Relational socio-economic rights

South African Journal on Human Rights

Volumn 25, Issue 2, 2009, Pages 198-217

  Pieterse, Marius ^a  

^a UNIVERSITY OF THE WITWATERSRAND   (South Africa)

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[No Author keywords available]

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EID: 84864999818     PISSN: 02587203     EISSN: 19962126     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1080/19962126.2009.11865200     Document Type: Note

References (193)

1. AH Villmoare 'Women, Differences, and Rights as Practices: An Interpretive Essay and a Proposal' (1991) 25 Law & Contemporary Problems 385+398.
2. J Seekings 'The Broader Importance of Welfare Reform in South Africa' (2002) 28(2) Social Dynamics 1+23.
3. Ibid.
4. See also M Minow & ML Shanley 'Relational Rights and Responsibilities: Revisioning the Family in Liberal Theory and Law' (1996) 11(1) Hypatia 4+5
5. M Pieterse 'Reconstructing the Private/Public Dichotomy? The Enforcement of Children's Constitutional Social Rights and Care Entitlements' (2003) TSAR 1+2-3.
6. S Joseph 'Teaching Rights and Responsibilities: Paradoxes of Globalization and Children's Citizenship in Lebanon' (2005) 38 J of Social History 1007+1007-8
7. N Malan 'Rights, the Public and the South African Constitution: Civil Society and the Performance of Rights' (2008) 31 Anthropology Southern Africa 58+61-4
8. M Pieterse 'Socio-economic Rights and Private Law: The Next Frontier' (2007) 8(3) ESR Rev 2+3.
9. See, for instance, E Bonthuys 'The Best Interests of Children in the South African Constitution' (2006) 20 Int J of Law, Policy & the Family 23+36-7
10. and authorities cited there Minow & Shanley (note 3 above) 20-22.
11. Joseph (note 4 above) 1011
12. S Joseph 'Problematizing Gender and Relational Rights: Experiences from Lebanon' (1994) 1 Social Politics 271-274
13. Villmoare (note 1 above) 387-8.
14. Joseph (note 6 above) 273.
15. See also ibid 275
16. H Ludsin 'Relational Rights Masquerading as Individual Rights' (2008) 15 Duke J of Gender, Law & Policy 195-198
17. Pieterse (note 4 above) 3.
18. Ludsin (ibid) 198-201-2.
19. Minow & Shanley (note 3 above) 22-24-5
20. Pieterse M (note 4 above) 3
21. M Pieterse 'Indirect Horizontal Application of the Right to have Access to Health Care Services' (2007) 23 SAJHR 157, 160, 177, 179.
22. Section 8(2) of the Constitution determines: 'A provision of the Bill of Rights binds a natural or a juristic person if, and to the extent that, it is applicable, taking into account the nature of the right and the nature of any duty imposed by the right'.
23. For discussion of this, and other related provisions, in relation to the private application of socio-economic rights, see Pieterse (note 9 above) 161-3.
24. See S Liebenberg 'The Application of Socio-economic Rights to Private Law' (2008) TSAR 464-469
25. Pieterse (note 9 above) 162-170 and authorities cited there.
26. Section 8(3) read with s39(2) of the Constitution.
27. Ludsin (note 7 above) 206-7
28. Malan (note 4 above) 59 61; 64
29. Pieterse (note 4 above) 3-4.
30. Joseph (note 6 above) 278.
31. Malan (note 4 above) 62-3.
32. Pieterse (note 4 above) 3
33. DL Pearmain 'Contracting for Socio-economic Rights: A Contradiction in Terms? (2)' (2006) 69(3) THRHR 287+289-90.
34. See note 55 below and accompanying text.
35. Pearmain (note 16 above) 288-9.
36. Ibid 289-292
37. Pieterse (note 4 above) 3.
38. Accordingly, '[p]aid work becomes the forum within which social citizenship can be recognized'
39. LA Williams 'Beyond Labour Law's Parochialism: A Re-envisioning of the Discourse of Redistribution' in J Conaghan, RM Fischl & K Klare (eds) Labour Law in an Era of Globalization: Transformative Practices and Possibilities (2002) 93-108.
