Traditional leaders in South Africa
Traditional leaders in South Africa represent the country's indigenous communities and act as custodians of cultural tradition and practice and customary law.[1][2]
Chapter Twelve of the Constitution
The Constitution recognises traditional leaders and allows for an act of Parliament to establish a national house of traditional leaders and/or a council of traditional leaders, and for an act of a provincial legislature to establish a provincial house of traditional leaders.[3]
Institutions by tier of Government
National House of Traditional and Khoi-San Leaders
The National House of Traditional and
Provincial Houses of Traditional Leaders
There are provincial Houses of Traditional Leaders in every province except the Western Cape.[4]
Local Houses of Traditional Leaders
By February 2008, 70% of local houses were established.[5]
Controversies
In 2010, 6 of the 13 kingships were converted to lower-level leaderships, because some of the kings were originally appointed by the white minority government with few legitimate claims to their thrones in order to "divide and rule."[2]
The Constitutional Court ruled that it was unlawful for traditional authorities to collect levies on services.[6] In 2023, the Constitutional Court ruled that Parliament had not facilitated public participation in passing the Traditional and Khoi-San Leadership Act 2019.[7]
References
- ^ Nyalala Pilane, Kgosi. "Traditional Leadership in SA: A vision for 2025 and beyond". www.iol.co.za. Archived from the original on 2024-12-14. Retrieved 2025-02-18.
- ^ ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2025-02-18.
- from the original on 2022-10-17. Retrieved 2025-02-18.
- ^ "South Africa has a huge number of traditional leaders – here's how much they get paid". Archived from the original on 2021-03-18. Retrieved 2025-02-18.
- ^ "Mbeki: Govt committed to role of traditional leaders". The Mail & Guardian. 2008-02-22. Retrieved 2025-02-18.
- ^ "Lim traditional leaders await Coghsta guidance on ruling". Review. 2025-02-20. Retrieved 2025-02-26.
- ^ Broughton, Tania (2023-05-30). "Not enough public participation: Constitutional Court scraps Traditional and Khoi-San Leadership Act". GroundUp News. Retrieved 2025-02-26.