The sad burning of the South African Parliament Building
I was sad to hear of the news of the fire at the South African Parliament Building in Cape Town. Somehow it seems symbolic of the flawed attempt to create a new democracy in South Africa. But more immediately it poses questions such as: how did the arsonist gain entry to the building? why did the water sprinkler system not work properly? can the building be restored?
In 2004, I went on a holiday to South Africa which included time in Cape Town and I visited the Parliament Building. In my account of the trip, I wrote:
“Friday was our last day in Cape Town and in South Africa – and it was raining. But this did not stop Roger from organising a mini tour which continued the ‘political’ theme of the day before.
First, we walked over to the Houses of Parliament [click here] on Government Avenue. The building was originally opened in 1885, but obviously the arrival of a multicultural democracy has transformed the establishment. We asked if we could go on a tour of the building and were disappointed to be advised that a week’s notice of such requests is required. However, we found that a school group was expected shortly and it was suggested that, if the teacher did not mind, we could join her pupils on their tour.
This is what happened. It was only a short visit, but we were able to see the National Assembly. This has 400 members representing 12 parties who are elected by universal suffrage and proportional representation using the nine provinces as huge multi-member constituencies and the country as a whole as a final constituency to ensure a proportionate result. Members sit in a horseshoe-shaped pattern with the Government (the African National Congress) to the right of the speaker (a woman) and the Opposition (the Democratic Alliance and others) to the left – just like at Westminster (they even call the recording of debates Hansard).
The other house is called the National Council of Provinces. It has 90 members and each of the provincial legislatures nominates 10 members, regardless of the size of the province, four permanent and six rotating. The new democratic parliament has been sitting for ten years and, to mark this first decade, there was a long banner on the outside of the building setting out the titles of the main items of legislation carried.”
You can read the full account of my holiday in Southern Africa here.