40. See also 102. While beyond the scope of this article, labour law's structuring of the employment relationship clearly impacts on the enjoyment of socio-economic rights.
41. Liebenberg (note 11 above) 469
42. Pearmain (note 16 above) 289-292.
43. See RM Jansen & BS Smith 'Hospital Disclaimers: Afrox Health Care v Strydom' (2003) 28(2) J for Juridical Science 210+217-8
44. Pearmain M (note 16 above) 300
45. M Pieterse 'The Interdependence of Rights to Health and Autonomy in South Africa' (2008) 125 SALJ 553-566
46. P van den Heever 'Exclusion of Liability of Private Hospitals in South Africa' (April 2003) De Rebus 47.
47. See DSP Cronje & J Heaton South African Family Law 2 ed (2004) 52-3+294-5.
48. On the inclusion of medical care within the reach of the common-law obligations to support see further, for instance, Dawood v Minister of Home Affairs 2000 (3) SA 936 (CC) para 33
49. Oosthuizen v Stanley 1938 AD 322, 327-38
50. Ex parte Hugo 1960 (1) SA 773 (T) 775D-E.
51. Section 2(1) of the Maintenance Act extends its application to 'The legal duty of any person to maintain any other person, irrespective of the relationship between those persons giving rise to that duty'. See further s15 of the Act, regarding the content of the duty to support children.
52. Cronje & Heaton (note 23 above) 295 and common-law authorities cited there.
53. Ibid 147-9.
54. See also s7 of the Divorce Act 70 of 1979. For examples of the enforcement of an extension of the obligation to cover the medical expenses of a spouse after the dissolution of marriage, see Heystek v Heystek 2002 (2) SA 754 (T)
55. Thomson v Thomson 2002 (5) SA 541 (W)
56. Van Aswegen v Van Aswegen 2006 (5) SA 221 (SECLD).
57. On the extent of the legal protection and obligations awarded in this context, see Cronje & Heaton (note 23 above) 54-5.
58. See further s17(5) of the Matrimonial Property Act 88 of 1984.
59. See Seekings (note 2 above) 25.
60. On the problems associated with employing a contractual paradigm for the enforcement of interpersonal socio-economic obligations, see E Bonthuys 'Family Contracts' (2004) 121 SALJ 879, 879-80, 896-7.
61. Pieterse (note 4 above) 3.
62. See also P de Vos 'Same-sex Sexual Desire and the Re-imagining of the South African Family' (2004) 20 SAJHR 179+182-3
63. B Goldblatt 'Regulating Domestic Partnerships - a Necessary Step in the Development of South African Family Law' (2003) 120 SALJ 610+614-6.
64. E Bonthuys 'Child Maintenance and Child Poverty in South Africa' (2008) 71 THRHR 194+204-209
65. Pieterse (note 3 above) 8, 15-6 and authorities cited there.
66. See E Bonthuys 'Labours of Love: Child Custody and the Division of Matrimonial Property at Divorce' (2001) 64 THRHR 192-196
67. Ludsin (note 7 above) 197,199, 221.
68. See Bonthuys (note 32 above) 196
69. B Clark & B Goldblatt 'Gender and Family Law' in E Bonthuys & C Albertyn (eds) Gender, Law and Justice (2007) 195+198-200
70. N Fraser 'Gender Equity and the Welfare State: A Postindustrial Thought Experiment' in S Benhabib (ed) Democracy and Difference: Contesting the Boundaries of the Political (1996) 218-223
71. Ludsin (note 7 above) 198-202
72. M Mamashela 'New Families, New Property, New Laws: The Practical Effects of the Recognition of Customary Marriages Act' (2004) 20 SAJHR 616, 618, 620-1, 638-9.
