The rules that the South African Government has to follow are written in a document called The South African Constitution. This constitution, which took effect in February 1997, provided the following structure for governing the country.

1. A system of Government consisting of:
   
   
   1. A National Parliament made up of two chambers; the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces
   2. Nine provinces, each with their own legislatures
   3. A system of Local Government


2. A statement of fundamental human rights to be enjoyed by all citizens. This was called the Bill of Rights .


3. A number of institutions designed to help protect human rights in South Africa; the Constitutional Court, the South African Human Rights Commission and the Independent Electoral Commission.


4. Houses of Traditional Leaders, which recognised the importance of tribal and ethnic loyalties among many South Africans.


5. Eleven official languages - Pedi, Sotho, Tswana, siSwati, Venda, Xitsonga, Afrikaans, English, Ndebele, Xhosa and Zulu.


6. A new national anthem and a new flag for the new South Africa.