Act No. 200, 1993 | Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1993 |
(4) A provincial public protector shall exercise and perform his or her powers and functions in consultation with the Public Protector, who shall have concurrent jurisdiction in the provinces.
Human Rights Commission
Establishment and appointments
115. (1) There shall be a Human Rights Commission, which shall consist of a chairperson and 10 members who are fit and proper persons, South African citizens and broadly representative of the South African community.
(2) The members of the Commission shall be appointed as provided in subsection (3) and vacancies in the Commission shall be filled accordingly.
(3) The President shall, whenever it becomes necessary, appoint as a member of the Commission a person—
Provided that if any nomination is not approved as required in paragraph (b), the joint committee shall nominate another person.
(4) The first members of the Commission after the commencement of this Constitution, shall be appointed within 60 days of the first sitting of the Senate under this Constitution.
(5) A Chairperson and a Deputy Chairperson of the Commission shall as often as it becomes necessary be elected by the members of the Commission from among their number.
Powers and functions
116. (1) The Commission shall, in addition to any powers and functions assigned to it by law, be competent and be obliged to—
(2) If the Commission is of the opinion that any proposed legislation might be contrary to Chapter 3 or to norms of international human rights law which form part of South African law or to other relevant norms of international law, it shall immediately report that fact to the relevant legislature.
(3) The Commission shall be competent to investigate on its own initiative or on receipt of a complaint, any alleged violation of fundamental rights, and if, after due investigation, the Commission is of the opinion that there is substance in any complaint made to it, it shall, in so far as it is able to do so, assist the complainant and other persons adversely affected thereby, to secure redress, and where it is necessary for that purpose to do so, it may arrange for or provide financial assistance to enable proceedings to be taken to a competent court for the necessary relief or may direct a complainant to an appropriate forum.