From: Steve.Hayes@p5.f22.n7101.z5.fidonet.org (Steve Hayes)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.african
Subject: Religious freedom in South Africa
Date: Fri, 14 Aug 92 03:59:00 GMT
Organization: FidoNet node 5:7101/22.5 - Novell User Group, Pretoria RSA

Religious freedom 2 of 2

9  Conscientious objectors shall have the right to alternative
    service
9.1 Mutually agreed alternative community service for an equiva-
    lent period, with equal remuneration and benefits, shall be
    allowed in lieu of military service for those who have a con-
    scientious objection to serving in the armed forces, whether
    or not they belong to a religion which upholds pacifism as a
    principle

10  Every religion shall have the right to appoint chaplains
10.1 Every religion which has members serving in the security
     forces shall be entitled to appoint full-time or part-time
     chaplains whose function and autonomy shall be recognised by
     the state
10.2 Chaplains serving in the armed forces shall have access to
     both their own members and to prisoners of war
10.3 Ministers of religion shall not be compelled to wear milita-
     ry uniform, bear arms, or promote and propagate any ideology

11  Prisoners shall have religious rights
11.1 State prisoners, including detainees and political
     prisoners, shall have the right to practise their own faith,
     including dietary laws
11.2 Ministers of religion shall have access to such prisoners

12  National symbols shall not be religiously biased
12.1 National symbols such as the national anthem, national flag,
     public monuments, the national coat of arms and the preamble
     to the Constitution should not be biased towards any partic-
     ular faith, but this does not necessarily exclude reference
     to a Supreme Being
12.2 National holidays with political significance shall be free
     from religious bias

13  Religions shall be free to propagate their beliefs
13.1 Religions and individuals shall be free to promote and
     propagate their beliefs
13.2 This should be done with respect for the beliefs of others,
     without malice, slander or the denigration of any person or
     religion, avoiding the dissemination of malicious falsehoods
     and promotion of racial hatred
13.3 Coercion or material inducements may not be offered to
     people to enter a religion, but this does not exclude
     charitable acts
13.4 The promotion and propagation of any religious beliefs
     should not be directed at children under the age of eigh-
     teen, except with the permission of their parents

14  All religions shall have access to public communications
     media
14.1 Religions and individuals shall be free to publish and dis-
     tribute literature and use other media to disseminate in-
     formation about their doctrine, worship and pastoral af-
     fairs, provided that they do not denigrate or misrepresent
     the beliefs of others
14.2 Every religion shall have proportional and meaningful access
     to the publicly owned communications media
14.3 In order to foster mutual understanding and tolerance, the
     publicly owned communications media shall endeavour to in-
     form people about the beliefs, worship and practices of the
     different religions in the country
14.4 In view of the influence of the communications media, there
     shall be a religious advisory board to the publicly owned
     media, appointed by the interfaith advisory body, which
     shall reflect the full religious spectrum of South African
     society

15  The state shall recognise the role of religions in family
     life
15.1 The state shall recognise the right of ministers of religion
     to solemnise legal marriages and shall appoint marriage of-
     ficers from each religion for this purpose
15.2 Religions shall be responsible for preserving marriages and
     the sanctity of family life by means of counselling, media-
     tion and active intervention in the event of marital break-
     down
15.3 A divorce or annulment of marriage may be decreed by a reli-
     gious authority or ecclesiastical court where the parties
     seeking divorce or annulment agree to accept the jurisdic-
     tion of such a court. Such a divorce or annulment is, how-
     ever, subject to public policy and the laws of the land, and
     shall only have legal effect when registered with the
     Supreme Court

16  The state should recognise the personal and private laws of
     religions
16.1 The state should recognise personal and private law systems
     of religions where these are in conflict with existing civil
     law, to avoid hardship with regard to marriage, divorce,
     succession or support of dependents
16.2 A dependent not recognised as being entitled to support by
     reason of a "customary marriage" shall be entitled to claim
     such support in the case of the dissolution of the union or
     the death of the bread winner

17  The medical scruples of a religion may be overruled
17.1 A person shall be entitled to medical treatment in the event
     of a life-threatening situation, irrespective of the reli-
     gious beliefs of parents, guardians, or a spouse/partner

18  Courts and religious authorities may interact
18.1 A religious authority acting in a judicial or quasi-judicial
     capacity may, on request, have its decisions subjected to
     review by the higher courts of the country
18.2 The courts should make use of religious leaders as assessors
     in resolving disputes which involve religious considerations

19  Authorities shall respect the holy days of religions
19.1 Sunday shall remain the recognised weekly day of rest
19.2 With reference to other holy days of religions, employers
     and authorities (both civil and educational) shall do
     whatever is necessary to meet people's religious needs

20  Religions may own property and be exempt from certain taxes
20.1 Local authorities shall set aside sufficient land for reli-
     gious purposes, such as places of worship and burial sites
20.2 Any property owned or acquired by a religious organisation
     and used for religious or social welfare purposes, or any
     bona fide transaction, shall be exempt from tax. Bona fide
     religious materials, imported by religious organisations and
     for their use, shall be exempt from import duty
20.3 Donations to bona fide religious institutions should be tax-
     deductible.

COMMITMENT

We believe that the principles contained in this declaration
could contribute greatly to the authentic practice of religion,
interfaith cooperation and social justice, and we therefore un-
dertake to promote them among our fellow believers in this coun-
try and throughout the world.

===============================================================
This draft declaration has been initiated and drawn up under the
auspices of WCRP-SA (World Conference on Religion and Peace,
South Africa). It is hereby submitted to all South Africans for
comment, so that the declaration can be finalised in November
1992. If you want to suggest any amendments or additions to this
declaration, please submit them before 30 September 1992 to:

WCRP-SA, P.O. Box 19354, Pretoria West 0117.

Additional copies may also be obtained from this address.

Electronic copies may be downloaded from the BBS run by 
the Editorial Department of the University of South Africa

Unisa Editorial BBS +27-12-429-2882
2400 bps, 8 bit, No parity, 1 stop bit.



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