73. See notes 61-5 below and accompanying text.
74. Ludsin (note 7 above) 197-8+201.
75. As was held in relation to the emotional aspects of parental care in Jooste v Botha 2000 (2) BCLR 187 (T).
76. See 194J-195B, 195E, 197F, 198E-F.
77. See E Bonthuys 'Realizing South African Children's Basic Socio-economic Claims against Parents and the State: What Courts can Achieve' (2008) 22 Int J of Law, Policy & the Family 333+335-6
78. Pieterse (note 3 above) 15.
79. See for instance C Albertyn 'Using Rights and the Law to Reduce Women's Vulnerability to HIV/ AIDS' (2001) 5 Law, Democracy & Development 179+181-2, 185, in relation to women who are driven to enter into sexual relationships or transactional sex in return for socio-economic support, hence rendering themselves vulnerable to physical violence and to contracting HIV.
80. This is particularly the case with many extra-marital cohabitation relationships. See Clark & Goldblatt (note 33 above) 199-200+210
81. De Vos (note 30 above) 203
82. Goldblatt (note 30 above) 614-616
83. B Goldblatt 'Satchwell v President of the Republic of South Africa 2002 (6) SA 1 (CC)' (2003) 19 SAJHR 118-120.
84. AH Dekker 'Mind the Gap: Suggestions for Bridging the Divide Between Formal and Informal Social Security' (2008) 12 Law, Democracy & Development 117+122-4
85. Fraser (note 33 above) 222-3+228
86. Ludsin (note 7 above) 197-8
87. Pieterse (note 3 above) 15-6
88. Pieterse (note 4 above) 6.
89. For example, Bonthuys (note 31 above) 205 illustrates how the vulnerability of child-headed households is exacerbated by statutory provisions that limit eligibility for child support grants to applicants over the age of 16.
90. Fraser (note 33 above) 223.
91. See s4(3)(b) of the National Health Act 61 of 2003.
92. See s129(2) of the Children's Act 38 of 2005, which determines that children over the age of 12, who are 'of sufficient maturity and ... mental capacity to understand the benefits, risks, social and other implications of treatment', may independently consent to treatment. Under s129(3), parental assistance is nevertheless required where treatment involves a surgical operation. Subsections 129(7)-(9) further provide for the ministerial or judicial circumvention of parental consent where such consent is unreasonably denied or not realistically obtainable. See further s5(3) of the Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Act 92 of 1996, in terms of which abortion services may not be refused to a minor girl who does not wish to consult her parents on her decision to request the procedure.
93. Bonthuys (note 37 above) 349
94. Dekker (note 40 above) 118-9+122
95. Joseph (note 6 above) 280
96. Ludsin (note 7 above) 197-8+221.
97. See for instance Fraser (note 33 above) 223
98. Malan note 4 above 61
99. M Minow 'Redefining Families: Who's In and Who's Out?' (1991) 62 Colorado LR 269+279-83
100. Pieterse (note 3 above) 3.
101. Government of the RSA v Grootboom 2001 (1) SA 46 (CC) paras 76-8.
102. See, for example, S Liebenberg 'South Africa's Evolving Jurisprudence on Socio-economic Rights: An Effective Tool in Challenging Poverty?' (2002) 6 Law, Democracy & Development 159+173
103. Pieterse (note 3 above) 11+15-6
104. P Proudlock 'Children's Socio-economic Rights: Do They Have a Right to Special Protection?' (2002) 3(2) ESR Rev 6+7-8
105. J Sloth-Nielsen 'The Child's Right to Social Services, the Right to Social Security, and Primary Prevention of Child Abuse: Some Conclusions in the Aftermath of Grootboom' (2001) 17 SAJHR 210+229-30.
106. Fortunately, the Court reaffirmed a measure of State responsibility to children of indigent parents in relation to the right of access to health care services, in Minister of Health v Treatment Action Campaign 2002 (5) SA 721 (CC) paras 77-9.
107. See Bonthuys (note 37 above) 334
108. Pieterse (ibid).
109. Bonthuys (note 37 above) 349.
110. Fraser (note 33 above) 223
111. Joseph (note 6 above) 280
112. For example, Bonthuys (note 37 above) 341 points to reports of women resorting to perform sexual favours for public officials, in return for the processing of child support grants to which they are entitled.
