On legal-philosophical grounds the constitutional protection of socio-economic rights
has been the subject of much debate. The question is whether socio-economical rights
should be protected by a constitution and, if so, to what extent. In this study a
theological-ethical evaluation is done about socio-economical rights and the
protection thereof. This is done by examining certain Biblical themes and parts of
Scripture of the Old and New Testament. From this investigation it is clear that socioeconomical
rights are very important human rights that must be protected as
effectively as possible.
Several points of view on the constitutional protection of socio-economical rights are
investigated and evaluated. These points of view are based on legal-philosophical
grounds and argue respectively against the constitutional protection of socioeconomical
rights, the protection of socio-economical rights as directive principles
and the protection of socio-economical rights as fundamental rights. From this
investigation it is clear that in principle the constitutional protection of socioeconomical
rights as fundamental rights is the most effective way to protect these
rights.
The current state of affairs with regard to socio-economical rights in the Constitution
of South-Africa is also investigated and evaluated. From this investigation it is clear
that the Constitution does protect certain socio-economic rights, but not all of them.
The rights to labour, clothing and scientific progress do not occur in the Constitution.
In principle the right to labour is a very important socio-economic right and it leads to
the realization of other socio-economic rights. The Constitution of South Africa also
has several measures in place to ensure the protection of socio-economic rights. In
spite of these measures, the socio-economic rights in the Constitution remain little
more than rights on paper. There state, private sector, church and each individual will
still have to do a lot to ensure the protection of socio-economic rights in South-Africa. / Thesis (M.Th. (Ethics))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2004.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:nwu/oai:dspace.nwu.ac.za:10394/216 |
| Date | January 2003 |
| Creators | Zwemstra, Heinrich Martin |
| Publisher | North-West University |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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