Office of the Commissioners
Commissioners provide guidance in developing the vision of the institution by setting its priorities and ensuring that its policies, programmes and allocated resources are consistent with their vision. This is done through exercising good corporate governance and providing leadership and guidance on the professional work of the Commission. Commissioners hold fortnightly performance reporting meetings with the CEO to oversee the quarterly plenary reporting processes.
The Commissioners are the public face of the Commission, representing the organisation at national, regional and international fora. They also interact with local communities and stakeholders at the national level in order to address human rights issues. In addition to the policy and legislative mandates of the Commission, Commissioners have adopted a document called the Human Rights Matrix.
The Human Rights Matrix tracks the various human rights obligations of South Africa at the international, regional and domestic levels. It is a tool that assists in identification of the Commissioners’ strategic focus areas and priorities. It assists in identifying the unique role of the Commission as a national human rights institution.
The strategic priority areas in the Human Rights Matrix were identified, discussed and integrated into the Strategic Plan. Each Commissioner is assigned a specific province and United Nations treaty body.
Chris Nissen
Chairperson of the South African Human Rights Commission
Chris Nissen holds a Joint Board Diploma in Theology from the Federal Theological Seminary in Pietermaritzburg obtained in 1980. He then graduated with a Bachelor of Arts, Honours degree from the University of Cape Town in 1988. His dissertation: An Investigation into the supposed loss of Khoikhoi Traditional Religious Heritage, earned him his Masters of Arts degree in 1990. Due to his work, Mr. Nissen has been honoured by having streets named after him as well as a school in Knysna.
Chris Nissen holds a Joint Board Diploma in Theology from the Federal Theological Seminary in Pietermaritzburg obtained in 1980. He then graduated with a Bachelor of Arts, Honours degree from the University of Cape Town in 1988. His dissertation: An Investigation into the supposed loss of Khoikhoi Traditional Religious Heritage, earned him his Masters of Arts degree in 1990. Due to his work, Mr. Nissen has been honoured by having streets named after him as well as a school in Knysna.
Andrew Christoffel Nissen holds a Joint Board Diploma in Theology from the Federal Theological Seminary in Pietermaritzburg obtained in 1980. He then graduated with a Bachelor of Arts, Honours degree from the University of Cape Town in 1988. His dissertation: An Investigation into the supposed loss of Khoikhoi Traditional Religious Heritage, earned him his Masters of Arts degree in 1990.
Mr. Nissen was ordained as a Minister of the Uniting Presbyterian Church of South Africa in 1981 and served in congregations as far afield as Limpopo Province, Eastern Cape and the Western Cape. He worked for the Western Province Council of Churches in the 1980s, leading the Standing for the Truth Campaign. He also attended HIV/AIDS training in Canada in 1991 on behalf of the South African Council of Churches.
During the 1980s and 1990s, Mr. Nissen did extensive work as a community organiser in communities such as Graaf Reinett, Eerste River Advice Office, Macassar, Die Bos (now named after him as, Chris Nissen Park) and Sir Lowry’s Pass Village. He supported communities in various human rights issues such as housing and access to land. Due to his work, Mr. Nissen has been honoured by having streets named after him as well as a school in Knysna.
After years of ecumenical, community and political organisation based work, Mr. Nissen was appointed as a Member of the Western Cape Provincial Legislature, served as Deputy Speaker, served as MEC of Economic Affairs and was National Co-ordinator of the Mashakane Campaign for the Department of Constitutional Development from 1994 to 1999.
Mr. Nissen was ordained as a Minister of the Uniting Presbyterian Church of South Africa in 1981 and served in congregations as far afield as Limpopo Province, Eastern Cape and the Western Cape. He worked for the Western Province Council of Churches in the 1980s, leading the Standing for the Truth Campaign. He also attended HIV/AIDS training in Canada in 1991 on behalf of the South African Council of Churches.
