ACDP Parliamentary newsletter - 28 November 2003

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In this issue:

1. ACDP growth soars in by-elections
2. World Aids Day - Let's do what works
3. ACDP MP elected onto Magistrates Commission
4. ACDP supports Prevention and Combatting of Corrupt Activities Bill
5. Shelving of Road Accident Fund Amendment Bill welcome
6. Kamp Staaldraad invasion of dignity
7. Overseas vote a step in the right direction
8. GM producers should label their products

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1. ACDP growth soars in by-elections

The African Christian Democratic Party continues to grow strongly, as evidence from the recent by-elections held around the country yesterday shows.

Winning 17.3% of the votes in Okhahlamba/Bergville in KwaZulu-Natal (Ward 52305012), the ACDP showed a growth of 65 percent, up from 10.48 percent in the 2000 Local Government Elections. The ANC were marginally ahead with 21.7 percent of the votes, while the IFP secured 60.88 percent of the votes in that region.

Participating for the first time in Fetakgomo in Limpopo (Ward 98303003), the ACDP won 9 percent of the vote ahead of the Pan Africanist Congress which secured 5.5 percent.

Also running for the first time in Ethekwini, Durban Metro (Ward 59200012), the ACDP won 1.66 percent of the vote.

Voters are clearly showing their dissatisfaction with the way the country is being governed and that a change towards principle based Christian government is necessary

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2. World Aids Day - Let's do what works

With over five million people in South Africa estimated to be infected with HIV and with over 5000 000 South Africans living with Aids, all South Africans will be affected whether emotionally, physically or financially.

The provision of antiretroviral drugs to the public health sector is now included in government's HIV and Aids plan, although this has yet to be implemented. The ACDP has consistently called for antiretroviral treatment, as well as drugs for the prevention of mother-to-child transmission and post-exposure prophylactics to rape survivors since 1999. The party has pioneered HIV treatment work in KZN since 1997, being at the forefront of demonstrating the effectiveness of antiretrovirals.

While the ACDP recognises that anti-retroviral drugs can prolong an Aids sufferer's life and improve living conditions, they are a treatment, not a cure. The most obvious solution to halting the spread of the disease has continuously been ignored. If we are interested in what works - and we should be - South Africa should be supporting efforts to promote a culture of abstinence from sex outside of marriage and faithfulness in marriage.

Current HIV awareness programmes focussing on condoms as a means of prevention fail to take into account the high failure rate of condoms. The Aids virus is fifty times smaller than the tiny holes in latex condoms and a 1993 study at the University of Texas found the average condom failure rate for preventing the transmission of the HI virus was 31%.

Related relevant programmes that develop character, promote values, prepare young people to deal with relationships, encourage self control and honestly present the consequences of risky behaviour should replace present attempts to address HIV and Aids.

According to findings in a Harvard University study, Uganda may be on its way to wiping out Aids by using a strategy based on chastity and fidelity. The study credits abstinence education with significant effectiveness in reducing Aids, with the HIV infection rate dropping 50 percent between 1992 and 2000.

The study found that between the late 80's and 2001, the number of pregnant women infected with HIV in Uganda dropped from 21.2% to 6.2% while in Botswana, where condoms are officially promoted as the solution, 38% of pregnant women were HIV positive in 2001.

As a symbolic way of emphasising the excellence of abstinence and fidelity in the prevention of HIV/Aids, South Africans could adopt a campaign called White Shirt Day, where people wear a white shirt, dress or affix a white ribbon to their shirts to support abstinence and fidelity - the African solution to Aids.

The world presents many real challenges and people will face difficult choices, often in very difficult circumstances. But South Africans are a nation of champions and this challenge is not too great for us. We have what it takes to choose to do the right thing...for our own sake and for the sake of our nation.

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3. ACDP MP elected onto Magistrates Commission

The African Christian Democratic Party has welcomed the election of its member Mr Steve Swart MP onto the Magistrates Commission by the National Assembly on Thursday.

This is an honour as the Commission deals with the appointment of magistrates in South Africa, and Mr Swart was elected unanimously by all political parties.

ACDP Chief Whip Mr Louis Green said that his party had recommended Mr Swart for election as his vast experience in justice issues would prove valuable to the commission.

"Mr Swart has travelled extensively through South Africa's provinces as well as internationally dealing with judicial officials, service conditions and knows the state of our judicial system very well," said Mr Green.

"He is also a loyal and productive member of the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Constitutional Affairs and we are confident that he will perform his duties well."

