A leader of African National Congress and one of the architects of the Constitution of South Africa, author Albie Sachs is a leading voice for democracy and human rights in the world. As a young lawyer in Cape Town at 21, Sachs began defending people arrested by the apartheid regime. Author of several books, including The Jail Diary of Albie Sachs, Soft Vengeance of a Freedom Fighter, The Strange Alchemy of Life and Law and We, the People: Insights of an Activist Judge, he was one of the prominent speakers at the recent Jaipur Literature Festival. Sachs spoke with Faizal Khan about the right to protest and the importance of the Constitution against populism, racism and xenophobia. Edited excerpts:
You were one of the writers of the Constitution of South Africa. The constitutions of which countries provided you the most inspiration and material?
It was very much homegrown, but we drew on the American, Canadian, German and Namibian Constitutions—probably most on the Namibian.
In the 21st century, how are constitutions holding up against populism, nationalism and racism across the world?
In many countries, the Constitution is proving to be the main bulwark against populist incitements, racism and xenophobia. Democratic forces can rally around the Constitution and overcome their political differences in defence of the Constitution, and use the instruments created by the Constitution.
You became an activist of human rights and freedom of expression at the age of 17 during the apartheid regime in South Africa. Almost 70 years later, young people at your age then are on the streets in many countries protesting against racism and freedom of expression facing the heavy hand of state power. Your thoughts.
I see the young Albie in the faces of the young people protesting today. In most cases they don’t have to place their bodies on the line in the way that we had to. There is substantially higher danger to them of assassination and torture. They will have to use the space readily available to them to push beyond what we had been capable to attain.
What about the correct to protest peacefully and stage mass demonstrations like Mahatma Gandhi and quite a few other globe leaders did to safe freedom for their nations? Is that correct beneath threat today with protests thought of by quite a few governments as anti-national?
Yes, the correct to protest has been challenging-won. We constructed our Constitutional Court in South Africa on the website of the prison exactly where each Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela had been locked up. I am content to say that the court has regularly upheld the correct to protest. When I was a Justice on the court we told the police not to cease protesters from coming to the square but the court but asked them to guarantee that their singing and chanting did not make it not possible for us to hear counsel addressing us in the court. The protesters agreed, and some of their leaders came inside and closely attended the proceedings.
Are there sufficient safeguards for robust and independent institutions like judiciary and media that a constitution could assure when effective governments and leaders veer away from typical governance?
It is generally a battle. So substantially depends on the leadership offered by political parties. But generally it is civil society that has to be the most vocal. Judges must not hold back from publicly defending their independence. At the very same time they will have to conduct themselves with dignity, integrity and transparency. Similarly, the media must carry out their essential work with integrity, respect for the truth and cautious checking of their information.
How do you view contemporary-day protests and activists of movements like climate transform action and world wide web privacy?
So substantially depends on the context. I not too long ago helped to organise a green protest by inviting folks just to come and have a picnic in a pristine coastal location threatened with absolutely inappropriate industrial improvement. Our weapons had been watermelons and standard regional delicacies. I am sorry to say that I am not contemporary sufficient myself to comment on actions in relation to world wide web privacy.
What are the moments of your fight against apartheid laws and defending folks that you most bear in mind?
The darkest moment was collapsing on the floor following sleep deprivation with police interrogators pouring water down on my face and then prizing open my eyes. There had been two exceptionally joyous moments. The very first was following I had been blown up by a bomb placed in my auto by South African safety agents in Mozambique, and I realised that I was protected in the Maputo Central Hospital and had only lost an arm. The second was when I was element of the crowd in front of the Union Buildings in Pretoria and saw Nelson Mandela becoming declared President of South Africa as Defence Force planes roared overhead.
Does the globe today miss leaders like Gandhi, Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King?
The globe generally wants leaders like them. Yet each and every one was one of a kind. And in a way, all of them had been more honoured by the globe following their deaths than throughout their lives. I am confident today we have quite a few leaders of excellent calibre all more than the globe.
Faizal Khan is a freelancer