ATC240325: Report of the Portfolio Committee on Sport, Arts and Culture on the South African Institute for Drug-Free Sport Amendment Bill [B41—2023] (National Assembly – Section 75), Dated 25 March 2024

Sport, Arts and Culture

 

Report of the Portfolio Committee on Sport, Arts and Culture on the South African Institute for Drug-Free Sport Amendment Bill [B41—2023] (National Assembly – Section 75), Dated 25 March 2024

 

The Portfolio Committee on Sport, Arts and Culture (“the Committee”), having considered the South African Institute for Drug-Free Sport Amendment Bill, 2023 [B41—2023], referred to and classified by the Joint Tagging Mechanism (JTM) as a section 75 Bill, reports the Bill with amendments [B41B—2023]:

 

1. INTRODUCTION

The South African Institute for Drug-Free Sport (SAIDS) Amendment Bill, 2023 [B41—2023] (“the Amendment Bill”) was approved by Cabinet for introduction in Parliament on 04 October 2023. On 23 November 2023, the Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture (“the Minister”) published a notice of intention to introduce the Amendment Bill in Parliament in Government Gazette No. 49763. Subsequently, on 24 November 2023, the Minister introduced the Amendment Bill which was referred to the Committee on the same day (Announcements, Tablings and Committee Reports (ATC) No. 166 – 2023) as a proposed section 75 bill, i.e. a bill that would not affect the provinces. Simultaneously, the Amendment Bill was referred to the Parliamentary Joint Tagging Mechanism (JTM) for classification in terms of Joint Rule 160. On 13 December 2023 (ATC No. 179 – 2023), the Amendment Bill was officially tagged as a section 75 bill by the JTM in terms of Joint Rule 160(6).

 

The Amendment Bill proposes to amend various sections of the South African Institute for Drug-Free Sport (SAIDS) Act, 1997 (Act No. 14 of 1997) (“the Principal Act”), previously amended by the SAIDS Amendment Act, 2006 (Act No. 25 of 2006).

 

2. OBJECTIVES OF THE AMENDMENT BILL

The objectives of the Amendment Bill are to amend the South African Institute for Drug-Free Sport Act, 1997, so as to:

• delete, amend and insert certain definitions;
• provide for consequential amendments in certain provisions; and
• provide for matters connected therewith.

 

3. MEETINGS OF THE COMMITTEE

The Committee had scheduled the following meetings on the SAIDS Amendment Bill, held on:

1.	05 December 2023:	Introduction of the Amendment Bill
2.	20 February 2024:	Oral submission by the South African Institute for Drug-Free Sport (SAIDS)
3.	21 February 2024:	Oral submission by the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC)
4.	22 February 2024:	Oral submission by the South African Rugby Union (SARU)
5.	23 February 2024:	Oral submission by National Treasury
6.	27 February 2024:	Oral submissions by Body Building South Africa (BBSA), Athletics South Africa (ASA), and Boxing South Africa (BSA)
7.	05 March 2024:	Oral submission by The New loveLife Trust (loveLife)
8.	11 March 2024:	Oral submissions by Culture, Arts, Tourism, Hospitality and Sport Sector Education and Training Authority (CATHSSETA); Free State Academy of Sport (FSAS); Eastern Cape Academy of Sport (ECAS)
9.	12 March 2024:	Consideration of written submissions and presentation of submissions (oral and written) to the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC)
10.	13 March 2024:	Responses to oral and written submissions by DSAC; Deliberations on the SAIDS Bill following DSAC’s responses
11.	14 March 2024:	Consideration and adoption of Motion of Desirability; Clause-by-clause deliberations
12.	15 March 2024:	Clause by clause deliberations
13.	20 March 2024:	Consideration and adoption of the A-list of the amendments
14.	25 March 2024	Adoption of the SAIDS Amendment Bill in its entirety and Committee Report on the Bill.

 

 

 

4. CLAUSES OF THE BILL AMENDED BY THE COMMITTEE

Clause 1

1. On page 2, in line 3, to omit the heading to clause 1 and to substitute:

“Substitution of section 1 of Act 14 of 1997, as amended by section 1 of Act 25 of 2006”.

1. On page 2, in line 6, after “Definitions” to insert “and Interpretation”.
2. On page 2, after line 7, to insert the following definition:

“‘Anti-Doping Organisation’ means an Anti-Doping Organisation as defined in Appendix 1;”.

1. On page 3, in line 5, to omit “a” and to substitute “the”.
2. On page 3, from line 14, to omit the definition “SASCOC” and to substitute the

following definition:

“‘the Sports Confederation’ means the Sports Confederation as defined in section 1 of the National Sport and Recreation Act, 1998 (Act No. 110 of 1998)”;

1. On page 3, in line 26, after the first “Therapeutic Use Exemption” to insert

“(TUE)”.

