constitution

‘Reconciling The Impossible’: South Africa’s Government of National Unity, 1994-1996

Author
Leon Schreiber
Country of Reform
Abstract

In April 1994, after a decades-long struggle for democracy and more than three years of arduous peace negotiations, Nelson Mandela’s African National Congress formed a power-sharing government with its rivals: the National Party and the Inkatha Freedom Party. It was vital to overcome lingering distrust between the three groups, which had been locked in a violent conflict. Based on the outcome of an election and in accordance with an interim constitution adopted the year before, political leaders apportioned cabinet posts and appointed ministers from all three parties to the new government. They then tried to design practices conducive to governing well, and they introduced innovations that became models for other countries. When policy disputes arose, they set up ad hoc committees to find common ground, or they sought venues outside the cabinet to adjudicate the disagreements. Despite the National Party’s withdrawal from the power-sharing cabinet in mid 1996, South Africa’s Government of National Unity oversaw the creation of a historic new constitution, restructured the country’s legal system and public service, and implemented a raft of social programs aimed at undoing the injustices of apartheid.

 

Leon Schreiber drafted this case study based on interviews conducted in Cape Town and Johannesburg, South Africa, in September and October 2016. Case published December 2016. 

This series highlights the governance challenges inherent in power sharing arrangements, profiles adaptations that eased these challenges, and offers ideas about adaptations.

The United States Institute of Peace funded the development of this case study.

 

Hakim Ben Hammouda

Ref Batch
C
Ref Batch Number
12
Country of Reform
Interviewers
Robert Joyce
Name
Hakim Ben Hammouda
Interviewee's Position
Minister of Economy and Finance
Language
English
Town/City
Marsa
Country
Date of Interview
Reform Profile
No
Abstract

In this interview, Dr. Hakim Ben Hammouda describes the process of formulating the economic priorities of Tunisia’s caretaker cabinet under Prime Minister Medhi Jomaa. Ben Hammouda explains the decision to go beyond the limited scope of macroeconomic stabilization outlined in the government’s roadmap agreement to include other economic reforms and fiscal measures designed to promote investment and long-term growth of the Tunisian economy. In the process of designing and implementing these measures, Ben Hammouda places high importance on the ability of the cabinet staff to negotiate with political stakeholders and to bring the conversation to the public arena. Although the technocratic team succeeded in introducing all their outlined economic reforms to parliament by the end of their one year in office, Ben Hammouda details the difficulty the independent cabinet faced in securing political support for their initiatives, especially when the time came for members of parliament to start campaigning for reelection. Reflecting on the successes of the Jomaa caretaker cabinet, Ben Hammouda points to the security committee that enabled safe and credible elections to occur as well as to the transition reports prepared for the newly elected government by each department that enabled continuity of state and, in some cases, continuity of certain reform efforts. 

Case: A Year of Calm: Tunisia’s Independent Government, 2014-2015

Profile

Dr. Hakim Ben Hammouda served as the Minister of Economy and Finance under interim Prime Minister Medhi Jomaa from January 2014 to February 2015. Prior to his appointment to the independent, technocratic cabinet established to ensure credible elections, Ben Hammouda worked as special adviser to the president of the African Development Bank. He also worked in various capacities for the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNCEA) from 2001 to 2008, serving as chief economist to the commission in his last two years there. From 2008 to 2011 he held the position of director of the Institute for Training and Technical Cooperation at the World Trade Organization (WTO). He received his PhD in international economics from the University of Grenoble in France.

 

 

Full Audio File Size
84 MB
Full Audio Title
Hakim Ben Hammouda Interview

Preparing to Draft a New Social Contract: Tunisia's National Constituent Assembly Election, 2011

Author
Daniel Tavana
Focus Area(s)
Country of Reform
Abstract

Tunisia’s Independent High Authority for Elections faced a formidable task in May 2011. The newly created commission had five months to organize and implement elections for a National Constituent Assembly that would rewrite the Tunisian constitution. Commissioners moved quickly to build capacity and restore public faith in elections. The commission navigated the pressures of a compressed electoral calendar, an agitated electorate, and skepticism of the transitional government. The story of the group’s efforts to manage a successful election offers insight into how an electoral commission can take advantage of relationships with political parties, government, and the public to overcome inexperience in volatile circumstances. This case study focuses on commission staffing and recruitment, the creation of regional subsidiary bodies, and voter registration.

Ylli Manjani

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Q
Focus Area(s)
Ref Batch Number
1
Country of Reform
Interviewers
Michael Scharff and Amy Mawson
Name
Ylli Manjani
Language
English/Spanish
Nationality of Interviewee
Albanian
Place (Building/Street)
Gjergji Center
Town/City
Tirana
Country
Date of Interview
Reform Profile
No
Abstract
Ylli Manjani discusses the aim of establishing the Albanian Central Election Commission (CEC) as a constitutional, non-political, body with a clear mandate and immunity.  Manjani goes on to discuss the establishment of a single electoral code as a legal framework for local, parliamentary and national elections.   He cites the involvement of civil society, particularly the Soros Foundation, as well as intergovernmental organizations such as the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), and the Council of Europe as advisors to the committees charged with the design of the CEC and the electoral code.   Manjani discusses challenges with voter registration stemming from the lack of credible civil registries and the resultant duplicate voting. Although Manjani expresses disappointment with what he sees as a step backwards in the politicization of the CEC’s composition, he notes improvement in the area of voter registration, for which he largely credits Ilirjan Celibashi as Chairman of the CEC. Brief mention is made of the role of the police in the security surrounding elections, specifically the government’s decision to keep the police out of polling stations unless invited in by the election commissioners.
 
Profile

At the time of this interview, Ylli Manjani was a legal program assistant with the Institute for Policy and Legal Studies (IPLS), designing and co-managing the IPLS legal policy program and its various projects.  Previous to this position he served as the secretary general of the Council of Ministers and legal adviser to the Albanian Prime Minister.  In this interview, he speaks largely to his work in 1999-2000 as adviser to the Minister for Legislative Reform and later on as head of the Approximation of Legislation Department in the Council of Ministers.  A lawyer by training, Manjani went on to become the deputy minister of Public Work and Transport in Albania.

Full Audio File Size
86MB
Full Audio Title
Ylli Manjani Interview