The recognition of unenumerated rights in South Africa

Abstract

In 1997 a South African man married a woman who, at the time of the conclusion of their marriage, was a national of a foreign country. The couple decided to set up home and start a family in South Africa. They were advised that the granting of a permanent residence permit to the wife would only be considered upon payment of a hefty application fee, and that she had to apply for the permit from outside South Africa. The couple was of the view that the high cost of the application coupled with their temporary separation at the time of the lodging of the application amounted to an unjustifiable limitation of their right to family life. One of the obstacles faced by the couple was the silence of the South Africa Constitution on the right to family life.