Human Rights

A stealthy attempt at censorship

Freedom of speech is a fundamental right recognised in our constitution. But that doesnā€™t mean everyone has to allow that speech anywhere you want to make it.

Kevin Charleston

Opinion | 18 March 2015

Free speech vs copyright: Battle over Bushman legacy on steps of Labia

An old dispute over representing the family legacy of Khomani San leader Dawid Kruiper has resurfaced in a public furore between writer Patricia Glyn and filmmaker Richard Wicksteed.

Daneel Knoetze

News | 17 March 2015

Consumer activist forced to move website offshore

A consumer activist who runs a blog exposing misleading claims about health products has been forced to move his website offshore after a run-in with sports supplement company USN.

Barbara Maregele

News | 17 March 2015

Hope and hatred in South Africa: an interview with Jonny Steinberg

Civil war, betrayal and murder are what Asad Abdullahi left behind in his childhood to travel thousands of kilometres to the land of Mandela, the country of his dreams. But in South Africa heā€™d experience violence unlike anywhere else in Africa. Mandy de Waal speaks to Jonny Steinberg about his new book ā€˜A Man of Good Hopeā€™.

Mandy de Waal

News | 17 March 2015

Treachery and the quest for truth: review of Jacob Dlamini’s Askari

Not wishing to sound derivative I was left grasping for fresh superlatives when I finished reading Askari. Earlier reviewers had already hailed this latest offering by Jacob Dlamini in terms with which I wholly agreed.

Terry Bell

News | 16 March 2015

No help for girl disabled by public toilet

Chumisa Fudumele was seven years old when a toilet fell on her, leaving her disabled. A year later, her parents are struggling to get her back into a school.

Zintle Swana

News | 12 March 2015

Khayelitsha students sent home for not paying voluntary fee

Dozens of Grade 12 students were sent home on Tuesday from Qhayiya Secondary School in Khayelitsha because they were unable to pay a ā€œvoluntary feeā€ to the school.

Mary-Anne Gontsana

News | 11 March 2015

Philippi students speak out about police showdown

On 6 March there was a violent stand-off between students from Philippi High School and the police in the Cape Town CBD. GroundUp reported this. Here is a statement issued by the students on the events of that day.

Philippi High School Students

Opinion | 11 March 2015

“Now I have lunch in a clean canteen”

The contract workers who clean portable toilets all day at the Borcherdā€™s Quarry Depot now have a canteen and a place to change.

Zintle Swana

News | 10 March 2015

Sanitary pads: no sign that Zuma’s promise has been kept

Four years after President Jacob Zuma promised sanitary towels for poor women, there is no sign that his promise has been kept.

Mary-Anne Gontsana

Brief | 10 March 2015

Polluters let off the hook

South Africans shouldnā€™t hold their breath as polluters are let off the hook. Decisions of the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) on Tuesday 24 February 2015 marked a disappointing setback in the battle for improved air quality in South Africa.

Nicole Lƶser

Opinion | 9 March 2015

Human Rights Commission to probe city toilets again

The SA Human Rights Commission is to re-examine its report on chemical toilets in the informal settlements, after finding procedural irregularities in the report.

Daneel Knoetze

News | 5 March 2015

False Bay domestic worker paid nothing for 14 years

A 61-year-old Zimbabwean domestic worker, Gladys Mafita, claims her False Bay employer fired her without payment after 14 years.The employer is Daniel Deng, son of Francis Deng, the first ambassador of South Sudan to the United States.

Tariro Washinyira

Feature | 4 March 2015

City does not care if it is wrong as long as no one else knows it

When the Madlingozi family in Mfuleni extended their shack without authorisation, the City of Cape Town removed the extensions, amidst a dispute over the facts. Jared Sacks argues that the City presented its position without checking the facts.

Jared Sacks

Opinion | 2 March 2015

Gay and lesbian activists call for “racist” Cape Town Pride to be more inclusive

For 25-year-old, Aphiwe Mikana from Gugulethu, raising awareness about what it means to be lesbian is more than brightly coloured floats or a day of dancing through city streets.

Barbara Maregele

News | 2 March 2015

West Papua’s “Cry for help, Cry for Freedom”

On 17 February Equal Education hosted a talk by Benny Wenda of the Free West Papua Campaign at the Wits School of Education. He is in South Africa to spread awareness about the West Papuan fight against Indonesian colonialism and gross human rights abuses of the West Papuan people. He said he was also here to "learn how [South African] leaders fought against apartheid, for justice and against [racial] discrimination."

Joshua Maserow

Opinion | 25 February 2015