The South African Human Rights Commission (Commission or SAHRC) observes the day and has taken massive strides in its work related to SOGIE rights, as established through its constitutional mandate as set out in section 184 of the Constitution, to promote, protect and monitor the observance of the rights as set out in the Bill of Rights, Chapter 2 of the Constitution.

The Commission will be participating and partnering along with the Foundation for Human Rights (FHR) and the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development (DoJ&CD) in a workshop that will focus on the way in which government, civil society and LGBTIQ persons work together to realise and strengthen rights, on the 17th May 2018 at its Head Office in Braamfontein. The workshop will include discussions on the National Task Team, the National Intervention Strategy, the Ekurhuleni Declaration on Practical Solutions on Ending Violence and Discrimination Against Persons Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and Expression, as well as intersex rights.
The Commission has previously participated in the African Regional Seminar on Finding Practical Solutions to Ending Violence and Discrimination based SOGIE, which took place from the 3rd to the 5th of March 2016, and was attended by over 200 participants from all over Africa. The Regional Seminar was also a collaborative effort of the SAHRC, DoJ&CD, and the FHR.

The seminar was aimed at driving forward an agenda for Africa to end violence against LGBTIQ persons; an agenda to drive efforts at both legislative and policy levels to actualise this goal; an agenda to lobby African governments to live up to their obligations to protect and promote the rights and dignity of every citizen by not only recognising but also effectively implementing the African Commission Resolution 275.

Participants of the African Regional Seminar consisted of partners from government being DoJ&CD, the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) and the Department of Social Development (DSD), as well as civil society represented by the South African Litigation Coalition (SALC), the Coalition of African Lesbians (CALS), the Human Rights Institute of South Africa (HURISA), the Initiative for Strategic Litigation in Africa (ISLA), among others. National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) from across Africa form Algeria, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Sierra Leone, Tanzania and Uganda also participated in the event.

The high level of hostility experienced by persons on the basis of their SOGIE within Africa, was brought into focus, with debates and discussions around the many laws enacted, adopted or inherited which criminalise same-sex unions, with an understanding that solutions need to be sought for human rights violations of LGBTIQ persons to human dignity, freedom of expression and association as well as their right to love and their right to life.

The Network of African National Human Rights Institutions (NANHRI), invited various NHRIs from Ghana, Malawi, Uganda, Kenya as well as civil society organisations to participate in an online course based on SOGIE rights in January 2017. The course culminated with a face-to-face, seminar, hosted by NANHRI in Nairobi Kenya in March 2017. Each NHRI in attendance launched an initiative in promoting and protecting SOGIE rights within their constitutional and legal frameworks. The SAHRC hosted an in-country meeting during November 2017, with academia, Chapter 9 Institutions, civil society and government in attendance.

As initiatives to carry the message of promoting and protecting SOGIE rights to the general public, two advocacy initiatives were adopted by the Commission. The first initiative was the development and distribution of informative advocacy materials such as posters and fact sheets, educating society at large about SOGIE rights and the second was an innovative initiative, using sports - rugby in particular - as a means of advocacy.

The Commission teamed up with Jozi Rugby Club, the first gay and inclusive competitive rugby team in Africa. Together with Jozi Cats Rugby Club, the Commission participated in an inclusive tag rugby tournament as well as an exhibition, full-contact match as part of its advocacy and awareness around the protection, respect and promotion of SOGIE rights, on the 21st March 2018, Human Rights Day in South Africa.  The tournament and the match was intended to raise awareness of inequality on and off the rugby field, and to advocate and educate against homophobia and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity and expression.

To this end, the Commission, along with its partners fully appreciate the collaborative, community efforts required in protecting SOGIE rights and ending the violence and persecution SOGIE persons continue to face. It is thus the hope of the Commission that the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia is not merely observed but effectively used as a vehicle in the promotion, protection and the monitoring of the observance of SOGIE person’s rights.
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Issued by the South African Human Rights Commission
Spokesperson: Gail Smith This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (011) 877 3792