During the 1980s and 1990s, Mr. Nissen did extensive work as a community organiser in communities such as Graaf Reinett, Eerste River Advice Office, Macassar, Die Bos (now named after him as, Chris Nissen Park) and Sir Lowry’s Pass Village. He supported communities in various human rights issues such as housing and access to land. Due to his work, Mr. Nissen has been honoured by having streets named after him as well as a school in Knysna.
After years of ecumenical, community and political organisation based work, Mr. Nissen was appointed as a Member of the Western Cape Provincial Legislature, served as Deputy Speaker, served as MEC of Economic Affairs and was National Co-ordinator of the Mashakane Campaign for the Department of Constitutional Development from 1994 to 1999.
Fatima Chohan
Deputy Chairperson of the South African Human Rights Commission
Ms. Fatima Chohan is currently the Deputy Chairperson of the South African Human Rights Commission. She previously served as Deputy Minister of Home Affairs. She was first appointed as a Member of Parliament in 1996 and became Deputy Minister of Home Affairs in 2010.
Ms. Chohan holds a B.Proc degree from the University of Witwatersrand and is an admitted attorney. She chaired various Portfolio Committees such as Basic Education, Justice and Constitutional Development, and Public Enterprises. Ms. Chohan served as a Legal Advisor in the Gauteng Legislature and Parliamentary Representative on the Magistrate's Commission and also Chairperson of the Western Cape Provincial Committee of the Magistrate's Commission. In addition, she also served as a member of the Judicial Services Commission (2009-2013).
She currently heads up the Equality Focus Area in the SAHRC.
She currently heads up the Equality Focus Area in the SAHRC.
Philile Ntuli
Full-time Commissioner of the South African Human Rights Commission
Philile Ntuli’s life’s work focuses on women’s relationship with the state. She is particularly interested in exploring how/whether South Africa’s project of democratisation can disrupt historical gendered hierarchies. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and English Literature, as well as a post-graduate Diploma on Public Policy Development from the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal. She further obtained an Honours Degree in Sociology (Gender Studies) and a Master’s Degree in Social Science: Gender Studies from the University of Pretoria. Ms Ntuli has also attained certification from the Thabo Mbeki African Leadership Institute, on the topic of the African Political Economy. In addition, she has received training in Media Monitoring and Public Relations.
Ms Ntuli is currently working towards a PhD in Public Law at the University of Cape Town with a focus on the gendered nature of institutions. Her areas of research interest include African feminisms, gender justice, public law and policy, and land reform. Her personal, academic and professional curiosities are founded on the connectivity of social, psychological, and structural systems and processes, and on the inter- relatedness of the notions of agency and power.
Possessed with an acute awareness and curiosity about the political and social order from a young age, Ms Ntuli has been a human rights activist in various capacities for the majority of her living experience. Further, Ms Ntuli’s combined working experience ranges between public policy development and analysis, social-entrepreneurship, academia, as well as in civil-society.
A highly creative thinker, Ms Ntuli has built a feminist institution (Community Library, Coffee Shop, Arts Lounge) mainly using pre-disposed and recycled materials. The institution was a practical experiment in human relationships with nature, sustainability and green economies, and in feminist leadership.
Human Rights questions that currently concern Ms Ntuli relate to climate justice/injustice, the politics of land (access, use, and ownership), human relationships with nature, ‘greener’ economy/-ies, and the nature of feminist leadership.
Possessed with an acute awareness and curiosity about the political and social order from a young age, Ms Ntuli has been a human rights activist in various capacities for the majority of her living experience. Further, Ms Ntuli’s combined working experience ranges between public policy development and analysis, social-entrepreneurship, academia, as well as in civil-society.
A highly creative thinker, Ms Ntuli has built a feminist institution (Community Library, Coffee Shop, Arts Lounge) mainly using pre-disposed and recycled materials. The institution was a practical experiment in human relationships with nature, sustainability and green economies, and in feminist leadership.
