S v Mhlungu and Others

The applicants were accused persons in criminal proceedings that had commenced before 27 April 1994, the date on which the Interim Constitution came into force. During those proceedings, constitutional issues arose concerning whether provisions of the Criminal Procedure Act, particularly those relating to confessions, fair trial rights, and sentencing, were inconsistent with the fundamental rights entrenched in Chapter 3 of the Interim Constitution. The matter required interpretation of section 241(8) of the Interim Constitution, which dealt with how pending proceedings were to be handled after the Constitution’s commencement.

It was declared that section 241(8) does not exclude the application of Chapter 3 of the Interim Constitution to proceedings pending at the commencement of the Constitution, and that accused persons in such proceedings are entitled to rely on constitutional rights.

This case is a foundational authority on transitional constitutional interpretation in South Africa. It affirmed that constitutional rights apply immediately and broadly, preventing arbitrary denial of fundamental rights based on procedural timing. The judgment entrenched purposive constitutional interpretation and ensured that the new constitutional order decisively broke from apartheid-era injustice.