Natal and KwaZulu edited by L. J. Boulle and L. G. Baxter was published in 1981 by Juta & Co, Ltd at a critical juncture in South Africa’s constitutional history. Appearing during the later decades of apartheid, this scholarly volume assembles contributions from legal academics and political analysts who examine the complex constitutional relationship between the province of Natal and the KwaZulu homeland. The book reflects the intense debates of the period, as policymakers, jurists, and community leaders considered alternative governance structures within a deeply divided society.
In Natal and KwaZulu, the editors bring together essays that explore federalism, regional autonomy, power-sharing arrangements, and the legal implications of homeland policy. The contributors analyse the constitutional frameworks then in force, assessing both the statutory basis of KwaZulu’s authority and the broader political dynamics shaping relations between white provincial institutions and Zulu leadership under Chief Mangosuthu Buthelezi. The volume engages directly with proposals for negotiated reform, examining practical and theoretical options that were being advanced in response to mounting internal and external pressure for change.
As a contemporaneous legal and political study, Natal and KwaZulu offers valuable insight into the constitutional thinking that preceded South Africa’s eventual transition to democracy. For collectors of South African legal scholarship, constitutional history, or apartheid-era political analysis, this 1981 Juta edition represents a substantial and historically significant contribution to the discourse on regional governance and institutional reform.
