Conspicuous Leadership Star

The Conspicuous Leadership Star, post-nominal letters CLS, was instituted by the President of the Republic of South Africa in April 1996. It was awarded to veteran cadres of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the military wing of the African National Congress, who have distinguished themselves during The Struggle by distinguished conduct and exceptional combat leadership.

Umkhonto we Sizwe
Umkhonto we Sizwe, abbreviated as MK, Zulu for "Spear of the Nation", was the para-military wing of the African National Congress (ANC). It was established on 16 December 1961 to wage an armed struggle against the Nationalist government inside South Africa by means of sabotage, bombings and landmines.

On 27 April 1994 Umkhonto we Sizwe was amalgamated with six other military forces into the South African National Defence Force (SANDF). The seven constituent military forces were:
 * The South African Defence Force (SADF).
 * The Transkei Defence Force (TDF) of the Republic of Transkei.
 * The Bophuthatswana Defence Force (BDF) of the Republic of Bophuthatswana.
 * The Venda Defence Force (VDF) of the Republic of Venda.
 * The Ciskei Defence Force (CDF) of the Republic of Ciskei.
 * Umkhonto we Sizwe.
 * The Azanian People's Liberation Army (APLA), the military wing of the Pan Africanist Congress.

Award criteria
The Fount of Honour for all South African military decorations and medals is the President of South Africa.

The Conspicuous Leadership Star, post-nominal letters CLS, was instituted by the President in April 1996, for award to veteran cadres of Umkhonto we Sizwe who have distinguished themselves during The Struggle by distinguished conduct and exceptional combat leadership.

Order of precedence
The position of the Conspicuous Leadership Star in the official military and national orders of precedence was revised upon the institution of a new set of honours on 27 April 2003, but it remained unchanged.


 * Umkhonto we Sizwe:
 * Official MK order of precedence:
 * Preceded by the Star for Bravery in Silver (SBS).
 * Succeeded by the Decoration for Merit in Gold (DMG).


 * South African National Defence Force until 26 April 2003:
 * Official SANDF order of precedence:
 * Preceded by the Pro Merito Decoration (PMD) of the Republic of South Africa.
 * Succeeded by the Star for Conspicuous Leadership (SCL) of the Azanian People's Liberation Army.


 * Official national order of precedence:
 * Preceded by the Pro Merito Decoration (PMD) of the Republic of South Africa.
 * Succeeded by the Star for Conspicuous Leadership (SCL) of the Azanian People's Liberation Army.

Description
The Conspicuous Leadership Star is a five-pointed star struck in bronze, to fit inside a circle with a diameter of 38 millimetres and displaying a bronze lion on a ruby red enameled centre roundel.
 * Obverse

The ribbon is 32 millimetres wide and red with two 6 millimetres wide brown bands in the centre, spaced 4 millimetres apart.
 * Ribbon

Discontinuation
Conferment of the Conspicuous Leadership Star was discontinued upon the institution of a new set of honours on 27 April 2003.