Editorial

Abstract

This edition, one of the most voluminous to date, opens with an oratio by IT Cohen Professor of International Law and Human Rights, Emory University School of Law, Johan van der Vyver. The paper was delivered in the HL Swanepoel series of lectures on 26 May in Potchefstroom. In a well documented paper covering historical perspectives on the right to self-determination, the definition thereof and limitations thereupon, Van der Vyver concludes that the "[d]rafters of the South African Constitution rejected segregation of rival ethnic, religious and linguistic communities, as well as the promotion of cultural, religious or linguistic homogeneity within our nation, as a means of counteracting group-related tensions in the country's social construct. . . . The new constitutional dispensation accordingly seeks to promote pride in one's group identities." He also points out that "[p]luralism, tolerance and broadmindedness have been singled out by the European Court of Human Rights as indispensable components of a democratic society." A link to video material of the lecture is also included.