113. Bannatyne v Bannatyne 2003 (2) SA 363 (CC) paras 27-8.
114. See further Bonthuys (note 37 above) 335-8 345-7 as well as part III(c) below.
115. Goldblatt (note 30 above) 618.
116. See Pearmain (note 16 above) 292.
117. On the manner in which the Constitution requires the regulation of private service provision and bolsters the legitimacy of such regulation, see M Pieterse 'The Legitimizing/Insulating Effect of Socio-economic Rights' (2007) 22 Can J of L & Soc 1, 6-9.
118. Section 24(1)(e) of the Medical Schemes Act 131 of 1998.
119. The Department of Health's Regulations Relating to a Transparent Pricing System for Medicines and Scheduled Substances GN R553 (30 April 2004), which aimed inter alia to reduce the profit margins of retail pharmacies on prescribed medicines, were declared unconstitutional in Minister of Health v New Clicks South Africa 2006 (2) SA 311 (CC) for failing to set an appropriate dispensing fee in conformance with the rule of law and dictates of administrative justice. However, the Constitutional Court affirmed that the measures would pass constitutional muster when the defects it identified had been addressed, since it was constitutional to restrict commercial profits in endeavouring to increase access to socio-economic rights. See ibid paras 1, 16 (per the entire Court), 32 (per Chaskalson CJ), 437, 514-7 (per Ngcobo J), 650-1 (per Sachs J), 704-6 (per Moseneke J). For further discussion
120. See Pieterse (note 54 above) 13-4.
121. For justifications for imposing horizontal socio-economic obligations on service providers in these contexts, see for instance Liebenberg (note 11 above) 469-70
122. Pearmain (note 16 above) 290-1
123. Pieterse (note 9 above) 159, 169-70.
124. 58 Section 39(2) of the Constitution. For discussion of potential implications of this constitutional mandate for the rules of contract law pertaining to the doctor-patient relationship, see Pieterse (note 9 above) 171-4.
125. Afrox Health Care v Strydom 2002 (6) SA 621 (SCA) paras 11-3, 15, 19-21.
126. See, for example, D Brand 'Disclaimers in Hospital Admission Contracts and Constitutional Health Rights' (2002) 3(2) ESR Rev 17-8
127. Jansen & Smith (note 22 above) 215-8, 220
128. Liebenberg (note 11 above) 476
129. Pieterse (note 9 above) 176-7
130. Pieterse (note 22 above) 566-7
131. Van den Heever (note 22 above).
132. By the Matrimonial Property Act 88 of 1984. On the extent of marital power in civil marriages and the story of its abolition
133. See Cronje & Heaton (note 23 above) 77.
134. Prior v Battle 1999 (2) SA 850 (Tk) 858F-859F, 860H-J.
135. Bhe v Magistrate, Khayelitsha 2005 (1) SA 580 (CC).
136. See specifically paras 91-2, 95.
137. Ibid paras 76-80.
138. See further R Ludsin (note 7 above) 200-1
139. L Mbatha 'Reforming the Customary Law of Succession' (2002) 18 SAJHR 259, 260-1, 264, 267.
140. A challenge to s 7(1) was raised, but not pursued, in Mabuza v Mbatha 2003 (7) BCLR 743 (C) - see para 3. On the pernicious impact of s 7(1) in this context
141. See V Bronstein 'Confronting Custom in the New South African State: An Analysis of the Recognition of Customary Marriages Act 120 of 1998' (2000) 16 SAJHR 558, 563-7, 572-3
142. Cronje & Heaton (note 23 above) 193-4
143. Ludsin (note 7 above) 200-1
144. Mamashela (note 33 above) 628, 630, 638-40.
145. See Minow (note 46 above) 282-3.
146. Langemaat v Minister of Safety and Security 1998 (3) SA 312 (T) 316A-B, 316H, 317I.
147. Satchwell v President of the RSA 2002 (6) SA 1 (CC) paras 13, 24, 37.
148. 2006 (1) SA 524 (CC).
