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All dressed up with nowhere to go? the rapid transformation of the South African parliamentary committee system (in comparative theoretical perspective)

South Africa's transition to democracy has been a journey of almost mythical proportions. The national parliament, in Cape Town, lies at the heart of the country's new democratic dispensation. Those who were fortunate enough to be present on 9 May 1994 to see the National Assembly elect the country'...

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Main Author: Calland, Richard James Tristan
Other Authors: Murray, Christina
Format: Thesis
Language:English
English
Published: Centre for Law and Society 2026
Subjects:
National parliament
Cape Town
Nelson Mandela
democracy
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access_status_str Open Access
author Calland, Richard James Tristan
author2 Murray, Christina
author_browse Calland, Richard James Tristan
Murray, Christina
author_facet Murray, Christina
Calland, Richard James Tristan
author_sort Calland, Richard James Tristan
collection Thesis
description South Africa's transition to democracy has been a journey of almost mythical proportions. The national parliament, in Cape Town, lies at the heart of the country's new democratic dispensation. Those who were fortunate enough to be present on 9 May 1994 to see the National Assembly elect the country's first black President, Nelson Mandela, will never forget the moving spectacle that followed, as black MP after black MP was sworn into a parliament that had, for over four decades, overseen and sustained the immoral laws of the Apartheid state. Now, in theory and in practice, parliament is the institutional centrepiece of democratic governance. As such it has been transformed from a part-time, cynical rubber-stamp into a full-time, vibrant place of work. It is a transformation that however dramatic and however inspiring it has been to behold, has not been without serious problems. Over three years into the new democracy, and parliament is only just beginning to come to terms with the consequences of its transformation and many questions, both conceptual and logistical remain unanswered.
format Thesis
id oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/42880
institution University of Cape Town (South Africa)
language English
eng
last_indexed 2026-06-10T12:34:08.683Z
license_str Not specified — see source repository
provenance_str_mv Harvested via OAI-PMH from UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository
publishDate 2026
publishDateRange 2026
publishDateSort 2026
publisher Centre for Law and Society
publisherStr Centre for Law and Society
record_format dspace
source_str UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository
spelling oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/42880 All dressed up with nowhere to go? the rapid transformation of the South African parliamentary committee system (in comparative theoretical perspective) Calland, Richard James Tristan Murray, Christina National parliament Cape Town Nelson Mandela democracy South Africa's transition to democracy has been a journey of almost mythical proportions. The national parliament, in Cape Town, lies at the heart of the country's new democratic dispensation. Those who were fortunate enough to be present on 9 May 1994 to see the National Assembly elect the country's first black President, Nelson Mandela, will never forget the moving spectacle that followed, as black MP after black MP was sworn into a parliament that had, for over four decades, overseen and sustained the immoral laws of the Apartheid state. Now, in theory and in practice, parliament is the institutional centrepiece of democratic governance. As such it has been transformed from a part-time, cynical rubber-stamp into a full-time, vibrant place of work. It is a transformation that however dramatic and however inspiring it has been to behold, has not been without serious problems. Over three years into the new democracy, and parliament is only just beginning to come to terms with the consequences of its transformation and many questions, both conceptual and logistical remain unanswered. 2026-02-20T11:38:31Z 2026-02-20T11:38:31Z 1997 2026-02-20T11:30:47Z Thesis / Dissertation Masters LLM http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42880 en eng application/pdf Centre for Law and Society Faculty of Law University of Cape Town
spellingShingle National parliament
Cape Town
Nelson Mandela
democracy
Calland, Richard James Tristan
All dressed up with nowhere to go? the rapid transformation of the South African parliamentary committee system (in comparative theoretical perspective)
thesis_degree_str Master's
title All dressed up with nowhere to go? the rapid transformation of the South African parliamentary committee system (in comparative theoretical perspective)
title_full All dressed up with nowhere to go? the rapid transformation of the South African parliamentary committee system (in comparative theoretical perspective)
title_fullStr All dressed up with nowhere to go? the rapid transformation of the South African parliamentary committee system (in comparative theoretical perspective)
title_full_unstemmed All dressed up with nowhere to go? the rapid transformation of the South African parliamentary committee system (in comparative theoretical perspective)
title_short All dressed up with nowhere to go? the rapid transformation of the South African parliamentary committee system (in comparative theoretical perspective)
title_sort all dressed up with nowhere to go the rapid transformation of the south african parliamentary committee system in comparative theoretical perspective
topic National parliament
Cape Town
Nelson Mandela
democracy
url http://hdl.handle.net/11427/42880
work_keys_str_mv AT callandrichardjamestristan alldressedupwithnowheretogotherapidtransformationofthesouthafricanparliamentarycommitteesystemincomparativetheoreticalperspective

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