SOUTH AFRICAN COUNCIL OF CHURCHES
PUBLIC POLICY LIAISON OFFICE
8 SEPTEMBER 1998

Dear Dr. Cwele:

The South African Council of Churches (SACC) remains extremely concerned about the provisions of the Electoral Bill pertaining to the forms of identification that will be accepted for voter registration and voting. Since the Select Committee on Social Services is currently considering two alternative amendments, proposed yesterday by the Department of Home Affairs and the Electoral Commission, we wish to extend remarks that we have made in our earlier submission to the Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs to address the issues raised by these two proposals. We hope that you will share our comments with other members of your committee.

The SACC appreciates the government's eagerness to ensure that all South Africans hold an up-to-date identity document. The barcoded ID clearly represents the most secure form of identification, and we would support efforts to promote acquisition of barcoded IDs by all adult citizens.

However, we are not convinced that it is realistic to complete this process prior to the 1999 general election. The Department, the EC, and the HSRC all agree that there are approximately 2,5 million South Africans with some form of non-barcoded identity document. In addition, there is some number of people who have no identity document at all. The Department claims that this number is very small, and that most are people who simply have not yet collected their IDs. Based on the results of its 30 July 1998 survey, the HSRC estimates that between 2,5 million and 2,8 million South Africans have no form of identity document, a figure that has been accepted by the EC.

We are prepared to endorse the Department's view that flaws in the HSRC research methodology may have caused the survey to overestimate the number of eligible voters without any form of identity document. At the same time, our own experience, coupled with anecdotal evidence from other sources, leads us to believe that a substantial number of eligible voters still lack IDs. For example, the recent "Speak Out on Poverty" hearings, held in May and June 1998 in every province, revealed that one of the major obstacles that people face in accessing social security grants to which they are entitled is the lack of a barcoded ID. The Department of Welfare has now computerised its social security system and, in doing so, has exposed the magnitude of the problem.
The Department reports that it has the capacity to issue barcoded IDs to the 2,5 million eligible voters who require them prior to the 1999 elections. Even in the best case scenario--where applications for barcoded IDs began to pour in tomorrow and the Department is able to work continuously at its peak output of 20 000 IDs a day--the Department would need 125 working days, or six months, to issue the requisite number of IDs. This leaves very little room for manoeuvre. If, as we believe, the Department will also need to cope with a substantial number of first-time applicants, its capacity will be severely strained. Even without an influx of applications from people who lack any ID, there are many other circumstances--a flood of late applications, administrative hitches within the Department, etc.--that could derail the process, inviting a constitutional challenge to the legitimacy of the election.

Consequently, we believe that it is essential to permit all eligible voters who hold identity documents that are valid in terms of the Identification Act, 1997, to register and to vote using their current IDs.

We would therefore support the amendments to Clauses 1 and 11 of the Electoral Bill, as proposed by the Electoral Commission, rather than the amendment to Clause 6 proposed by the Department of Home Affairs.

The EC and Department amendments differ significantly only in the way that they treat the 2,5 million voters with non-barcoded IDs (see annexed comparison). The Department's amendments would require people in this category to: 1) apply for a barcoded ID and get a temporary certificate for the purposes of registration; and 2) obtain a barcoded ID before the election. The EC's amendments would significantly reduce the immediate burden on the Department by enabling holders of non-barcoded IDs to register and vote without obtaining any additional documentation. The Department would be able to devote its efforts to ensuring that there are, in fact, no potential voters without identity documents.

The novel feature of the EC amendment is that it addresses the government's desire to promote the conversion of old IDs. By permitting the Minister to determine a date after which voters who have not obtained a barcoded ID can be removed from the voters roll, the amendment keeps the pressure on voters to apply for a new document. However, this approach minimises the possibility that otherwise eligible voters could be turned away from the polls.

We urge you to support the amendments proposed by the Electoral Commission.

Revd. Malcolm Damon
Co-ordinator, Public Policy Liaison

Comparison of amendments to the Electoral Bill (B69B-98) as proposed by Home Affairs and the Electoral Commission

Additional documents required by various categories of citizens in order to register and vote in the 1999 National and Provincial Elections

A barcoded identity document is one issued after 1 July 1986 in terms of section 8 of the Identification Act, 1986, and recognised as valid in terms of section 25 of the Identification Act, 1997.

A non-barcoded identity document is one issued prior to 1 July 1986 and recognised as valid by in terms of section 25 of the Identification Act, 1997. It includes old green IDs, old blue IDs, the old "dompas", and TVBC identity documents.

A temporary form is a form or certificate that would be issued by the Director-General: Home Affairs to an applicant for a barcoded identity document in terms of either the amendments proposed by the Dept. of Home Affairs or the EC. Both Home Affairs and the EC are proposing a similar form that would show the applicant's name, gender, date of birth, and identity number from the National Population Register and would carry a recent photograph of the applicant. According to the Director-General: Home Affairs, such forms could be issued immediately upon application at any fixed office of Home Affairs, and within one day upon application at any mobile unit.

* The EC amendments would allow voters registering with a non-barcoded ID or a temporary form to be deregistered if they are not issued with an ID card or document in terms of the Identification Act, 1997, by a specific date (after the 1999 elections) to be determined by the Minister of Home Affairs. Consequently, anyone registering with an old ID would need to obtain a new ID in order to remain on the voters' roll after 1999.