Human Rights questions that currently concern Ms Ntuli relate to climate justice/injustice, the politics of land (access, use, and ownership), human relationships with nature, ‘greener’ economy/-ies, and the nature of feminist leadership.
Prof. Tshepo Madlingozi
Full-time Commissioner of the South African Human Rights Commission
Commissioner Tshepo Madlingozi studied law and sociology in South Africa, Cameroon, and the United Kingdom. Before being appointed to the Commission, he was the Director of the Centre for Applied Legal Studies at WITS University and an Associate Professor at the same university where he taught human rights and social justice. He has been a consultant for local organisations and inter-governmental organisations including the Pan-African Parliament and the U.N. Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
He sat on the boards of several civil society organisations including the boards of the following civil society organizations: the Rural Democracy Trust, the Mining-Affected Communities United in Action/Women-Affected by Mining Action, the Institute for Social Dialogue, the Socio-economic Rights Institute of South Africa, Imbiza: Journal of African Writing, the Centre for Human Rights, the Zimbabwe ExilesmForum, UFS, amandla.mobi, and the Afrika Ikalafe Pluriversity. He was also a member of the Steering Committee of the African Coalition for Corporate Accountability (ACCA), the Right to Protest Project Coalition, and the Advisory Board of the Health Justice Initiative. For thirteen years (2015-2018), he worked with and for Khulumani Support Group, a 120,000-strong social movement of victims and survivors of Apartheid as National Advocacy Coordinator and later the Chairperson. Between 2021 and 2022, he was appointed Chief Panelist for the South African Human Rights Commission Enquiry into Racial Discrimination and other forms of Discrimination in Advertising.
He is a Visiting Professor at the International Institute of Social Studies of Erasmus University Rotterdam and a Faculty member of the Vienna Master of Arts in Applied Human Rights. He is a co-editor of the South African Journal on Human Rights. He is a co-editor of Symbol or Substance: Socio-economic Rights in South Africa (Cambridge UP) and a co-editor of Introduction to Law and Legal Skills in South Africa, 2nd Edition (Oxford UP South Africa).
Dr. Henk Boshoff
Full-time Commissioner of the South African Human Rights Commission
Dr. Boshoff was appointed as a full time Commissioner of the South African Human Rights Commission with effect from the 3rd of January 2024.
Before this appointment, he served two successful terms as the Free State based Commissioner of the Public Service Commission of South Africa (PSC). He was appointed in 2014 for a five-year term, where after the President of Republic of South Africa reappointed him in 2019 for another five-year term.
Before this appointment, he served two successful terms as the Free State based Commissioner of the Public Service Commission of South Africa (PSC). He was appointed in 2014 for a five-year term, where after the President of Republic of South Africa reappointed him in 2019 for another five-year term.
He holds a Doctorate in Public Management and also obtained the following qualifications: B.Iuris and Masters in Public Management cum laude.
He was employed in local government for eighteen (18) years and has a proven record of accomplishment, at the municipalities where he was employed as a senior manager (including accounting officer), of clean governance and being at the forefront of ensuring visible service delivery. These municipalities include the Motheo District Municipality and the Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality.
He served on the following statutory Councils as a Council/Board member:
• National Heritage Council of South Africa
• Free State Gambling and Liquor Authority
He was employed in local government for eighteen (18) years and has a proven record of accomplishment, at the municipalities where he was employed as a senior manager (including accounting officer), of clean governance and being at the forefront of ensuring visible service delivery. These municipalities include the Motheo District Municipality and the Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality.
He served on the following statutory Councils as a Council/Board member:
• National Heritage Council of South Africa
• Free State Gambling and Liquor Authority
Elspeth Nomahlubi Berlinda Khwinana
Full-time Commissioner of the South African Human Rights Commission
Elspeth Nomahlubi Berlinda Khwinana is a renowned admitted attorney and a respected figure in the legal field, with an extensive career spanning over two decades. She holds an LLB and BJURIS degree from the University of North West and has been the Director of Mtimkulu Khwinana Attorneys since 2001. Elspeth's legal prowess encompasses various domains, including civil litigation, family law, and criminal law, showcasing her diverse expertise.
