Hon Speaker, hon members, in general, this Amending Bill must be commended for its progressiveness, humaneness, and simplification of the law as well as for being relevant and in line with current developments.
It is progressive because, among other things, it cures the notion of secondary citizenship that was implicitly created by citizenship by descent as provided for by the principal Act.
As black South Africans we know how cruel and undignified it is to be regarded as a secondary citizen in one's own country. The less I talk about apartheid and its consequences for South Africans, and black South Africans in particular, the better, so this progressiveness must indeed be commended.
The Bill is also humane because it recognises that the reference to human beings as aliens is unnecessary and derogatory. An alien is something that is indescribable as it is something which does not belong to this world. This can be likened to the Sesotho word "kgokgo", and this "kgokgo" is often referred to when we want to frighten children. It is really scary.
A typical example of the Bill's simplification is contained in the new section 5(1)(c). Before this amendment, section 5(1)(c) in the principal Act read, as follows:
The Minister may, upon application in the prescribed form, grant a certificate of naturalisation as a South African citizen to any alien who satisfies the Minister that he or she is ordinarily resident in the Republic and that he or she has been so resident for a continuous period of not less than one year immediately preceding the date of his or her application, and that he or she has, in addition, been resident in the Republic for a further period of not less than four years during the eight years immediately preceding the date of his or her application. Speaker, I am sure you'll agree with me that this subsection is long enough to cause confusion. But that is not all. The different timeframes stipulated therein add to this confusion. Firstly, there is a reference to one year. Then there are references to four years and also eight years.
The interpretation of these timeframes has, in many instances, led to miscalculations of the period and ultimately granting citizenship by naturalisation too early.
Now, the amendment talks of only one timeframe - five years. It is as simple as that. This will make the calculations as easy as it can be.
These plausible developments are in line with the ANC's aim of making the lives of our people better and it does not get better than in the form of citizenship.
The moral vision contained in the 1923 ANC Bill of Rights says that the right to be a full human being in South Africa includes the right to full and equal citizenship without discrimination on the basis of race, class or creed; and the right to full and equitable participation in the economic growth and development of the country.
Citizenship also goes with the infinite feeling and advantage of belonging; it attaches a high emotional value to being a citizen. It is not easy to get a sense of belonging to a country unless one is a citizen thereof, whether by birth or adoption.
Citizenship was equated by Virginia Leary, a distinguished American human rights lawyer and activist, with connoting -
... a bundle of rights which involve, primarily, political participation in the life of the community, the right to vote, and the right to receive certain protection from the community, as well as obligations.
Citizenship status, therefore, carries with it both rights and responsibilities. That is why the right to citizenship is entrenched in our Bill of Rights in the Constitution. Section 20 of the Constitution provides that "no citizen may be deprived of citizenship." However, one must note the use of the word "may". This presupposes meeting some requirements in the Republic, otherwise one can lose his or her citizenship.
Therefore matters of citizenship should not be treated lightly. That is why the declaration of allegiance is required from a foreign national who applies for and is granted South African citizenship. That is why there must be clear and unambiguous laws that regulate all aspects of citizenship.
All these are catered for by the language used in this Bill. In addition to the deletion of the word alien, Latin terms like mutatis mutandis are also removed in section 10. This is a progressive move since Latin phrases like this are difficult to comprehend, especially if one is not a lawyer. This reminds me of one court interpreter who had difficulty in interpreting this term and ended up saying mutatis mutandis means ...
... ma uthanda noma ungathandi. [Uhleko.][... whether you like it or not. [Laughter.]]
We already have enough difficulty with English; we don't need to compound the difficulty by using Latin phrases as well. So this move must really be commended. However, I realised that, in section 17 of the principal Act, the phrase prima facie still appears. As such, I will recommend that it be dealt with the same way as mutatis mutandis.
Having said this, I however have a small concern that I would like to raise. This is under the definitions of the word marriage. Marriage is defined to include civil marriage, customary marriage as well as civil union. I would have liked this definition to be extended to include the phrase "married shall have a corresponding meaning", just for good or near accurate measure.
This is more so because the civil union, in terms of the Civil Union Act, Act 17 of 2006, is not necessarily a marriage. The Act allows such a union to be solemnised either as a marriage or civil partnership. I would therefore suggest that section 1(a)(3)(a) of the amendment include the words "civil union" between the words "customary marriage" and "a marriage concluded in terms of the laws of a foreign country". This, again, is for good or near accurate measure.
However, these concerns are not a train smash as the objectives of the Bill could and will still be realised, regardless.
Ke rata gape go leboga mma wa rena, Mma Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, ka go ?oma le rena gabotse sehlopheng sa rena sa go ithuta. Re re a re t?weleng pele ka lenaneo la dipoelo leo o re filego lona. [I would also like to thank our mother, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, for co-operating with us in our learning team. We have to continue with the outcomes programme that you gave to us.]
The ANC therefore supports this amending Bill. [Applause.]