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14 (a) To take part in the conduct of public affairs, directly or through Freey l chosen representatives; (b) to vote and to be elected at genuine periodic elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret ballot, guaranteeing the free expression of the will of the electors.” (Para [90] of Doctors for Life International v Speaker of the National Assembly and Others 2006 (6) 416 (CC)) [32]The African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights (“African Charter)”, adopted on 27 June 1981, which was acceded to by South Africa on 9 July 1996, is even more specific than the ICCPR in spelling out the obligations of State parties to ensure that people are well informed of the rights in the African Charter. The relevant articles are arts 9, 13 and 25 which provide: “Article 9 1. Every individual shall have the right to receive information. 2. Every individual shall have the right to express and disseminate his opinions within the law. Article 13 1. Every citizen shall have the right to participate freely in the government of his country, either directly or through freely chosen representatives in accordance with the provisions of the law. Article 25 State parties to the present Charter shall have the duty to promote and ensure through teaching, education and publication, the respect of the rights and freedoms contained in the present Charter and to see to it that these freedoms and rights as well as corresponding

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Richter v. Minister of Home Affairs

Judgment

Question Presented: Whether Section 33(1)(b) and Section 33(1)(e) of the Electoral Act 73 of 1998 — which limited the "special vote" to South African citizens absent from the Republic only if they were on "government service" (or members of the household of such persons), while effectively excluding all other citizens living or working abroad — unjustifiably limited the constitutional right to vote under Section 19(3)(a) of the Constitution, read with the rights to equality (Section 9(1)), human dignity (Section 10), and equal citizenship (Section 3(2)(a)).

Alleged Acts: The applicant, Willem Stephanus Richter, was a South African citizen who was working abroad. He was a registered voter in South Africa but would be outside the country on the day of the national and provincial elections scheduled for April 22, 2009. Richter wished to vote but was unable to return to South Africa for that purpose. Under Section 33 of the Electoral Act 73 of 1998, "special votes" were available only to narrowly defined categories of voters who could not vote at their designated polling stations on election day. Critically, Section 33(1)(e) — the catch-all provision for persons absent from the Republic — was interpreted by the Electoral Commission as not extending to ordinary South African citizens living or working abroad who were not on government service. This meant that citizens like Richter, who were abroad for private employment or other personal reasons, were effectively denied the ability to cast any vote — whether in person or by special vote.

Procedural history: Richter applied to the Gauteng Provincial Division (Pretoria) for an order declaring Section 33(1)(b) and Section 33(1)(e) of the Electoral Act unconstitutional, as well as certain related regulations. The Democratic Alliance and another party intervened in the proceedings. On February 9, 2009, Ebersohn AJ found in favour of Richter and declared sections 33(1)(b) and 33(1)(e) of the Electoral Act unconstitutional, along with certain related regulations. The court held these provisions were in conflict with sections 3(2)(a) (right to equality before the law), 9(1) (equality), 10 (human dignity), and 19(3)(a) (right to vote) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996.

Summary: South African plaintiff, Ritcher, argued statutory restrictions on right to vote violated constitutionalized fundamental right to vote.

Conclusion: The court declared the following parts of Section 33 to be in conflict with sections 3(2)(a), 9(1), 10 and 19(3)(a) of the Constitution and thus invalid, and ordered that the special vote provisions be read to extend to all registered South African voters who are absent from the Republic on election day.

Legal Issue(s)

Accessibility

Applicable Law(s): Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, Electoral Act of 1973, and Electoral Regulations

Region: Africa

Country: South Africa

Language of Decision

English

Court: Constitutional Court

Election Type: General

Date of decision: Feb 9, 2009

Geolocation

Latitude: -26.1865

Longitude: 28.0393

: Geolocation

Link: https://www.saflii.org/za/cases/ZAGPHC/2009/21.pdf

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Richter v. Minister of Home Affairs.pdf
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Election Judgments - IFES

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Richter v. Minister of Home Affairs

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