Twelfth Amendment of the Constitution of South Africa

Some communities were unhappy about being transferred from one province to another; in particular the people of Matatiele and Khutsong were dissatisfied at being included in the Eastern Cape and the North West, respectively.

The court disagreed with the first claim but agreed with the second, ruling that the part of the amendment that transferred Matatiele to the Eastern Cape was invalid.

The court, however, suspended the ruling of invalidity for eighteen months to allow Parliament to re-enact the changes with the necessary public participation.

[5] Some residents of Matatiele also founded the African Independent Congress as a political party to campaign against the transfer.

The people of Khutsong resorted to marches, protests (in some cases violent) and boycotts and stayaways.