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Attention: Editors and Reporters
23 MARCH 2023
The SAHRC Mpumalanga Provincial Office will be commemorating Human Rights Day under the theme: “Consolidating and Sustaining the Culture of Human Rights into the Future.”
March month is commonly known as human rights month, during March month the nation comes together to celebrate and promote human rights and equality for all. The concept of human rights is based on the notion that every person is entitled to rights and freedoms in the Constitution simply by virtue of being human. In celebrating human rights month, the Commission continues to demonstrate its commitment towards its constitutional mandate of ensuring promotion and protection human rights for all.
Attention: Editors and Reporters
22 March 2022
The South African Human Rights Commission (Commission) joins the world in commemorating World Water Day, under the global theme "accelerating change" to solve the global water and sanitation crisis.
Access to water and sanitation are fundamental to everyone’s health, dignity and prosperity. As such, Chapter 2 of the Constitution of South Africa recognizes, and provides that: “Everyone has the right to have access to sufficient food and water.” The right to water entitles everyone to have access to sufficient, safe, acceptable, physically accessible, and affordable water for personal and domestic use. Conversely, the right to sanitation entitles everyone to have physical and affordable access to sanitation, in all spheres of life, that is safe, hygienic, secure, and socially and culturally acceptable and that provides privacy and ensures dignity.
21 March 2022
The South African Human Rights Commission (the Commission or SAHRC) wishes all South Africans a happy Human Rights Day. The National Human Rights Day, which is commemorated annually in South Africa on the 21st day of March, is one of the important national days in our country’s calendar.
Attention: Editors and Reporters
20 March 2023
Attention: Editors and Reporters
The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC/the Commission) Eastern Cape Provincial Office will be hosting a Human Rights Day event in Kariega KwaNobuhle in the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality.
In order to raise awareness and combat human rights challenges, the SAHRC in Eastern Cape intends to host an information sharing session to provide a platform where the Commission has invited different stakeholders that support democracy and provide services. A complaints handling helpdesk will be provided.
18 March 2023
The South African Human Rights Commission (the SAHRC/ Commission) has noted the planned “national shutdown” organised by the Economic Freedom Fighters earmarked for Monday, 20 March 2023.
17 March 2023
Attention: Editors and Reporters
To commemorate and celebrate Human Rights Day, the Gauteng Provincial Office of the South African Human Rights Commission and Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr Inc will host a Human Rights Day Celebration with Ikaneng Primary School. The school's learners were given the task to “Design a Human Rights Logo” based on their understanding of human rights and the responsibilities accompanying them.
15 March 2023
Attention: Editors and Reporters
Annually, South Africa commemorates national Human Rights Day on 21 March and March as human rights month. The day commemorates the sacrifice of the 69 people who lost their lives, whilst protesting repressive, apartheid pass laws on the day in 1960 at Sharpeville, but also celebrates the Constitution as the key framework for the achievement of a rights-based society as well as the advancement of human rights.
15 March 2023
Attention: Editors and Reporters
On 14 March 2023, the SAHRC released its report following an investigation of allegations that, during the March 2021 welcoming period at certain Stellenbosch University residences, students were compelled to not speak any language other than English.
Attention: Editors and Reporters
13 March 2023
The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) is pleased to announce that a settlement has been reached with Mr Steve Hofmeyr in a matter pertaining to comments he made on social media relating to the LGBTIQ+ community. The settlement agreement has been made order of court.
13 March 2023
Attention: Editors and Reporters
The SAHRC KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Office will conduct human rights month commemorative events, in the Zululand and Amajuba Districts from the 13th – 22nd of March 2023.
12 March 2023
The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) can confirm that it has reached a settlement with Mr Steve Hofmeyr in a matter related to comments he made concerning the LGBTIQ+ community. The settlement will be made an order of court tomorrow in the High Court in Gqeberha, Eastern Cape.
10 March 2023
The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC/Commission) has noted with concern the high levels of disharmony that continues to divide the country. Year on year complaints received by the Commission reveal that racism, bullying and other violations of the right to equality continue to polarize the country.
Attention: Editors and Reporters
08 March 2023
The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC/Commission) joins the rest of the country and world at large in celebrating International Women’s Day. Under the theme “DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality,” this year’s commemoration highlights the role of innovative technology in promoting gender equality and meeting the health and developmental needs of women and girls.
9 March 2023
Following from media reports and previous complaints, it has been noted that community members are turned away from receiving highly specialised services due to a lack of sufficient equipment and staff to provide such services. These services include oncology services, renal/dialysis services and orthopaedic services. As a result, people with resources use private services due to the incapacity of the public health sector to provide the services.
Attention: Editors and Reporters
8 March 2023
The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) KZN provincial office will be hosting a roundtable discussion on “Balancing the right to basic education and the best interest of the child in Independent Schools”.
06 March 2023
The objective of the stakeholder engagements is to engage with government departments, civil society organisations and community members with the view to heightening awareness about human rights and institutions that can help with redress for human rights violations, with a specific focus on the role of the Commission in promoting, monitoring and protecting human rights. The engagements are to further reflect on the issues that have been observed and communicated to the Commission by some community members in the Garden Route district.
06 March 2023
Since 2009, there has been a United Nations (UN) observance known as “World Day of Social Justice”. The purpose of the day focuses on the plight of social injustice in the world and recognizes the need to promote efforts to tackle issues such as exclusion, poverty, (un)employment, social well-being, gender equity and justice for all.
03 March 2023
The South African Human Rights Commission (the Commission or SAHRC), as an institution supporting constitutional democracy, wishes to assure the public that it does not condone racism or any other violation of the rights entrenched in the Constitution. It greatly regrets the incident of Thursday, 23 February 2023 in which its then Acting Chief Executive Officer, Ms. Chantal Kisoon, was alleged by the staff of the Commission as having used a racial slur against them. It will leave no stone unturned in investigating the incident and dealing with the perpetrator should it be found, in an independent process, that she indeed used a racial slur and violated the dignity of her colleagues. The Commission has tirelessly fought against racism and will continue to do so even within its own ranks.
01 March 2023
The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC/Commission) on 31 August and 1 September 2022 hosted a National Conference on Local Government Accountability, Service Delivery and Human Rights. The conference was undertaken in the wake of negative reports of poor governance, weak institutional capacity, poor financial management, corruption and political instability in municipalities, and mounting protests against the provision of services in the sphere of local government. The SAHRC has finalised the report which documents the conference deliberations and proposes some recommendations.
27 February 2023
Having adopted the National Development Plan (“NDP”) Vision 2030 to address poverty eradication especially amongst vulnerable groups, the government has further committed itself to providing efficient social services. The Department of Social Development (“the Department”) is at the centre of improving living conditions and lives of people.
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The Human Rights Commission is the national institution established to support constitutional democracy. It is committed to promote respect for, observance of and protection of human rights for everyone without fear or favour.
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