1. On page 3, in line 31, after “;” to insert “and”.
2. On page 3, after line 33, to insert the following subsection:

“(2)       When interpreting a provision of this Act, any reasonable interpretation which is consistent with the Code must be preferred over any alternative interpretation which is inconsistent with the Code.”

 

Clause 2

1. On page 3, in line 37, to omit, “and”.
2. On page 3, in line 37, after “entity” to insert “in terms of the Public Finance

Management Act”.

1. On page 3, in line 40, after “Republic” to insert “of South Africa”.

 

Clause 3

1. On page 3, in line 41, to omit the heading to clause 3 and to substitute:

“Amendment of section 10 of Act 14 of 1997, as amended by section 5 of Act 25 of 2006”.

1. On page 3, from line 45, to omit paragraph (d) and to substitute the following

paragraph:

“(d)       to promote and ensure the adoption of a centralised doping control programme, which [may subject any athlete to] focuses on implementing intelligent testing, [with or without advance notice,] both in and out of competition, on athletes over whom it has authority;”.

1. On page 3, in line 51, to omit “SASCOC” and to substitute “[SASCOC] the Sports Confederation”.

 

Clause 4

1. On page 4, in line 1, to omit the heading to clause 4 and to substitute:

“Amendment of section 11 of Act 14 of 1997, as amended by section 6 of Act 25 of 2006”.

1. On page 4, from line 9, to omit paragraph (c) and to substitute:

“(c)       by the substitution for paragraph (m) of subsection 2 of the following paragraph:

“(m)      require that athletes who have been included in the testing pools provide accurate information on their current whereabouts which shall be made available to WADA and to other Anti-Doping Organisations having authority to test the athletes; and”.

1. On page 4, in line 24, after “tion” to insert “(TUE)”.
2. On page 4, in line 27, to omit “therapeutic use exemption committee” and to substitute “Therapeutic Use Exemption Committee”.
3. On page 4, in line 28, to omit “Exemption” and to substitute “Exemptions”.
4. On page 4 in line 31, after “Exemption” to insert “(TUE)”.

 

Clause 6

1. Clause rejected.
2. On page 4, from line 35 to insert a new clause as follows:

“Substitution of section 17 of Act 14 of 1997, as amended by section 10 of Act 25 of 2006

            6. The following section is hereby substituted for section 17 of the principal Act:

“Results Management

17.       (1)        Results Management shall be the responsibility of, and shall be governed by the procedural rules and anti-doping rules of the Institute aligned with the principles of the Code and relevant International Standards.

(2)        (a)        There is hereby established by the Institute a first instance hearing panel named the Independent Doping Hearing Panel which has jurisdiction in the first instance to hear and determine whether an athlete or other person subject to the anti-doping rules of the Institute has committed an anti-doping rule violation and if applicable to impose relevant consequences.

(3)        (a)        There is hereby established an independent board which shall be known as the Anti-Doping Appeal Board.

(b)         The Minister shall appoint an Appeal Board, which shall consist of not fewer than eight persons possessing special knowledge and expertise relevant to anti-doping and dispute resolution.

(c)         The members of the Appeal Board are appointed for a period of five years and are eligible for re-appointment.

(d)         The Appeal Board must consist of no fewer than four practising attorneys or advocates, two sports medical physicians and two sports administrators.

(e)         The Minister may terminate the appointment of an Appeal Board member for serious misconduct, incapacity or incompetence.

(4)        A party to an appeal shall be entitled to be represented by a person of his or her own choice.

(5)      The procedure to be followed in connection with appeals shall be determined by the Appeals Board.

(6)        Appeals involving International-Level Athletes shall be heard by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Code.

(7)        Any proceedings, pending before the Independent Doping Hearing Panel at the commencement of this Act must be continued and concluded in terms of this Act in the Independent Doping Hearing Panel and, for that purpose those proceedings are deemed to have been instituted in terms of this Act in the Independent Doping Hearing Panel.”.

 

 

Clause 7

1. On page 5, in line 46, to omit “SASCOC” and to substitute “[SASCOC] the Sports Confederation”.
2. On page 5, in line 46, to omit “as it deems fit” and to substitute “[as it deems fit] in a fair, transparent, just and equitable manner”.
3. On page 5, in line 50, to omit “SASCOC” and to substitute “[SASCOC] the Sports Confederation”.
4. On page 5, in line 50, after “SASCOC,” to insert “and after any national sports federation is found, subsequent to an investigation as contemplated in subsection (1) above to be non-compliant”.
5. On page 5, line 55 to omit “SASCOC” and substitute “[SASCOC] the Sports Confederation”.

