
Martin van Staden
http://www.martinvanstaden.com
Martin van Staden is the Head of Policy at the Free Market Foundation and former Deputy Head of Policy Research at the Institute of Race Relations (IRR). Martin also serves as the Editor of the IRR’s History Project and its Race Law Project, and is an advisor to the Free Speech Union SA. He is pursuing a doctorate in law at the University of Pretoria. For more information visit www.martinvanstaden.com.
- Total Post (72)
Articles By This Author

The road to Hell is paved with good intentions (and, yes, so was the road to Apartheid)
- By Martin van Staden
- . Jul 6, 2023
Had the entire country been forced to remain housebound in May 2019, during the general election, this would have regarded as an unequivocal act of

Dennis Davis (of all people) stands up for private property against militant socialism
- By Martin van Staden
- . Jun 29, 2023
There has been one constant in South African constitutional discourse since the 1980s: Professor Dennis Davis. He has outlived most of his sparring partners in

‘Who decides?’ A defence of liberal individualism
- By Martin van Staden
- . Jun 22, 2023
Much of political philosophy can be traced back, in some form or another, to this simple question: ‘who decides?’ This is the question that Dr

Repealing the Hate Speech Bill: difficult, but necessary
- By Martin van Staden
- . Jun 15, 2023
In a free country the government is not the parent of society. Instead, it is an institution that safeguards a framework for voluntary interaction, cooperation,

‘199’ is the 2024 election’s magic number: hit it, and everything changes
- By Martin van Staden
- . Jun 8, 2023
South Africa finds itself in an economic malaise. In response, the African National Congress (ANC) government has adopted, and is in the process of adopting,

Why I am a liberal
- By Martin van Staden
- . Jun 1, 2023
Today, I return to the Free Market Foundation – founded in 1975 – as its Head of Policy. Taking up the policy reins at South

Read between the lines to understand the pernicious Expropriation Bill
- By Martin van Staden
- . May 25, 2023
In a well-meaning and thoughtful piece (‘Putting the Expropriation Bill into perspective – it’s not the ugly ogre some make it out to be’) Annelize

A defence of the High Court’s ‘foolish, dangerous judgment on load-shedding’
- By Martin van Staden
- . May 18, 2023
Andrew Kenny writes that Judge Norman Davis of the Gauteng High Court issued ‘a foolish, dangerous judgment on load-shedding’ when the latter ordered government to

Liberalism is perfectly at home in SA
- By Martin van Staden
- . May 11, 2023
In March, Yvonne Phyllis wrote a scathing attack on the classical liberal theory of private property from a clearly socialistic and racial nationalistic perspective in

It’s a fallacy to measure ‘fair share’ only by tax contribution
- By Martin van Staden
- . May 4, 2023
It is not rare today to hear calls for the wealthy to ‘pay their fair share’ in the context of taxation. But is it appropriate