Moral Imperatives in South African Law: The Concept of Ubuntu and Constitutional Challenges

Abstract

South Africа has a history of deep divisions characterised by strife and confl ict. However, there exists a general and unifying basis — the concept of Ubuntu, which has acquired a special signifi cance in the legal discourse in post-apartheid South Africa.Ubuntu is a philosophical concept and a way of life. One of the most wellknown expressions conveying its essence is the aphorism: “A person is a person through other people”. This concept off ers original approaches to solving social, economic, and political problems of the African continent to ensure the common well-being of society. Ubuntu contributes to the decolonization of South African law, where moral imperatives contribute to the transformation of constitutionalism into a contextually grounded system of social justice that overcomes the legacy of apartheid. Ubuntu has become the foundation of transformative constitutionalism in South Africa and is recognized as a constitutional value.