STEVEN MANN, Cape Town | Wednesday 6.10pm.
A LAW which seeks to outlaw unfair discrimination on the basis of race, gender, marital status, disability and other grounds was passed by the National Assembly on Wednesday, amidst howls of protests from the insurance industry.
Insurers say the Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Bill will push up premiums because policy holders will be able to contest their underwriting decisions.
But Justice Minster Penuel Maduna dismissed their criticism as unwarranted and misleading.
“This Bill does not outlaw all forms of discrimination that takes place during the normal course of business. It takes cognisance of the fact that there are forms of differentiation which was reasonable and justified,” he said when introducing debate on the bill.
The New National Party expressed reservation about the soundness of the legislation but backed it all the same, thus symbolically turning it’s back on the policies which it’s predecessor, the National Party, enforced for more than four decades.
The Democratic Party voted against the bill, saying it gave Maduna carte blache to appoint judges and magistrates to equality courts, which will deal with discrimination complaints and that this flew in the face of the Constitution.
The bill, one of four required by the constitution to be enacted by February 4, goes to the National Council of Provinces on Friday before being signed into law by President Thabo Mbeki.
Last week opposition parties welcomed the removal of a controversial clause that would have banned discrimination against people with HIV/Aids. The bill now includes a clause instructing Maduna to set up a committee to study and make recommendations on the matter within a year.