STATEMENT BY THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE MUNICIPAL DEMARCATION BOARD ON DEFAMATORY STATEMENTS MADE BY MINISTER BUTHELEZI

Issued by: Department of Constitutional Development

As its regular monthly meeting the Municipal Demarcation Board considered the statements made by the Minister of Home Affairs, Minister Mangosuthu Buthelezi, at a joint meeting of the Executive Committees of the Houses of Traditional Leaders in durban on 8 April 1999.

In a speech, Minister Buthelezi made statements that were not only untrue, but defamatory and could incite people to violence against the Chairperson of the Board, members of the Board and the work of the Board.

Given the seriousness of this matter, the Board resolved that a letter be written to the President and Executive Deputy President about the actions of Minister Buthelezi. In addition, we will be seeking advice on taking legal action against Minister buthelezi for defamation. All means possible will be explored to correct the impression given by this speech, which was not only defamatory, but also factually incorrect, unwarranted and not within any normal bounds of protocol.

The Board has raised a number of questions with the President among which, whether or not it is permissible for a National Minister to undermine the integrity of an independent authority, set up in terms of the Constitution and relevant legislation.

While we accept that some of our decisions might well not be to the satisfaction of all parties and even all of the line function Ministers, we are honour bound to ensure that we undertake our work without fear, favour or prejudice.

Some of the immediate concerns about Minister Buthelezi's speech are:

• His unfounded claims that the Demarcation Act does not require of the Board that it respects the boundaries of traditional rural communities when demarcating municipalities. This is clearly untrue as the Municipal Demarcation Act requires the Board to consider all traditional rural community boundaries, and take them into account, when demarcating municipalities.
• His defamatory statement that: "the chairperson of the Demarcation Board has always made no secret of being a communist, and that he utterly despises the institution of traditional leadership". Such statements are, we believe, an incitement to violence against not only the Chairperson of the Board, but all members of the Board.

The Board has developed a good relationship with all stakeholders with which it or its members have met. This hbers of Provincial Houses with whom we have met. In addition, the Board is driving the process to ensure all traditional rural community boundaries are properly defined, because the various apartheid governments have often failed to properly proclaim such areas. Estimates are that at least 20% of such areas might not have been legally proclaimed, as rivers, trees and the like were sometimes used to define such areas.

Members of the Board will be meeting the National House of Traditional Leaders on Friday 16 April at 14:00 in Pretoria and we are sure that our already established good working relations with all stakeholders will continue to be demonstrated during and after that meeting.

Issued by Dr. Michael O. Sutcliffe, Chairperson of the Municipal Demarcation Board on 14 April 1999.

Enquiries: Dr Sutcliffe at 082 4405203.