only be achieved through the total dismantling of structures and practices which unfairly obstruct the enjoyment thereof. Therefore, measures such as equality courts are rooted in government's desire to achieve equality through enforceable mechanisms that afford an aggrieved party recourse to remedy the damage.
It is encouraging to note the increased public awareness of these courts and what they do. Proper utilisation of the equality legislation and the equality courts presupposes that the people know about the provisions of the Constitution, the statutes and the working of the equality courts.
The public awareness campaigns are underpinned by the realisation that equality cannot be realised solely through legislation. Equality is a value that needs to be shared and upheld by entire communities and by the entire society.
If we are to realise the Freedom Charter and our Constitution's vision of a society free of discrimination and prejudice, it is important that we ensure that the values of equality, respect and dignity take hold in the collective psyche. It is important that we continue to emphasise the critical nature of these values for the promotion of equality and reversal of unfair discrimination.
In conclusion, it means Comrade Mzala was correct when he said:
No one gave us rights. We won them in the struggle. They exist in our hearts before they exist on paper. Yet intellectually it is one of the most important areas in the battle for rights. It is through this concept that we link our dreams to the acts of daily life.
That is why, in the strategy and tactics, as adopted by the 52nd conference of the ANC in 2007, we noted that shortcomings remain in ensuring that all citizens are actually able, in practice, to exercise their rights in regard to the efficiency of the state and in changing mindsets within various state institutions. However, the Constitution and the state system provide prerequisites to implementing the objectives of the NDR. Thank you. [Applause.]
Debate concluded.
Phini likaSomlomo, ngabe impela kuyilumbo uma kuwukuthi asiyivumi le mibiko. Asiyemukeleni. [Deputy Speaker, it would be very strange if we do not adopt these reports. Let us adopt them.]
Ngathi angikuzwanga kahle, baba. [I don't think I understood you well, sir.]
Madam Speaker, I move:
That the reports be adopted.
Motion agreed to.
Reports accordingly adopted.