| Short Title: | Constitution First Amendment Act of 1997 |
| Long Title: | Act to amend the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, so as to make further provision in relation to the oath sworn or affirmation made by an Acting President; to extend the cut-off date in respect of the granting of amnesty; and to provide for matters connected therewith. |
| Enacted By: | Parliament of South Africa |
| Date Assented: | 28 August 1997 |
| Date Commenced: | 4 February 1997 (retroactively) |
| Bill: | Constitution of the Republic of South Africa Amendment Bill |
| Bill Citation: | B49—1997 |
| Introduced By: | Valli Moosa, Minister of Provincial Affairs and Constitutional Development |
| Amended By: | Citation of Constitutional Laws Act, 2005 (amended short title) |
| Amends: | Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 |
The First Amendment of the Constitution of South Africa made changes related to the oath of office of the Acting President and to the jurisdiction of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. It was enacted by the Parliament of South Africa, and signed by President Mandela on 28 August 1997. However it was deemed to come into effect retroactively, from 4 February 1997, the date when the constitution itself came into force.
The Act made three technical modifications to the Constitution:
This last change allowed the TRC to deal with various violent events, particularly the Bophuthatswana coup d'état and its aftermath, that had occurred in the run-up to the 1994 general elections.
The official short title of the amendment is "Constitution First Amendment Act of 1997". It was originally titled "Constitution of the Republic of South Africa Amendment Act, 1997" and numbered as Act No. 35 of 1997, but the Citation of Constitutional Laws Act, 2005 renamed it and abolished the practice of giving Act numbers to constitutional amendments.