BY Mr Velaphi B Ndlovu MP

Madame Speaker,

This Bill has generated a lot of controversy. Much of this controversy has centred on the question of why the South African government wants to limit the rights of its citizens to freedom of movement, freedom of association and freedom of trade. Some role players have called this unconstitutional - something which Hon. Members will probably hear again during this debate.

In most contexts this would be a legitimate question. However, in the context of SA citizens continuing to sell their professional services as mercenaries all over the world, this becomes almost a moot point if one considers the international and constitutional obligations of our country.

Clearly, we cannot tolerate a situation where SA citizens are creating havoc around the world; destabilising legitimate regimes; propping up illegitimate others and generally playing a destructive role in world affairs.

It is not just our international and constitutional obligations that are involved. No, our standing as an honest broker in world affairs, our foreign policy and our aspirations to be a leading player in African and world affairs are all seriously compromised by the behaviour of some of our citizens.

That is why we undoubtedly need anti-mercenary legislation.

We have two serious concerns. First, the Bill provides for extra-territorial application. While we understand that the failure of the Regulation of Foreign Military Assistance Act to lead to successful prosecutions calls for drastic action, the IFP believes that this provision will do more damage to our relations with foreign countries than good. Any infringement on the sovereignty of a foreign country could lead to potential conflict and could sour relations between countries that will have negative effects in other areas.

Second, the enlistment of SA citizens in foreign armed forces has generated a lot of controversy. The IFP believes that our citizens should have the right to decide whether to enlist in a foreign armed service or not without fear of prosecution in terms of this Bill. At the same time, we agree that our government should have the ability to know the whereabouts of its citizens, many of whom would have been trained in our military.

This is not a contradiction as the latter requirement could easily and painlessly be accomplished through a simple registration process when a SA citizen enlists in a foreign armed service. In this regard, increased co-operation between the relevant countries would be required.

In closing, the IFP insists that the implementation of the Bill be very closely monitored by Parliament and that if weaknesses are identified they be rectified as soon as possible via legislative amendment.

Secondly, the IFP recommends that any potential conflict between our country and others over issues of sovereignty be dealt with via negotiations before the issue gets out of control and hurts the relationship between the relevant countries.

And finally, the IFP want to restate our belief that our citizens should have the right to decide whether to enlist in a foreign army or not while informing the SA government of having done so.

Thank you


FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
Hon. Velaphi Ndlovu - MP: 083 625 0803
Noleen Hendricks: 082 886 9848