Article 200 of the Constitution of South Africa

Verbatim text

(2) The primary object of the defence force is to defend and protect the Republic, its territorial integrity and its people in accordance with the Constitution and the principles of international law regulating the use of force. Political responsibility

What this means

The index files this text under article 200 of the Constitution of South Africa.
The index files it under the chapter heading “CHAPTER 11 — SECURITY SERVICES”.
The passage runs to about 39 words.

The row’s stored title is a body fragment, not a heading (“(1) The defence force must be structured and managed as a disciplined military force.”), so it is not used as the provision’s title here.

The index gives this passage an article number but stores a body fragment where a heading would be, so the number could not be cross-checked against the text. Check it against the official Constitution before relying on it in a citation.

No rights vocabulary from our fixed word list appears in this passage, so no plain-language reading is offered for it.

This is a mechanical reading aid generated from the text above by matching words in it. It is not legal advice, not a lawyer’s interpretation, and not a substitute for the provision itself.

How to cite this

Constitution of South Africa, article 200, Portable Lawyer, https://www.portablelawyer.app/provision/ccafe7ba-1d2b-40e1-b8ca-470e22aed346 (accessed 25 October 2026).

Canonical URL: https://www.portablelawyer.app/provision/ccafe7ba-1d2b-40e1-b8ca-470e22aed346

Accessed 25 October 2026.

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Machine-readable versions

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