By due process of law? : racial discrimination and the right to vote in South Africa, 1855-1960

The South African case of Harris v. (Donges) Minister of the Interior is one familiar to most students of British constitutional law. The case was triggered by the South African government's attempt in the 1950s to disenfranchise non-white voters on the Cape province. It is still referred to as the case which illustrates that as a matter of constitutional doctrine it is not possible for the United Kingdom Parliament to produce a statute which limits the powers of successive Parliaments. The purpose of this book is twofold. First of all it offers a rather fuller picture of the story lying behind the Harris litigation, and the process of British acquisition of and dis-engagement from the government of its 'white' colonies in southern Africa as well as the ensuing emergence and consolidation of apartheid as a system of political and social organisation. Secondly the book attempts to use the South African experience to address broader contemporary British concerns about the nature of our Constitution and the role of the courts and legislature in making the Constitution work. In pursuing this second aim, the author has sought to create a counterweight to the traditional marginalistion of constitutional law and theory within the British polity. The Harris saga conveys better than any episode of British political history the enormous significance of the choices a country makes (or fails to make) when it embarks upon the task of creating or revising its constitutional arrangements. This, then, is a searching re-examination of the fundamentals of constitution-making, written in the light of the British government's commitment to promoting wholesale constitutional reform. The South African case of Harris v. (Donges) Ministers of the Interior was triggered by the South African government's attempt in the 1950's to disenfrachise non-white voters on th cape province. It is still referred to as the case that illustrates, as a matter of constitutionsl doctrine, it is not possible for the United kingdom Parliament to produce a staute which limits the powers of seccussive Parliaments. The purpose of this book is twofold. First it offers a fuller picture of the story lying behind the Harris litigation, and the process of British acquisition of and dis-engagement from the government of its 'white' colonies in southern Africa. Insight into the enfuing emegence and consolidation of apartheid as a system of political and social organization is also gained. Secondly, the book attempts to use the South African experience to address broader contemporary British concerns about the nature of the Constitution and the role of the courts and legislature in making the Constitution work. The Harris saga conveys better than any episode of British political history the enormous significance of the choices a country makes (or fails to make) when it embarks upon the task of creating or revising its constitutional arrangements. This, then, is a searching re-examination of the fundamentals of constitution-making, written in the light of the British government's commitment to promoting whole-sale reform. Preliminaries......Page 1 Contents......Page 7 Preface......Page 13 Acknowledgments......Page 16 Table of Cases......Page 17 Table of Statutes......Page 21 1 The European Colonisation of Southern Africa......Page 27 2 The Boer Wars......Page 52 3 Securing a White Peace......Page 88 4 The Act of Union 1909......Page 125 5 From Autonomy to Independence......Page 158 6 Disenfranchising the African......Page 205 7 Harris v Donges Minister of the Interior No 1 The Immediate Context......Page 252 8 Harris v Donges Minister of the Interior No 1 The Litigation......Page 286 9 Harris v Minister of the Interior No 2......Page 327 10 Collins v Minister of the Interior......Page 362 11 Constitutionalism Parliamentary Sovereignty and the Common Law......Page 410 Bibliography......Page 441 Index......Page 449 Examines the Harris litigation and the British acquisition of and dis-engagement from the government of its 'white' colonies in southern Africa.