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4. ACDP supports Prevention and Combatting of Corrupt Activities Bill

Speech by ACDP MP Steve Swart

The ACDP supports the tough new provisions intended to combat corruption contained in the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Bill. In view of the widespread corruption both in the public and private spheres, there can be no doubt that a comprehensive, integrated and multidisciplinary approach is required to prevent and combat corruption efficiently.

Corruption undermines and endangers the stability and security of societies, undermines the institutions and values of democracy and ethical values and morality, jeopardizes sustainable development, the rule of law and the credibility of governments. It also provides a breeding ground for organized crime.

As far back as 1400 BC, Moses indicated: "You must not accept bribes for a bribe blinds the eye of the wise and subverts the cause of those of you who are right."

There is also no doubt that bribery and corruption undermines human development and a transition to stable democratic rule. It props up illegitimate regimes as corporations bid for contracts by bribing. Wealthy nations are waking to this phenomenon and criminalizing the practice of bribing foreign public officials, similar to the provisions contained in this Bill. However, such measures must be combined with stringent domestic anti-corruption strategies. If corruption is not addressed, the risk of investing private capital in economies perceived to be highly corrupt is further increased.

The ACDP believes that this Bill will assist in the effective combating and

prosecution of corrupt person and companies, both in the public and private spheres.

According to an article in African Security Review by Hennie van Vuuren , "The real challenge is for governments to implement the often talked about domestic anti-corruption strategies, for civil society to blow the whistle on corporate bribery and for authorities in developed nations to jail those who sanction the payment of bribes abroad.

Whilst the ACDP is in broad agreement with most provisions of the bill, we agree that more attention needs to be given to address the serious problem of nepotism, whereby family and friends of high-ranking governmental official are awarded state contracts. This we believe is not sufficiently addressed in the Bill.


We support the fact that the provisions will apply equally to the private sector. Corporate government scandals worldwide, such as Enron and Worldcom in the US cause equal if not more pain and loss around the world than public sector corruption.

We support the provisions relating to blacklisting of persons or companies found guilty of tendering for or obtaining contracts corruptly, as well as the duty on persons in authority to report corrupt transactions. This we believe is a unique provision, and would go a long way to fight corruption. We do however believe that the provisions of the Protected Disclosures Act (the so-called whistle-blowers Act) will have to be closely monitored to ensure that whistleblowers are not discriminated against.

The provisions in Chapter 3 relating to investigations regarding possession of property relating to corrupt activities, as well as regarding the possession of property disproportionate to a person's present or past known sources of income or assets are clearly necessary. This practice is used effectively by the Receiver of Revenue to detect delinquent taxpayers. There is no reason why a pubic official should not be asked to explain a palatial home or extravagant life-style, when earning the income of a junior government official. Such investigations must be preceded by a court order to avoid abuse by the prosecuting authorities.

Whilst we support this legislation, what South Africa ultimately requires is a restoration of conscience, of morality. A corrupt - free society can only be created by virtuous people, whose individual consciences guard their behaviour and hold them accountable. Without conscience, a society can be held in check only through coercion. Yet even coercion ultimately fails, for there is no police force large enough to keep an eye on every individual. This is the dilemma we face in combating corruption in South Africa.

The ACDP will support this Bill.

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5. Shelving of Road Accident Fund Amendment Bill welcome

The decision to by the Minister of Transport to not continue with the Road Accident Fund Amendment Bill has been welcomed by African Christian Democratic Party spokesperson on transport Mr Steve Swart, who has been at the forefront of challenging the cost implications and constitutionality of the proposed amendments.

"In view of the widespread dissatisfaction with the provisions of the Bill amongst various sectors, including representatives of road accident victims' organisations, members of the medical industry and legal fraternity, a constitutional challenge was almost a certainty and therefore this decision is welcomed," Mr Swart said.

"There were various provisions of the Amendment Bill that, in our view, infringed upon common law principles, such as the deduction of collateral benefits following insurance for example. Additionally, the retrospective application of the provisions of the Bill to apply to claims that had not been finalised would infringe upon the Rule of Law principle and was in our view unconstitutional.

"The ACDP also rejected the amendment proposing the payment of general damages and loss of earning capacity to victims of road accidents in instalments, as opposed to the existing practice of paying a lump sum. The RAF has severe capacity problems, which is evident in the inefficiencies in the Undertakings Department. The RAF could not convince members of the portfolio committee on transport that it had the capacity to implement such a system effectively.

