All Press Releases
20 September 2019
Lawyers for Human Rights, the Legal Resources Centre, and Gender Dynamix cordially invite you to a press conference, on judgment in the case of Jade September v Subramoney & Others.
On Monday 23 September 2019 at 14:00, the Cape High Court, sitting as an Equality Court, will hand down judgment in the matter. Ms September is a transgender woman who is currently serving a prison sentence inside...
17 September 2019
This October, states and civil society organisations will meet in Geneva with a UN Intergovernmental Working Group to discuss the latest version of a proposed international, legally binding instrument intended to regulate the activities of transnational corporations. This Binding Treaty aims to protect human rights and combat violations and abuses by business enterprises. In preparation for this...
5 September 2019
Today, 5 September 2019, the Western Cape High Court handed down judgment in Sonke Gender Justice / President RSA and others. Judge Boqwana declared unconstitutional the provisions in the Correctional Services Act (111 of 1998) which require that the Judicial Inspectorate for Correctional Services (JICS) is i) dependent on the Department of Correctional Services (DCS) for its budget, ii)...
[PRESS RELEASE]: LHR ON ANNOUNCEMENT THAT THERE IS NO MONEY FOR STATE PLAN ON VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN
4 September 2019
On Monday, 2 September, the South African government on Twitter called on women to “speak out”, and “not allow themselves to become victims by keeping quiet”. Yet the following day, MPs were told by the Department of Women, Youth and People with Disabilities that it has no budget to implement the National Strategic Plan on Gender Based Violence and Femicide. The plan is...
3 September 2019
Lawyers for Human Rights expresses deep concern regarding the violent attacks on foreign nationals and foreign-owned businesses in Johannesburg, Pretoria, and other parts of the country, over the last two days. The xenophobic outbreaks have led to loss of lives, displacement, and significant property damage, particularly in respect of an already-vulnerable portion of our population –...
30 August 2019
This week, parts of the Pretoria CBD were shut down after members of the taxi industry protested the shooting of a taxi driver.
During the protests, media reports suggest that shops apparently owned by foreign nationals were looted and some were torched. Today, it is reported that police have arrested people found in possession of alleged stolen goods and also for public violence in connection...
17 July 2019
LHR welcomes the judgment handed down by Maya P in the Supreme Court of Appeal on Monday, 8 July 2019, where it confirmed the right of the Mampies family to bury their deceased in accordance with their religious and cultural beliefs.The court dismissed an appeal brought by Sandvliet Boerdery (Pty) Ltd, against a judgment by Poswa-Lerotholi AJ handed down in September 2017 in the Land Claims Court...
30 May 2019
Lawyers for Human Rights welcomes the decision by the High Court this week dismissing an attempt by the Department of Home Affairs to deprive a stateless child of her right to citizenship. This decision will hopefully end the 6 year court battle that 11-year old Maria (not her real name) endured in the fight for her right to a nationality.
“The South African Citizenship Act gives...
7 May 2019
Lawyers for Human Rights welcomes the judgement of the Pretoria High Court yesterday in respect of more than 100 families (the “Monflorah Park Community”) whose homes were repeatedly and illegally demolished without a court order, and their personal possessions burnt to ashes by the Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department over the course of the last five months.
The community, composed of...
6 May 2019
On 1 April 2019, Lawyers for Human Rights launched an urgent application against the City of Ekurhuleni on behalf of more than 100 families (the “Monflorah Park Community”) whose homes were repeatedly and illegally demolished without a court order, and their personal possessions burnt to ashes by the Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department during the period of December 2018 to April...