Staff Writer11 December 2017
The presidency is currently in the process of drafting new regulations to deal with a potential state of emergency in the country.
According to a copy of the proposed laws seen by Rapport, the regulations – which were first drafted in 2016 – had recently been sent to the SA National Defence Force for urgent input.
The regulations specifically deal with the measures that should be followed should the president decide to declare a state of emergency – including the authority to cut communication channels (including a national internet shutdown) as well as the authority to arrest or detain any person to maintain peace and order within the country.
Speaking to the Rapport, Jacob van Garderen, national director of Lawyers for Human Rights, said that the proposed regulations were similar to those seen under the 1980s apartheid government – especially because of the far-reaching powers they would give to security personnel within the country.
He said that the reasons for drafting the regulations were also troubling given the context of the Marikana incident as well as past xenophobic attacks in the country.
Human Rights Commissioner, André Gaum, said that the regulations would have to be redrafted as they currently infringed on a number of Constitutional rights in their current form.
The Constitution currently states that the decision to announce a state of emergency can be overturned by the High Court, and can not last longer than three months.