149. Amod v Multilateral Motor Vehicle Accidents Fund 1999 (4) SA 1319 (SCA) paras 20, 23-26.
150. Daniels v Campbell 2004 (5) SA 331 (CC) paras 21, 23, 25-6, 37.
151. See further Clark & Goldblatt (note 33 above) 217.
152. Volks v Robinson 2005 (5) BCLR 446 (CC) para 60.
153. See also paras 39, 55-6, 58 (per Skweyiya J) as well as the concurring judgment of Ngcobo J at ibid paras 88, 90-4.
154. Ibid para 55.
155. Ibid paras 63-8.
156. Ibid paras 108, 113, 132-6.
157. Ibid paras 156, 164, 188, 222-225.
158. Ibid paras 193-4, 214, 218.
159. Heystek v Heystek (note 26 above) 757A-C, 758A. The relevant rights are contained in ss28(1) (b)-(c), 28(2) of the Constitution. See further SW v F 1997 (1) SA 796 (O) (constitutional right to parental care does not refer only to care by biological parents).
160. Petersen v Maintenance Officer, Simon's Town Maintenance Court 2004 (2) SA 56 (C) paras 21-3, 27.
161. See further R Clark & Goldblatt T (note 33 above) 199.
162. Pieterse (note 4 above) 4.
163. On the confluence of status-based and socio-economic effects of exclusion and non-recognition, see C Albertyn 'Defending and Securing Rights Through Law: Feminism, Law and the Courts in South Africa' (2005) 32(2) Politikon 217-229
164. S Fredman 'Redistribution and Recognition: Reconciling Inequalities' (2007) 23 SAJHR 214, 215, 218, 220, 223, 229-30.
165. Clark & Goldblatt (note 33 above) 207
166. B Goldblatt 'Amod v Multilateral Motor Vehicle Accidents Fund (Commission for Gender Equality Intervening) 1999 (4) SA 1319 (SCA)' (2000) 16 SAJHR 139, 142-3.
167. Albertyn (note 82 above) 229-233
168. De Vos (note 30 above) 192-9
169. Goldblatt (note 39 above) 120.
170. Bonthuys (note 29 above) 879-80, 885, 889, 896-7
171. Clark & Goldblatt (note 33 above) 210-1.
172. A functional approach is argued for by Bonthuys (note 29 above) 900
173. Clark & Goldblatt (note 33 above) 207
174. Goldblatt (note 30 above) 616-7
175. Goldblatt (note 83 above) 142-3
176. Goldblatt (note 39 above) 120
177. Minow (note 46 above) 270.
178. On a functional, primary-caregiver centred approach to socio-economic rights of children, see for instance Clark & Goldblatt (note 33 above) 241
179. M Pieterse 'In Loco Parentis: Third Party Parenting Rights in South Africa' (2000) 11 Stellenbosch LR 324-341.
180. See Ludsin (note 7 above) 201.
181. Bannatyne (note 51 above) para 28.
182. Ibid para 27.
183. See cases discussed by Bonthuys (note 37 above) 337-8. In relation to judicial enforcement of divorce settlements which expressly included medical expenses for former spouses or children, see Forssman v Forssman 2008 (2) SA 144 (W) paras 19, 40-1 (the Court increases amount of maintenance payable to make up for the fact that father does not pay children's medical expenses as agreed, holding that '[i]f the respondent is de facto having to pay medical expenses as and when they occur, she should not have to be dependent upon the appellant's goodwill in the future' ibid para 41)
184. Lebeloane v Lebeloane 2001 (1) SA 1079 (W) paras 2, 8, 13, 28, 32
185. Thomson v Thomson (note 26 above) paras 547I-548A (husband ordered to repay former wife's medical expenses with interest)
186. Van Aswegen v Van Aswegen (note 26 above) paras 2-3, 28, 64, 72.
187. See Seekings (note 2 above) 26.
188. Booysen v Minister of Home Affairs 2001 (4) SA 485 (CC) paras 4-7. 2007 (2) SACR 539 (CC).
189. Bonthuys (note 32 above) 213.
190. Ludsin (note 7 above) 206-7
191. Malan (note 4 above) 59, 61-2, 64
192. Pieterse (note 9 above) 159-179.
193. Goldblatt (note 30 above) 618.