Güney Afrika Cumhuriyeti’nin Sui Generis Hükümet Sistemi Ve Demokratik İşleyişi

Year 2025, Volume: 83 Issue: 3, 1038 - 1075, 24.10.2025

Yunus Emre Erdölen Atagün Mert Kejanlıoğlu

https://doi.org/10.26650/mecmua.2025.83.3.008

https://izlik.org/JA67KL58LT

Abstract

Yürütmenin tek başlı olması ve fesih mekanizmasının istisnai bir yürütme yetkisi olarak düzenlenmesi sebebiyle Güney Afrika hükümet sistemi klasik parlamenter sistem tanımlarına uymayan kendine özgü bir parlamenter sistemdir. Klasik bir parlamenter sistemin aksine sembolik ve tarafsız bir devlet başkanı bulunmamaktadır. Denge ve denetleme rolünü ise uzun bir demokrasiye geçiş döneminin ürünü olan 1996 Anayasası’nda düzenlenen Anayasa Mahkemesi, Kamu Koruyucusu gibi bağımsız ve tarafsız anayasal kurumlar üstlenmiştir. Sadece bu anayasal kurumlar değil, parti kurultaylarında örgütlenen parti içi muhalefet ve yargı yolu mekanizmalarını etkin bir şekilde kullanmaya çalışan siyasi muhalefet de 29 senedir düzenlenen seçimleri art arda kazanarak yürütme ve yasama erkini tek başına elinde bulunduran hâkim parti ANC karşısında dengeleyici birer unsur olarak kendisini ispatlamıştır. Böylece Güney Afrika demokrasisi, diğer Afrika ülkelerinin aksine görev süresi biten başkanların anayasa hükümleri yok sayılarak veya anayasanın değiştirilerek görevde kalmalarını engellemiş, hakkında yolsuzluk iddiaları bulunan eski bir başkanın yargı önüne çıkarılmasına ve mahkemelerin görevdeki başkanlar aleyhine karar verilmesine imkân sağlayan bir hukuk devletini tesis edebilmiş, otoriter eğilimlere karşı set çekebilmiştir. Siyahların oy hakkının dahi olmadığı bir Apartheid rejiminin geride bırakıldığı bu demokrasiye geçiş dönemine sadece 1996 Anayasası hükümleri değil, bu hükümlere sahip çıkan siyasi aktörler ve anayasal kurumlar da rehberlik etmiş; ikinci döneminde aday olmayan, Anayasa Mahkemesi’nin özerkliğini pekiştiren Mandela, cesur içtihatlara imza atan hakimler ve demokrasiyi koruyan kurumlar, liderlerine karşı çıkabilen parti içi muhalefet ve anayasal kurumları etkin kullanan bir siyasi muhalefet, anayasal normların hayata geçirilmesi ve Afrika’da etkin bir demokrasinin inşa edilmesi için mücadele vermiştir.

Keywords

Güney Afrika , Hükümet sistemleri , Başkanlık sistemi , Parlamenter sistem , Demokrasiye geçiş dönemi

The Republic of South Africa’s Sui Generis Governmental System And Its Democratic Functioning

https://izlik.org/JA67KL58LT

Abstract

The governmental system of South Africa is a unique parliamentary system that does not conform to the classical definitions of the parliamentary system, as the executive is unicameral, and the dissolution mechanism is regulated as an exceptional executive power. There is no symbolic and impartial head of state. The role of checks and balances is assumed by independent and impartial constitutional institutions such as the Constitutional Court and the Public Protector. Not only these constitutional institutions but also the intra-party opposition organized in party conventions and the political opposition that has tried to use the judicial remedy mechanisms effectively have proven themselves as a balancing factor against the ANC, the predominant party that has won the elections for 29 years in a row and holds the executive and legislative power alone. Thus, unlike other African countries, South Africa’s democracy has been able to prevent outgoing presidents from staying in office by ignoring the constitution, to establish the rule of law that allows a former president facing corruption allegations to be brought to trial and courts to rule against incumbent presidents, and to set a barrier against authoritarian tendencies. Mandela, who didn’t run for a second term and consolidated the autonomy of the Constitutional Court, judges who made bold jurisprudence, institutions that protected democracy, an internal party opposition within the dominant party that could challenge its leaders, and a political opposition that used constitutional institutions effectively; all fought for the implementation of constitutional norms and the construction of effective democracy.

Keywords

South Africa , Governmental systems , Presidential system , Parliamentary system , Democratic transition

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