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What does a Constitution add?
Ordinary laws can be repealed - removed from the laws. And they may not meet all the necessary standards. So there is value in having the Constitution also set out the standards. Also there are special procedures in the Constitution for protecting human rights. And finally, people may know more about the Constitution than they do about ordinary laws.
By itself a constitution doesn't do anything. What matters is how it is used - to make political arguments, to educate people about what their rights and duties are, and even as the basis of complaints to a court or the human rights commission. It is a starting point.
How would these rights be made a reality? They should guide the work of the government and political parties as they make up their election platforms. But more than that, they can create a right that can be enforced in the courts. Children who have suffered wrongs that go against these rights could go to court (and there should be public funds to help them) to claim that the government has not carried out its duty. And in some modern constitutions, including that of South Africa, human rights are not a matter for government only - all citizens are supposed to respect them, and a violation of rights by other citizens might give rise to a claim in the courts. Finally, it is the responsibility of the Human Rights Commission to investigate complaints that rights have been violated. So these rights are a programme of action for that Commission.
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