Albie Sachs
Smore by Emily Lawrence
Biography
Upon his return, Sachs' began his biggest contribution in fighting the apartheid movement and reforming what came after. He joined the Constitutional Committee that had the immensely important job of creating a nondiscriminatory charter for the country to adopt in order to legally enforce the end of apartheid. Sachs specifically sought after a Bill of Rights to be included in the Constitution, similarly to America, ensuring that all citizens had stated rights specific to their freedom as well as their well being. When Mandela was elected president in 1994, the very Constitution that Sachs contributed to was adopted, including his Bill of Rights. Following this, Sachs joined 11 others on the Constitutional Court where he continued to fight injustice through the courtroom on issues including the death penalty, homosexuality, and AIDs prevention. He served until 2009. Albie Sachs worked tirelessly throughout his whole life to fight apartheid through the justice system despite physical, mental, and vocational sacrifices that this fight caused him to make. The charter that he contributed to outlined the new era of South Africa and fundamentally changed the way that society would exist in the future.
Rights
(1) This Bill of Rights is a cornerstone of democracy in South Africa. It enshrines the rights of all people in our country and affirms the democratic values of human dignity, equality and freedom.
(2) The state must respect, protect, promote and fulfill the rights in the Bill of Rights.
(3) The rights in the Bill of Rights are subject to the limitations contained or referred to in section 36, or elsewhere in the Bill.
References
Works Cited
“Albie Sachs biography -- academy of achievement.” 4 Dec. 2013. 15 Nov. 2015. <http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/page/sac0bio-1#>.
“Bill of Rights PDF.” n.d. 16 Nov. 2015. <http://www.justice.gov.za/legislation/constitution/SAConstitution-web-eng-02.pdf>.
“Justice Albie Sachs.” Constitutional Court of South Africa. n.d. 15 Nov. 2015. <http://www.constitutionalcourt.org.za/site/judges/justicealbiesachs/index1.html>.
“South African freedom fighter addresses gay marriage at UF Law Tuesday.” FlaLawOnline. 25 Mar. 2015. 16 Nov. 2015. <http://www.law.ufl.edu/flalaw/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/albie-sachs.jpg>.
Citations, Quotes & Annotations
“Albie Sachs biography -- academy of achievement.” 4 Dec. 2013. 15 Nov. 2015. <http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/page/sac0bio-1#>.
(“Albie Sachs Biography -- Academy of Achievement”)
“Bill of Rights PDF.” n.d. 16 Nov. 2015. <http://www.justice.gov.za/legislation/constitution/SAConstitution-web-eng-02.pdf>.
(“Bill of Rights PDF”)
“Justice Albie Sachs.” Constitutional Court of South Africa. n.d. 15 Nov. 2015. <http://www.constitutionalcourt.org.za/site/judges/justicealbiesachs/index1.html>.
(“Justice Albie Sachs”)
“South African freedom fighter addresses gay marriage at UF Law Tuesday.” FlaLawOnline. 25 Mar. 2015. 16 Nov. 2015. <http://www.law.ufl.edu/flalaw/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/albie-sachs.jpg>.
(“South African Freedom Fighter Addresses Gay Marriage at UF Law Tuesday”)