The Electoral Commission (Commission) mourns the loss of Mr
Stephanus Sebastiaan van der Merwe, fondly known as “Fanie” or “SS”. Mr van der
Merwe served as a founding Commissioner since the establishment of the
Commission in 1997. The Commission has learned that he passed away on Monday, 6
March 2023.
With a training and background in law, Mr Van der Merwe rose
through the ranks of the Department of Justice, with his public service career
culminating in a decade and a half spent as Director-General of the Departments
of Internal Affairs (now Home Affairs) and of Justice, as well as Head of the
Constitutional Development Service, and Constitutional Adviser in the
Department of Constitutional Development.
His role involved him in various activities that supported
the transitional process logistically and otherwise in the transition to
democratic government in South Africa.
He was, among others, intimately involved in the negotiations leading to
the signing of the Peace Accord, and the establishment and structuring of
CODESA. He served as a government delegate at CODESA and as a member of the
two-person CODESA secretariat. He was
also a delegate at the Multiparty Negotiation process that followed on CODESA.
Mr Van der Merwe went on to serve as a member of the two-person secretariat
responsible for the administration and facilitation of the Transitional
Executive Council (TEC) in the period leading up to the 1994 elections.
His activities at CODESA, the Multiparty Negotiation Process
and the TEC involved him in the genesis of both the Independent Electoral
Commission and the Electoral Act that governed the 1994 elections. His
association with the Department of Constitutional Development drew him into the
Local Government Elections of 1995/6.
Mr Van der Merwe was also part of a task group that drafted
the bill for the establishment of the present Electoral Commission, which
required research and reporting on a number of electoral systems. He was appointed as a Commissioner of the
Electoral Commission in July 1997, with the task of establishing the
administration to deliver the 1996 national and provincial elections. He served
two terms as a member of the Electoral Commission until his final retirement on
19 October 2011.
Commissioner Van der Merwe was soft-spoken and yet, a master
of strategy. He is one of those who selflessly made his mark on the
transformation of our democracy, in general, and electoral democracy, in
particular. His impressive command of electoral legislation, together with a polite
sense of humour, will remain a lasting legacy for us in the Commission.
As we mourn his loss, we celebrate the gentle giant that he
was to all of us. We salute him and think of his loved ones at this difficult
time. To them we say, thank you for sharing him with all of us.
ISSUED BY THE ELECTORAL COMMISSION
Ensuring
free, fair and credible elections
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