Attention: Editors and Reporters

30 July 2020

The South African Human Rights Commission (the Commission or SAHRC) wishes to clarify that the matter whether to investigate the procurement of PPE is still under discussion and that the announcement this afternoon was unfortunately pre-mature.

29 July 2020

Attention: Editors and Reporters

On Thursday, 30 July 2020, the South African Human Rights Commission (“The Commission”) will conduct a site inspection of the Nasrec field hospital in Johannesburg. The hospital has been established to help alleviate the burden of COVID infections in the province. The Commission seeks to ascertain the facility’s state of readiness to receive an increased number of patients and take stock of any challenges that the facility is facing. This inspection will include engagements with Department of Health officials, organised labour and medical staff.

Attention: Editors and Reporters

23 July 2020

The South African Human Rights Commission (the SAHRC or the Commission) regards the South African government’s decision to keep schools closed for all grades (except Grades 7 and 12) until 24 August 2020 as regrettable and unjustifiable.
The decision means that by 24 August 2020 over 10 million South African children, depending on the grade they are in, will have lost over 50% or 100 scheduled school days as a result of COVID-19 school closures.

Attention: Editors and Reporters

23 July 2020

In her media statement of 15 July 2020, Adv. Glynnis Breytenbach, MP and DA Spokesperson on Justice and Correctional Services, makes a number of unfounded allegations which, in the view of the South African Human Rights Commission (the Commission or the SAHRC), go against the provisions of section 181 (3) read with section 181(4) of the Constitution, among others.

Attention: Editors and Reporters
23 July 2020

The South African Human Rights Commission welcomes the apology from Mr Tony Ehrenreich, to the South African Jewish Board of Deputies regarding a particular statement that circulated on social media in August 2014 which the Commission, after investigation of the complaint, had found demonstrates a clear intention to promote hatred of the members of the Second Complainant in the matter, the SAJBD. The Commission had directed that Mr Ehrenreich apologise to the SAJBD for the statement in question and hereby confirms that such apology has indeed been made by him.

Attention: Editors and Reporters

Wednesday, 22 July 2020
    
The South African Human Rights Commission (the Commission or the SAHRC) is deeply saddened by the passing of Andrew Mokete Mlangeni, the last remaining Rivonia Trialist.

Attention: Editors and Reporters

15 July 2020


The South African Human Rights Commission (the SAHRC or the Commission) is constitutionally mandated to promote, protect, monitor and assess the observance of all human rights in South Africa.

Attention: Editors and Reporters

Tuesday, 14 July 2020

The South African Human Rights Commission (the Commission or the SAHRC) and the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma held a joint meeting to discuss possible areas of collaboration to help in the furtherance of human rights against the backdrop of the Coronavirus 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.

Attention: Editors and Reporters

Monday, 13 July 2020                     

The South African Human Rights Commission (the Commission or the SAHRC) learnt with great sadness about the passing of a former Commissioner of the SAHRC, Thomas Madikwe Manthata.

Attention: Editors and Reporters

Friday, 03 July 2020

The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC or Commission) notes with serious concern the state of audit outcomes in the sphere of local government. On 1 July 2020, the Auditor-General, Mr Kimi Makwetu released the MFMA 2018-19 report on the local government audit outcomes. The report depicts an extremely worrying negative trend on the audit outcomes of the municipalities. The overall picture painted by the report is that things are not well within the local government sphere at all.

Attention: Editors and Reporters

Thursday, 2 July 2020
   
The South African Human Rights Commission (the Commission or the SAHRC) strongly condemns the actions depicted in footage circulating on social and mainstream media, of the City of Cape Town’s Anti-Land Invasion Unit, accompanied by City Law Enforcement officers, violently removing a naked man from a shack about to be demolished, in eThembeni, near Empolweni, in Khayelitsha, on Wednesday the 1st July 2020.

 

Tuesday, 30 June 2020

Attention: Editors and Reporters

The South African Human Rights Commission welcomes the proclamation of various sections of the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (POPIA) by the President on 22 June 2020. In terms of the proclamation, sections 110 and 114(4) of the POPIA will commence on 30 June 2021. These sections of the POPIA will amend the Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000 (PAIA) and further enable the handover of PAIA functions from the Commission to the Information Regulator.

Monday, 29 June 2020

Attention: Editors and Reporters

The South African Human Rights Commission notes with concern that the National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP) was suspended at the start of lockdown, and has yet to be comprehensively reinstated.

Media Statement

Attention: Editors and Reporters

19 June 2020

The South African Human Rights Commission (the SAHRC or the Commission) notes with interest an important research paper released on 16 June 2020 by academics Servaas van der Berg and Nic Spaull University of Stellenbosch.   
Van Der Berg & Spaull 2020 Counting the Cost – COVID-19, Children and Schooling (15 June 2020)

Attention: Editors and Reporters

16^th June 2020

The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC or Commission) will be commemorating Youth Day on Tuesday, the 16^th June 2020, along with the Nelson Mandela Foundation, the Movement for One South Africa (MOSA), the Congress of South African Students (COSAS), Democratic Alliance Youth (DA Youth) and a veteran youth activist from the 1976 Youth uprising.

Attention: Editors and Reporters

15th June 2020

The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC or Commission) will be commemorating Youth Day on Tuesday, the 16th June 2020, along with the Nelson Mandela Foundation, the Movement for One South Africa (MOSA), the Congress of South African Students (COSAS), Democratic Alliance Youth (DA Youth) and a veteran youth activist from the 1976 Youth uprising.

Attention: Editors and Reporters
Thursday, 11 June 2020

The Constitutional Court handed down a judgment today in a case brought by the New Nation Movement and others that declares the Electoral Act unconstitutional in its setting a limitation for individual adult citizens to stand for public office and be elected to national and provincial legislatures as independent candidates. The current Act only allows for independent candidates to contest for local government. The ability to stand for public office is a fundamental right that is guaranteed in section 19 (3) of the Constitution. It provides that every adult citizen has the right to stand for public office and, if elected, to hold office.

Attention: Editors and Reporters

7 June 2020

The South African Human Rights Commission (the SAHRC or the Commission) welcomes the commitment of all stakeholders, including government, unions and school governing body associations, to the opening of schools for Grade 7 and 12 learners on 8 June 2020.

Attention: Editors and Reporters 

Tuesday, 2 June 2020

Following the re-opening of schools in the Western Cape yesterday, 1 June 2020 for Grades 7 and 12, notwithstanding the public announcement by the Minister of Basic Education on Sunday that the date for re-opening schools was to be postponed to 8 June 2020, the Commission was ready to approach the High Court to interdict the Western Cape Education Department from continuing with teaching and learning this week as this was in contrast with the national reopening of schools and contrary to section 9(1) of the Constitution’s safeguarding the equal enjoyment of rights and freedoms.

Attention: Editors and Reporters

Thursday, 28 May 2020

After doing some independent monitoring of schools for readiness in all 9 provinces and after consultations with various stakeholders, including teachers’ unions and school governing bodies, the South African Human Rights Commission has written to the Minister of Basic Education, Minister Angie Motshekga, recommending that she reconsiders 01 June 2020 as the date for the return of Grade 7 and Grade 12 learners to school.