Since 2020, Ms Khwinana has served as an acting Judge of the Gauteng High Court, significantly contributing to jurisprudence through her insightful judgments. Her role extends beyond the courtroom; she is a fervent activist for Gender-Based Violence and Femicide (GBVF) and a staunch feminist. As the National Coordinator for the South African Women Lawyers Association (SAWLA) Student Chapter, she is committed to empowering the next generation of attorneys, particularly women. Her efforts in mentoring aspiring lawyers highlight her dedication to nurturing talent and promoting gender equality in the legal profession.
Ms. Khwinana's influence transcends her professional obligations. She is a community leader who actively shares her knowledge and experience in churches and surrounding communities, emphasizing the importance of legal awareness and advocacy. Her role in organizations like SAWLA, National Democratic Lawyers Association (NADEL), and Lady of Peace Community Foundation (LOPECO) further exemplifies her commitment to legal excellence, peace, and community service. Ms. Khwinana is not just a legal professional; she is a beacon of hope and empowerment, shaping the legal landscape while inspiring and uplifting those around her.
Ms Khwinana has distinguished herself as a dedicated human rights activist, fervently working towards the advancement of fundamental rights and freedoms. Her activism is characterized by a deep commitment to addressing and resolving human rights violations, with a particular focus on the rights of the underrepresented and marginalized.
She is known for her tireless efforts in advocating for justice and equality, utilizing her legal expertise to challenge injustices and champion the cause of those without a voice. Her endeavours in this field are not just confined to legal battles; they also encompass educational outreach, where she enlightens and engages communities on their rights, fostering a culture of awareness and empowerment.
Mrs. Khwinana exemplifies "Inclusive Sensitivity" in her professional and personal interactions, showcasing a deep understanding of and empathy for the diverse abilities and challenges of individuals. Her approach highlights a respectful acknowledgment of everyone's unique experiences, ensuring inclusivity and accessibility in all her endeavors. Her commitment to embracing and supporting this diversity is a testament to her empathetic and inclusive nature.
Advocate Sandra Selokela Makoasha
Part-time Commissioner of the South African Human Rights Commission
Advocate Sandra Selokela Makoasha is an Advocate of the High Court of South Africa. She obtained her LLB qualification from the University of Witwatersrand. She was a member of the Rules Board for Courts of Law of the Republic of South Africa. She represented South Africa in a regional conference program on sexual harassment and the law in Africa in 2022 organized by Africa End Sexual Harassment Initiative (AESHI).
Aseza Arthur Gungubele
Part-time Commissioner of the South African Human Rights Commission
Aseza Arthur Gungubele brings extensive experience in public service, having worked in various government sectors. He has held positions in the Western Cape Department of Education, specifically in Supply Chain and Finance. Additionally, he has worked in the Bitou Municipality at political office bears as the Manager of the Deputy Mayor, Mayor's office and as the performance manager responsible for institutional and individual performance.
Mr. Gungubele has also been actively involved in youth activities, both as a student and politically. He has assumed leadership roles in civil society structures, serving as the District Secretary for the Eden District Youth Council and as the provincial organizer in the Youth in Agriculture Rural Development, among other organizations.
Mr. Gungubele holds a national diploma in Retail Business Management from Cape Peninsula University of Technology, an Advanced National Diploma in Public Administration, and a Bachelor of Administration Honours degree in the University of Western Cape.
Mr. Gungubele holds a national diploma in Retail Business Management from Cape Peninsula University of Technology, an Advanced National Diploma in Public Administration, and a Bachelor of Administration Honours degree in the University of Western Cape.