"Whilst we have sympathy for the cash flow predicament that the RAF finds itself in, we do not believe that this piecemeal amending legislation would have solved the problem. In effect, the payment of claims would merely be deferred with huge financial implications for the State in the long term," Mr Swart said.

Whilst the Amendment Bill has been shelved, the ACDP has reiterated its call for a comprehensive inquiry into the inefficiencies, irregularities and financial mismanagement in the Road Accident Fund, highlighted in a leaked internal audit report to the RAF Audit Committee.

"The RAF legislation was intended to assist the RAF with its cash flow problem, yet the underlying management and capacity problems have not been addressed and we believe that the Satchwell Commission, or similar inquiry, should be appointed to investigate the findings of the report," Mr Swart said.

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6. Kamp Staaldraad invasion of dignity

by African Christian Democratic Party MP (NCOP) Kent Durr

The House has taken note of the bizarre training methods imposed upon our rugby Springboks in the training run up to the Rugby World Cup held in Australia.

The House considers this kind of militaristic psychological warfare imposed upon our sportsmen by our rugby coaches, as allegedly occurred at Kamp Staaldraad, as an invasion of the privacy and dignity of the sportsmen concerned.

The episode has brought ridicule and dishonour upon one of the South Africans National Sports, as well as on the players concerned.

The behaviour of our rugby hierarchy stands in stark contrast to the great sportsmanships displayed by our golfing fraternity at the Presidents cup in George over the weekend, where great sportsmanship and wise leadership was the order of the day.

The House welcomes the intervention of our Minister of Sport in this rugby affair in order to clean up the unsatisfactory circumstances presently in our rugby.

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7. Overseas vote a step in the right direction

Speech by African Christian Democratic Party MP Steve Swart

The ACDP has been at the forefront of the campaign to allow overseas citizens to vote, being the first party to raise the issue in the Home Affairs Portfolio Committee and eliciting petitions from South African citizens in twenty-seven countries supporting their right to vote. We also engaged legal counsel to advise us as to the constitutionality of the exclusion of overseas voters.

We welcomed the initial amendment to the Act allowing certain categories of South Africans temporarily overseas to vote, but shared their disappointment when there was a dramatic about-turn in the Home Affairs Committee when this amendment was rejected.

We consequently support the latest amendment to the Electoral Act to allow persons temporarily overseas on holiday, for business trips, studying at tertiary institutions or participating in a sports event to vote in next year's elections. South Africans are operating in a global environment and there is no reason why South Africans temporarily overseas should be denied the opportunity to vote.

The requirement that they register as a voter in South Africa and notify the Electoral Commission of their intended absence on election day may prove onerous for those students already temporarily overseas. Surely they should be allowed to register at their local foreign mission, just as government officials will be required to do.

In conclusion, we support the majority party in its stand against allowing convicted prisoners the right to vote. It would be unacceptable that hundreds of thousands of South African citizens overseas, who do not fall within the categories contained in today's amendment, will not be permitted to vote, while convicted prisoners will be permitted to vote.

Whilst we still however maintain that all South African citizens overseas should be allowed to vote, we will support this bill as a step in the right direction.

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8. GM producers should label their products

Motion by Kent Durr, MP (NCOP)

The House notes that genetically modified organisms (GMO's) can be defined as organisms in which the genetic material (DNA) has been altered in a way that does not occur naturally by mating or by natural recombination. It allows selected individual genes to be transferred from one organism to another, also between non-related species.

In response to the many actual and potential dangers posed by GM foods, the House notes from an answer to Question 163 from the Minister of Health to me that final draft regulations governing the Labeling of Foodstuffs Obtained Through Certain Technologies of Genetic Modification are currently with the Department of Health's Legal Unit and are being compiled for publication.

The House notes that the Minister indicates that no specific handling or storage requirements for GM foods is to be prescribed in South Africa, but that rather persons wishing to claim certain foodstuffs are not genetically modified will need to demonstrate identity preservation throughout the whole food chain themselves!

Placing the onus upon natural foods suppliers to prove the uncontaminated status of their food is a diabolical convolution of reality - when the onus should be on GM foods producers not to contaminate natural non-GM foods in the growing and handling phases and to label it accordingly.

It cannot be right that the public, some 92% of whom don't wish to eat GM foods, would effectively have to pay a premium to do so.

The House calls upon the government to think very hard before inflicting this potential blight upon South Africa and to review their suggested regime for handling, storing and labeling of GM foods.

The government should look at EU traceability requirements for handling GM food and not to US food imperialists that wish to bring food dependence to Africa that threatens our biodiversity.

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