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 As already discussed, a pre-existing law or provision of a law which is unconstitutional became invalid at the moment the Constitution took effect. This is the effect of the so-called “supremacy clause” of the Constitution (section 2), in terms of which the Constitution is the supreme law of the Republic and all law or conduct inconsistent with it is invalid. Item 2(1) of Schedule 6 to the Constitution provides that all law that was in force when the Constitution took effect, continues in force until amended or repealed, but only to the extent that it is consistent with the new Constitution. When making a declaration of invalidity, a court simply declares invalid what has already been invalidated by the Constitution. This doctrine, known as “objective constitutional invalidity”, means that an unconstitutional law in force at the time of the commencement of the interim Constitution might be invalidated by that Constitution with effect from 27 April 1994, even if the applicant’s cause of action arose after the coming into force of the 1996 Constitution on 4 February 1997. Thus, in terms of section 172(1)(a) of the Constitution, a court deciding a constitutional matter must declare any law or conduct that is inconsistent with the Constitution to be invalid to the extent of its inconsistency. However, as indicated