Human Rights Defenders, activists and whistle-blowers are agents of justice: they sacrifice their lives for the wellbeing of their fellow community members, while performing a responsibility which should be borne by the government, which has a Constitutional obligation to protect the rights of its citizens.
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Remembering Our Defenders
These activists were killed for standing up for what they believed.
How can we protect our Human Rights Defenders?
We can demand the government does its job.
The South African government must live up to the ideals of our Constitution and South Africa’s reputation for protecting human rights. It must:
- publicly condemn the killing of Human Rights Defenders
- make laws that recognise the important role that Human Rights Defenders play and ensure they are protected
- take urgent action to investigate and arrest the killers of Human Rights Defenders
- honour the commitment that South Africa made in November 2022, when the state agreed to protect Human Rights Defenders as part of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of the United Nations’ Human Rights Council.
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Campaign News
MEDIA ADVISORY: People’s Hearing for South Africa’s Human Rights Defenders
MEDIA ADVISORY For Immediate Release Date: 16 October 2025 People’s Hearing to Highlight Attacks and Threats on South Africa’s Human Rights Defenders 22 October 2025 | Women’s Jail, Constitution Hill | Johannesburg Johannesburg, South Africa. The Life After Coal campaign, a coalition of Earthlife Africa, groundWork, and the Centre for Environmental Rights (CER) will convene a strategic People’s Hearing for Human Rights […]