 

Clause 8

1. On page 6, in line 13, to omit “appeals” and to substitute “results management”

 

New Clause

1. On page 6, after line 14, to insert the following new clause after clause 8 and to renumber the existing clause accordingly:

 

“Amendment of Arrangement of Section of Act 14 of 1997

 

9.         The Arrangement of Sections of the principal Act is hereby amended by—

(a)        the substitution of item 1 of the following item:

            “1. Definitions and Interpretation”

(b)        the deletion of items 11A-11C; and

(c)        the substitution of item 17 of the following item:

            “17. [Appeals] Result Management”.

 

New Clause

1. To insert the following new clause:

“Amendment of Principal Act

10.        The principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution of the expression “SASCOC”, wherever it occurs, with the expression “the Sports Confederation”.

New Clause

LONG TITLE

1. To insert the following new clause:

“Amendment of long title

11.      On page 2, to omit the long title and to substitute the following long title:

“To amend the South African Institute for Drug-Free Sport Act, 1997, so as to delete, amend and insert certain definitions; to provide for consequential amendments in certain provisions, to clarify that the Institute is a public entity and is the National Anti-Doping Organisation in the Republic; to provide for Results Management, to provide that investigations by the Department must be conducted in a manner that is fair, transparent, just and equitable, that punitive measures may only be imposed by the Department after a finding of non-compliance, and to provide for matters connected therewith.

 

5. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION PROCESS AND PUBLIC HEARINGS

5.1 Advertisement calling for public comments

The call for public submissions was opened on 22 February 2024 and the advertisement was published in all official languages in national and regional newspapers. The deadline for submissions was set for 14 March 2024. The call for public comment was published in the following newspapers:

 

• Isolezwe (isiXhosa)

• Mail and Guardian (English)
• Free State Sun (Sesotho)
• Business Ink (Sesotho)
• Ngoho News (Tshivenda)
• Thembisile News (isiNdebele)
• Coal City (siSwati)
• Bushbuckridge News (Xitsonga)
• Nthavela News (Sepedi)
• Isolezwe Ngesonto (isiZulu)
• Die Burger (Afrikaans)

 

The total cost of advertisements amounted to R121,274.18

 

The Committee also directly invited stakeholders in the sporting environment to comment on the Amendment Bill.

 

5.2. Public submissions received by the Committee

The Portfolio Committee on Sport, Arts and Culture accommodated stakeholders over several days to hear their oral submissions. These engagements were all held on virtual platforms.

 

In total, the Committee heard 11 oral submissions. The Committee received five non-substantive submissions which all indicated support for the Amendment Bill. A further two stakeholders, directly invited by the Committee, were scheduled to make oral submissions, but were unable to do so.

 

The following stakeholders, listed in alphabetical order, responded with submissions:

1. Athletics South Africa (ASA);
2. Body Building South Africa (BBSA);
3. Boxing South Africa (BSA);
4. Culture, Arts, Tourism, Hospitality and Sport Sector Education and Training Authority (CATHSSETA);
5. Eastern Cape Academy of Sport;
6. Free State Academy of Sport (FSSA);
7. loveLife;
8. National Treasury (NT);
9. South African Institute for Drug-Free Sport (SAIDS);
10. South African Rugby Union (SARU); and
11. South African Sport Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC).

 

The stakeholders made non-substantive submissions, but who expressed their support for the Amendment Bill are:

1. KwaZulu-Natal Academy of Sport;
2. Sport for the Physically Disabled;
3. Sports Trust;
4. South African National Boxing Organisation (SANABO); and
5. University Sport South Africa.

 

The two stakeholders who were not able to make oral submissions are:

1. KwaZulu-Natal Academy of Sport; and
2. Stellenbosch Academy of Sport.

 

Through the submissions, the Committee’s attention was drawn to the need for the Amendment Bill in its current form to be brought in alignment with the World Anti-Doping Code, which was in fact the impetus for the drafting and tabling of this Amendment Bill.

 

The bulk of the submissions focused on clause 6 which relates to appeals to the Appeals Board. Except for clause 5 and clause 9, submissions were received on all clauses and the comments and identified areas of concern underscores the usefulness and significance of public participation in Parliament’s legislative process.

 

5.3 Public participation report

The Committee considered and noted its public participation report on 13 March 2024.

 

6. CONCLUSION

Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Sport, Arts and Culture is satisfied with the positive and detailed discussions that took place during its engagements with the various stakeholders. The Committee notes that it has not received any submissions that were not in support of the SAIDS Amendment Bill. Further, the Committee expresses its gratitude to the organisations and individuals that made submissions on the SAIDS Amendment Bill and reiterates the importance of public participation when Parliament deals with legislation.

 

The Committee thanks the Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture, Deputy Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture, the Parliamentary Legal Advisor, and the support staff of the Portfolio Committee on Sport, Arts and Culture, in processing the SAIDS Amendment Bill.

 

The Democratic Alliance has reserved their rights on the adoption of the Amendment Bill and the report.

Report to be considered.