On the 26^th of August, Commissioner Gungubele hosted a climate justice stakeholder engagement. The first of its kind and its objectives were to:

• Identify Priorities: Determine key climate justice concerns affecting South Africans.
• Formulate Strategies: Develop actionable strategies to mitigate the adverse impacts of climate change on human rights.
• Strengthen Collaboration: Foster partnerships among civil society, the private sector, and international organizations.
• Identify the stakeholders for the SAHRC Committee of Experts.

In attendance, were stakeholders and partners such as the Centre for Environmental Rights, Lawyers for Human Rights, Environmental Justice Fund, UNICEF, OHCHR, Black Girls Rising, Kenyan National Commission on Human Rights and the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Commission. The Commission’s attention on climate justice is premised on the fact that climate change impacts several human rights including the right to life, health, food, environment, housing and water. As such any measures that would be adopted to ensure climate justice must be based on a human rights approach framework. Similarly, the voices of community members should be amplified when developing these measures given that they are the most vulnerable and the most impacted. Beyond that, indigenous communities have long practised sustainable lifestyles that would help mitigate the effects of climate change.

Commissioner Gungubele is committed to establishing a Committee of Experts on climate justice that includes experts, affected community members, and vulnerable groups – children, persons with disabilities, women, and older persons.

On the 28th, the Commissioner will host a dialogue on migration with the following objectives:

1. Enhance Understanding of migration trends, challenges, and opportunities in South Africa among stakeholders.
2. Strengthen collaboration between the SAHRC and NGOs to address migration-related issues effectively.
3. Develop actionable policy recommendations for the government, aimed at improving the migration management system and ensuring human rights compliance.
4. Identify potential stakeholders to join the Commission’s Advisory Committee of Experts on migration rights.

The dialogue will take place at the SAHRC Head Office, 5^th Floor Sentinel House, Sunnyside Office Park, 32 Princess of Wales Terrace, Parktown from 10 am.

Meanwhile, on the 29^th, the Commissioner will be attending the Commission of Inquiry into the Usindiso Building. The Commissioner will be joining the evidence leader, the Chairperson of the inquiry Justice Kampepe and all other parties to the inquiry to conduct site inspections.

End.

For further information or inquiries, please contact Wisani Baloyi on 081 016 8308 or  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

ISSUED BY THE SOUTH AFRICAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION