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The Facult of Law, University of Pretoria invites students interested in enrolling or who are already enrolled for LLM or LLD studies in the Faculty of Law of the University of Pretoria may apply to be appointed as Academic Associates in one of the departments in the Faculty.
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On 25 September 2025, the Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria (CHR), and the Psychological Society of South Africa (PsySSA) (the amici curiae), represented by Lawyers for Human Rights, will appear before the Constitutional Court of South Africa, to make oral submissions as part of their intervention as amici curiae in the matter of The Embrace Project NPC and Others v Minister of Justice and Correctional Services and Others (CCT314/24) and Centre for Applied Legal Studies and Others v The Embrace Project NPC and Others (315/24).
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On 5 September 2025, the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, attended the Johannesburg launch of Japa Fire: An Anthology of Poems on African and African Diasporic Migration, held at The Forge in Braamfontein. The event was organised by the Africa Migration Report Poetry Anthology Series, with the Centre invited to contribute to a panel discussion on migration, identity, and belonging.
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The Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria cordially invites you to a hybrid roundtable on cybersecurity and the digital rights of marginalised groups in Africa with a focus of an Inclusive human rights agenda.
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On 18–19 August 2025, the Centre for Human Rights, in collaboration with Africa Unite and Refugee Social Services, hosted a two-day training workshop on Community Leadership and Human Rights: Promoting Solidarity and Dialogue at the Diakonia Conference Centre in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal.
The workshop convened 25 participants, including community leaders, educators, healthcare workers, students, faith-based representatives, and members of migrant and refugee communities. The objective was to build knowledge on human rights, migration, and media literacy, while equipping participants with practical tools to counter xenophobia and strengthen social cohesion at the community level.
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Theme: 31 Years of Human Rights in South Africa and 30 Years of the South African Human Rights Commission
The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC), in collaboration with the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, and the Barney Pityana Family, cordially invite you top a Human Rights Lecture on Thursday, 2 October 2025, at the Javett Art Centre, University of Pretoria.
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Between 27 August and 4 September 2025, the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria undertook a focused series of engagements with stakeholders in Botswana aimed at strengthening the country's human rights architecture. The mission sought to build momentum around the ratification of outstanding African Union human rights instruments. Central to these engagements was the advocacy for Botswana to ratify the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Establishment of an African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and to deposit the optional declaration under Article 34(6) of this Protocol, which would grant individuals and civil society organisations the right to access the African Court directly. These activities took place in the context of Botswana’s recent political transition, marked by the 2024 general elections and the rise to power of a new administration under President Duma Boko. These elections were widely celebrated as a democratic milestone in the region, renewing hopes for progressive policy shifts and a more robust human rights agenda under the new leadership.
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On 8 and 9 September 2025 the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria (the Centre) and the Initiatives for Peace and Human Rights (iPeace) hosted a hybrid judicial colloquium on a gender-sensitive approach to realising sexual and reproductive health rights (SRHR) in Africa in Kigali, Rwanda.
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The Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria cordially invites you to a two day hybrid conference on the Domestic Implementation and Impact of Decisions of the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child to deliberate on the state of implementation of the decisions of African Children’s Committee and to consider pathways for improved domestic implementation of decisions.
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The Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria cordially invites to the AI4IA Satellite Event, hosted by the University of Pretoria in collaboration with IFAP Committee, UNESCO ROSA and the EU-funded Social Media 4 Peace Project Partners in South Africa. This dialogue will bring together government, academia, civil society, media, youth, etc to explore how Artificial Intelligence can strengthen the resilience of societies to spreading harmful online content.
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The Master’s Programme in Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa (HRDA) has a long tradition of training women human rights legal experts who are having an impact across the continent. A recent conference in Nairobi brought together over 100 women for an intergenerational dialogue, in which two alumnae shared their experiences after graduation.
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by Awa Gai
To turn the AU Convention on Ending Violence Against Women and Girls into meaningful action demands all hands on deck to dismantle violence against women and girls and amplify the voices of survivors. The current call for a structured review highlight the need for stakeholer consultation to address gaps in implementation, particularly concerning Article 14.
During the 38th ordinary session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union (AU), held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from 15 to 16 February 2025, the AU adopted the Convention on Ending Violence Against Women and Girls (AU-CEVAWG). This stems from a decision of the AU Heads of State and Government in February 2023, following which there was an endorsement to initiate negotiations for the Convention and its eventual adoption in February 2025. While this marks a significant milestone, feminist litigators and advocates who are active users of the African human rights system call for a pause to review the Convention, particularly to address gaps identified in Article 14 regarding its implementation by the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR).
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On 24 July 2025, the Centre for Human Rights at the Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria (Centre), and the Bonavero Institute of Human Rights, University of Oxford, co-hosted the annual Christof Heyns Human Rights Memorial Lecture. Former South African Constitutional Court Judge, and Director of the Bonavero Institute, Prof Kate O’Regan, welcomed participants and moderated the proceedings.
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The African Disability Protocol: Promise and Challenges
The Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, is convening the 13th Annual Disability Rights in Africa Conference from 4 - 5 November 2025, which will take place in a hybrid format in Johannesburg, South Africa (venue TBC) and online via Zoom. The theme for this year’s conference is “The African Disability Protocol: Promise and challenges”.
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On 1–2 September 2025, the African Policing Civilian Oversight Forum (APCOF), the Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria (CHR), and the Dullah Omar Institute (DOI) (the Amici Applicants) represented by Lawyers for Human Rights, will appear before the High Court of South Africa, Western Cape Division, seeking consent to be admitted as amici curiae in the matter of S.H. and the Sex Worker Education and Advocacy Taskforce v Minister of Justice and Correctional Services and Others (Case No. 9229/2024).
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Graduates of the academic programmes of the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, continue to make significant contributions to advance human rights, democracy and the rule of law around the African continent. Fourteen of these alumni were among the attendees of a recent meeting on the implications for the African human rights system of the ongoing African Union reform process. The meeting, organised by the Initiative for Strategic Litigation in Africa, was held in Nairobi, Kenya. Alumni of the Master’s programme in Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa (HRDA), Sexual and Reproductive Rights in Africa, and a now discontinued programme in HIV and International Human Rights Law were present.
“It is hardly possible to attend a gathering of African human rights activists, professionals and scholars without encountering a number of the Centre’s alumni. The meaningful work and commitment of these continental change agents warm the hearts of all of us at the Centre, and leave a significant mark”, remarked Frans Viljoen, previous Centre director, who was also at the Nairobi convening.
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The African Human Rights Law Journal, published by Pretoria University Law Press, has been appearing in June and December annually since 2001. The December 2025 issue will mark 25 years of uninterrupted publication of the Journal, which is indexed in SCOPUS and the International Bibliography of the Social Sciences (IBSS) (among other indexes).
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The Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa (HRDA) Alumni Association of the Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria, cordially invite you to a webinar addressing one of the most underreported humanitarian crises of our time. This webinar leverages our collective efforts to respond to urgent humanitarian crises and shed light on international law and international human rights issues happening in our region. As the association of alumni committed to advancing human rights protection across Africa, we utilise our platform for continental discourse to address contemporary challenges through rigorous legal analysis and advocacy mobilisation.
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On Saturday, 23 August 2025, the programme held a retreat with students and lecturers/supervisors to assess the progress of mini dissertations, agree on an action plan and define the way forward to ensure the programme continues to deliver on its objectives. Which include, among others, to:
- Provide students with a multidisciplinary understanding of Human Rights.
- Strengthen critical thinking and Research Skills.
- Promote regional and global Human Rights awareness.
- Encourage practical engagement with Human Rights work.
- Advance Human Rights Scholarship in Africa
- Support diversity and inclusion in Human Rights discourse
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From 19 – 20 August 2025 the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria hosted a two-day ‘Regional Workshop on Enhancing the Ratification and Implementation of the African Disability Protocol’. The workshop brought together stakeholders from various sectors including the disability sector, academia, donor agencies, government, National Human Rights Institutions and civil society from various countries including Eswatini, South Africa, Malawi, Ghana, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Mozambique, Uganda, Botswana.
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The African Journal on Privacy & Data Protection (AJPDP) invites submissions for its 3rd Volume (2025).
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The Centre for Humabn Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria cordially invites you to a webinar on Strengthening human rights protection in Botswana: A case for ratification of the African Court Protocol (and other core human rights treaties) and allowing citizens direct access to the Court
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Do you agree that menstruation is about so much more than blood? Are you interested in linking menstruation to broader questions of gender justice and social mobilization? Then this PhD position might be the right fit for you. – The position is part of the PERIODS project on Human Rights in the Menstrual Movement funded by the European Research Council and led by Dr. Inga Winkler. You will play a key role in the project by taking the lead on the case study in South Africa focused on the intersections of informality, gender and menstruation in the urban context.
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To mark the historic judgment handed down by the Constitutional Court of Malawi in Joshua Chisa Mbele v The Director of Public Prosecutions & The Attorney General, the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, through its Expression, Information and Digital Rights Unit, organised a webinar on 18 August 2025. The event was moderated by Mr Kennedy Owor and featured distinguished speakers: Hon. Ourveena Geereesha Topsy-Sonoo, Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information in Africa; Judge Redson Edward Kapindu, Judge-in-Charge of the High Court, Financial Crimes Division in Malawi; and Mr Wesley Chalo Kawelo Mwafulirwa, one of the lawyers who represented Joshua Chisa Mbele in this landmark case.
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The Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, invites you to a webinar exploring the implications of the Constitutional Court of Malawi’s landmark ruling decriminalising defamation. This decision marks a pivotal moment in the advancement of freedom of expression and digital rights across Africa, particularly in light of the growing trend of online censorship and digital repression in conflict-affected contexts.
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In pursuit of the ideals of excellence and diversity, the University of Pretoria wishes to invite applications for the vacancy Assistant Director (Operations) . The University of Pretoria's commitment to quality makes us one of the top research Universities in the country and gives us a competitive advantage in international science and technology development.
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On 31 July 31 2025, the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, in partnership with the Democracy Development Program (DDP) and CODE-SA, hosted a symposium that brought together electoral experts, civil society leaders, academics, and young activists to examine one of the most consequential election years in Southern Africa's recent history.
The 2024 electoral cycle across South Africa, Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, and Mauritius revealed both the remarkable resilience and troubling fragility of the region's democratic institutions. This symposium provided a platform to assess electoral processes, examine shifts in political behavior, and propose concrete strategies to strengthen democracy ahead of the South African 2026 local government elections.
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Theme: “Africa in the G20: Advancing Solidarity, Equality, and Sustainability”.
Sub Theme: “African agency in the G20: Media, Journalism, Digital Tech, and Communications”.
25-27 November 2025, Science Stadium, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Background and introduction
The partners of the Amplifying African Voices for Strategic Action (AFSA) are delighted to host the 2nd Annual AFSA conference on 25-27 November 2025. This conference is being held as part of the G20 Summit, hosted by the Republic of South Africa, a first on the African continent. To this end, a general call for abstracts and proposals has been previously issued, inviting individuals and organizations to submit proposals and abstracts for the themes of “conceptualizing African agency”, “geopolitics and global affairs”, and “communicating African agency”. Information relating to the previous generic call, is accessible on this link: https://www.africa-usforum.africa/conference/. The broad conference concept note is also available on this link.
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On Thursday 7 and Friday 8 August 2025, the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, trained over 40 reproductive justice stakeholders from across Africa on the effective litigation of sexual and reproductive health rights (SRHR) claims before national and regional mechanisms in Africa. The training, which was hosted at ANEW Hotel in Hatfield - Pretoria, South Africa, was the third in a series launched in 2023 to equip SRHR actors with the theoretical knowledge and practical skills needed to conceptualise and effectively litigate cases to enhance judicial protection of SRHR.
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Despite increasing legal prohibitions, female genital mutilation (FGM) continues to affect an estimated 92 million women and girls aged 10 and above across Africa. This Sexual and Reproductive Health Matters webinar explores Female Genital Mutilation in Africa: Politics of Criminalisation, a new book edited by Satang Nabaneh and published in February 2025, that confronts the persistent gap between legal reform and lived realities.
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Call for consultants: A critical analysis of the challenges to the implementation of the decisions of African Human Rights Bodies
Over the years, the human rights bodies of the African Union, namely; the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (the Court, Commission and Committee respectively), as well as sub-regional courts (REC courts) have delivered decisions on various aspects of human rights on the continent. Significant efforts have been made to document the status of the implementation of these decisions, including most recently a Study on the status of the implementation of the decisions of the Committee, which was launched in April 2025. There is also a fledgling body of academic literature engaging on various aspects of implementation from a variety of entry points, including: critiques of the mechanisms employed by the bodies to monitor implementation of their decisions and recommendations; the domestic legal and policy frameworks relating to implementation of supranational decisions; and the actual and/or potential role of various implementation stakeholders. The body of evidence on the implementation of decisions of the sub-regional courts such as the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice (ECOWAS CCJ) and the East African Court of Justice (EACJ) is also growing.
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Over the years, the human rights bodies of the African Union (AU), namely; the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (referred as the Court, Commission and Committee respectively), as well as Regional Economic Communities (RECs) courts have delivered decisions on various aspects of human rights on the continent. However, the approach to the rights of women and girls in norm interpretation and enforcement has not been consistent across mechanisms at both the regional and sub-regional level.
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Landmark Defamation Ruling in Malawi: A Victory for Freedom of Expression
The Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, welcomes the landmark judgment handed down by the Constitutional Court of Malawi in the case of Joshua Chisa Mbele v The Director of Public Prosecutions & The Attorney General [2025] MWHC (Constitutional Referral No. 2 of 2024). This ruling marks a pivotal moment in the advancement of freedom of expression and digital rights across Africa, as it affirms that limitations on online speech must be narrowly tailored, lawful and proportionate, in line with constitutional and international human rights standards. By striking down overly broad provisions that criminalise “offensive” or dissenting speech in the digital space, the Court has sent a strong message against the suppression of online civic engagement. This ruling therefore strengthens the jurisprudence on freedom of expression and digital rights on the continent, paving the way for more open, inclusive and democratic online spaces across Africa.
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Manfred Nowak is an Austrian international human rights lawyer and professor with a distinguished career. He served as UN Special Rapporteur on Torture from 2004 to 2010, conducting crucial missions and authoring major reports, including one on Guantánamo. Since 2016, he has been the Secretary General of the Global Campus of Human Rights in Venice, and he is also the Scientific Director of the Vienna MA in Applied Human Rights. Professor Nowak co-founded and formerly co-directed the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights in Vienna. His extensive experience also includes roles as a judge at the Human Rights Chamber for Bosnia and Herzegovina (1996–2003), a UN expert on enforced disappearances (1993–2006), and the Independent Expert for the United Nations Global Study on Children Deprived of Liberty. He was also a member of the international panel of experts that adopted the Yogyakarta Principles.
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Veronica Gomez is a sitting Judge on the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (2023–2028), elected by the Organisation of American States in November 2021 and sworn in in 2022. She previously served as President of the Global Campus of Human Rights (2019–2023) and is currently the Director for Education at the International Center for Political Studies (Centro Internacional de Estudios Políticos) at Argentina's Universidad Nacional de San Martín (UNSAM). From 1998 to 2009, she was a Principal Specialist at the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), where she made significant contributions to the Inter-American human rights system.
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Simon Walker is a seasoned human rights lawyer and international civil servant. He currently serves as Chief of the Rule of Law and Democracy Section at the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), where he leads a team of experts working on a broad range of issues, including the administration of justice, counter-terrorism and human rights, the abolition of the death penalty, drug policy and human rights, conditions of detention, media freedom and the safety of journalists, democracy, transitional justice, and human rights in armed conflict.
Previously, he served as Chief of Section One in the Human Rights Treaties Branch (2011–January 2022) and as Representative of the OHCHR in Cambodia.
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Yashasvi Nain is an international human rights lawyer currently serving as Human Rights Advisor at the Permanent Delegation of the Commonwealth to the United Nations in Geneva. In this role, he assists Commonwealth member states, especially Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and Least Developed Countries (LDCs), in navigating UN human rights mechanisms like the Human Rights Council and treaty bodies. Previously, he led international advocacy at the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative. Mr. Nain brings extensive experience in migration, statelessness, and refugee law from his time at the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). He holds a B.A., LL.B. (Hons) from Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law, India, and a Master’s in Law from the Geneva Academy, where he was a Hans Wilsdorf Scholar.
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Thompson Chengeta is a Professor at the School of Law, Liverpool John Moores University (appointed in 2024), specialising in autonomous weapon systems, AI ethics, and drone regulation. He is a leading voice in these fields, serving on the International Panel on the Regulation of Autonomous Weapons and as Lead Campaigner for Africa with the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots. Professor Chengeta is also the Principal Investigator for the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights’ study on the human rights implications of AI, robotics, and emerging technologies. His expertise is further recognised through his appointment to the UN Secretary-General’s Advisory Body on Disarmament Matters and his role as Legal expert and advisor for the International Committee for Robot Arms Control.
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Ivana Jelić is a Judge at the European Court of Human Rights, elected in respect of Montenegro in July 2018, with her term running until 2027. She has served as Vice-President of the Court since November 1, 2024, and as President of her Section since July 2024. Judge Jelić's prior experience includes roles as an Associate Professor at the University of Montenegro and as a Member (2012-2016) and Vice-Chair (2014-2016) of the Advisory Committee on the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (ACFC) at the Council of Europe. She was also a Member (2015-2018) and Vice-President (2017-2018) of the United Nations Human Rights Committee.
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As Cameroon approaches its presidential election on October 12, 2025, it is reported that the political atmosphere is marked by uncertainty, frustration, and a sense of democratic fatigue. The incumbent President Paul Biya, now 92 years old and the world’s oldest serving head of state, has officially announced his candidacy for an eighth term. The announcement was posted via verified social media channels. Biya, having ruled Cameroon since 1982, his re-election bid, though widely anticipated and predictable, has reignited contentious debates over legitimacy, succession, and the future of democracy in Cameroon. Biya’s announcement comes amid mounting concerns about his fitness to govern, especially considering his age and regular absence from the public eye, which has fuelled speculation about his health and capacity.
The Centre for Human Rights hosts an expert consultation and a public seminar on AI and human rights
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On 15 July 2025, the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, together with the Accelerator Fellowship Programme of the Institute for Ethics in AI (University of Oxford) and the African Observatory for Responsible AI under the Global Center on AI Governance, hosted an expert consultation and public seminar on the theme ‘Do we need a new AI Bill of human rights?’ The event took place at the SRC Chambers at the UP Conference Centre, Hatfield Campus, University of Pretoria, in Pretoria, South Africa. It began with welcoming remarks from representatives of the three convening institutions, who highlighted the importance of the dialogue, welcomed participants, and expressed appreciation for their presence and engagement.
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Celebrating, Reflecting, Connecting
Pretoria, 11–13 May 2026
A Conference in honour of the 20th Anniversary of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, co-hosted by DISSECT: Evidence in International Human Rights Adjudication (ERC, Ghent University) and the Centre for Human Rights and NRF Chair in International Constitutional Law, University of Pretoria
Celebrating the 20th anniversary of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, this Conference investigates a key but understudied element of international human rights judicial proceedings – evidence. How is the factual basis of a human rights claim (to be) evidenced? Which party benefits when facts remain uncertain? Can the evidentiary inequality of arms between the parties be redressed? Is the purpose of evidence to find the truth – and if so, which truth? Although the Conference focuses on the African Court, we are also interested in studies which address the broader sphere of international human rights adjudication, including the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the European Court of Human Rights, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, and the UN Human Rights Treaty Bodies.
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Prof Benyam Mezmur is Professor of Law, and Deputy Dean for Research & Postgraduate Studies, Faculty of Law, University of the Western Cape (UWC), Cape Town, South Africa He is also the Coordinator, Children’s Rights Project, Dullah Omar Institute, UWC. Prof Mezmur served on the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, from 2010 to 2021; and was the Committee’s Chairperson twice (2012–2014, 2015–2017). He was also elected by the UN General Assembly as a member of the UN Committee on the Rights of Child, in 2012, and still serves as a member of that treaty body. He was its Chairperson between 2015 and 2017. He holds an LLB degree from Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia, and LLM from the University of Pretoria; and an LLD from the University of the Western Cape.
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Judge Chantel Fortuin is currently serving as a judge of the Western Cape Division of the High Court of South Africa, based in Cape Town. In November 2024, she was appointed by President Cyril Ramaphosa as a member of the Special Tribunal that handles civil matters arising from investigations by the Special Investigating Unit, primarily aimed at recovering public funds lost through corruption, fraud, and maladministration. Judge Fortuin was the Regional Director of the Legal Resources Centre between October 2003 and May 2008. Previously, she served as an acting judge both in the Eastern Cape and in the Western Cape.
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Dr Solomon Dersso is a Commissioner at the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, serving his second term as member of the Commission. He served as Chairperson of the Commission from 2019 to 2021. He also is the Chairperson of the Commission’s Working Group on Extractive Industries, Human Rights, and the Environment (WGEI). Dr Dersso is also the founding Director of Amani Africa Media and Research Services, a pan-African policy research think tank based in Addis Ababa; and is an Adjunct Professor at the Addis Ababa University College of Law and Governance Studies.
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Kissi Agyebeng is the Special Prosecutor of the Republic of Ghana, responsible for investigating corruption and corruption-related offences, prosecuting suspected offenders, preventing corruption, and disgorging illicit and unexplained wealth through asset recovery and management. Prior to assuming this role in August 2021, he ran his law firm operating from Accra, and he taught Criminal Law, International Humanitarian Law, and Legal Research and Writing at the University of Ghana School of Law for more than 17 years. He served as the Chairman of Ghana’s ad hoc Electronic Communications Tribunal.
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Hon Justice Duncan Gaswaga, a national of Uganda, was elected as Judge of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights in July 2024, for a six-year term. Justice Gaswaga is a Judge of the High Court of the Republic of Uganda, and was also attached to the International Crimes Division (ICD) of Uganda, which deals with international crimes. Prior to this, Justice Gaswaga was a Senior Magistrate in Seychelles, a practicing Advocate and Magistrate in Uganda and the first General Secretary of the East African Magistrates and Judges’ Association (EAMJA). Justice Gaswaga is also a Fellow of the Commonwealth Judicial Education Institute, Halifax, Canada. He holds an LLB degree from Dar-Es-Salaam University, Tanzania, and LLM degrees from the University of Pretoria and Case Western Reserve University, Ohio, USA.
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The event will be lived-streamed
The Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria and the Bonavero Institute, Mansfield College, Oxford University invite you to the Third Christof Heyns Memorial Lecture. This lecture will be held at the Auditorium, Bonavero Institute, Mansfield College, Oxford University.
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The 17th edition of the Nelson Mandela World Human Rights Moot Court Competition officially kicked off on 14 July at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland.
More than just a competition, this prestigious event is a powerful celebration of justice, equality, and the rule of law—principles that Nelson Mandela championed throughout his life. It serves as a vital platform to highlight the importance of human rights and international law, bringing together the brightest law students from across the globe.
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11 July 2025
On the occasion of African Anti-Corruption Day 2025, the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, joins the continent in reaffirming its commitment to promoting transparency, accountability, and human dignity in the fight against corruption. This year’s theme: ‘Promoting Human Dignity in the Fight Against Corruption’, rightly situates anti-corruption as a human rights imperative. Corruption is a legal and economic issue, which is also a direct assault on the dignity, rights, and welfare of African people. It undermines public trust, weakens the rule of law, and deprives communities of essential services, including access to justice, health care, education, water, and housing. Human dignity is enshrined in the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the Constitutive Act of the African Union, and other international human rights standards, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR).
Call for Ratification: The Federal Republic of Somalia should ratify the African Disability Protocol
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The Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Africa, referred to as the African Disability Protocol (ADP), was adopted on 29th January 2018 and entered into force on 3 May 2024 following its 15th ratification. This significant treaty aims to safeguard and ensure the rights of persons with disabilities in Africa. It serves as an important continental treaty tailored for the African context. The ADP addresses fundamental issues of disability discrimination to guarantee equitable access to protection against harmful practices, health, education, and employment, among others. This call seeks to encourage the government of Somalia to ratify the APD by highlighting the significance of the treaty.
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The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Africa (African Disability Protocol) are the only international human rights instruments that contain a substantive right to access justice. The inclusion of a substantive right to access justice in article 13 of both instruments was a response to the lived experience of persons with disabilities who encounter numerous barriers to accessing justice, including communication, accessibility, attitudinal, legal and procedural barriers, with devastating and far-reaching effects on their ability to enforce all other human rights and fundamental freedoms. For persons with disabilities, the right to access justice is of particular importance. In an effort to improve persons with disabilities’ access to justice, the Centre for Human Rights in the Faculty of Law at the University of Pretoria (the Centre) hosted the 4th Regional Convening on Access to Justice for Persons with Disabilities in Africa from 24 to 25 June 2025 at Southern Sun Hotel, OR Tambo International Airport.
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By Tendai Mbanje & Tito Magoti
As Tanzanians brace for the October 2025 general elections, the country finds itself at a perilous juncture. Once hailed for its peaceful transitions and political maturity, Tanzania is now witnessing a quiet but dangerous erosion of democratic norms. The silence from regional bodies like the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the African Union (AU) in the face of mounting electoral concerns is not merely a lapse in oversight it is a form of complicity that erodes the very democratic norms these institutions were created to uphold
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The Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, together with the Accelerator Fellowship Programme of the Institute for Ethics in AI (University of Oxford) and the Global Center on AI Governance, invites you to a timely public seminar on the intersection of artificial intelligence and human rights.
34th Christof Heyns African Human Rights Moot Court Competition in Cape Town: Highlights and Results
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The long-awaited 34th edition of the Christof Heyns African Moot Court Competition took place at the University of Cape Town (UCT), South Africa, from 29 June to 5 July 2025. The winners of this year’s competition were the combined team from the University of Nairobi, Kenya, and Instituto Superior de Ciências e Tecnologia de Moçambique, Mozambique. The University of Nairobi was represented by Mwiti Edna Nkirote and Dickson Gitonga, while the Délcia de Albertina Julião and Miguel Enzo Antonio represented Instituto Superior de Ciências e Tecnologia de Moçambique.
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As Malawians prepare to head to the polls on September 16, 2025, the country finds itself at a dangerous crossroads. A phenomenon distinct from previous elections in the country's democratic history. The silence from regional bodies, such as the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the African Union (AU), is deafening. Once praised for its relative stability in a region often plagued by contested elections, Malawi is now grappling with intensifying violence, growing political distrust, and deepening public skepticism over its electoral institutions. The echoes of the annulled 2019 elections still ring loud and this time, the stakes are even higher.
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From Commitment to Action
From 17 to 19 June 2025, the Centre for Human Rights (CHR), Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, in collaboration with government officials and civil society representatives in Guinea-Bissau, hosted a workshop in Bissau to strengthen state reporting under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa (Maputo Protocol). The workshop marked a critical step as Guinea-Bissau prepares to submit its first state report on both instruments, demonstrating its growing commitment to advancing human rights and gender equality.
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Pretoria, 5 - 6 November 2025
The Centre for Human Rights (CHR) and the Institute for International and Comparative Lawin Africa (ICLA), of the Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, in partnership with the African Peer Review Mechanism of the African Union are pleased to announce a call for papers for a conference on “Military coups and the militarisation of politics on constitutionalism and democracy in Africa,” that will take place in Pretoria on 5 - 6 November 2025.
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Zororai Nkomo and Rutendo Mugabe
Introduction
The discovery of transition minerals, such as lithium, cobalt, copper, nickel, and rare earth elements, across the African continent has been hailed as a gateway to economic transformation and a vital contribution to the global shift toward a just energy transition. These minerals are essential for powering renewable energy technologies, electric vehicles, and the broader decarbonisation agenda. Yet, this promise comes with a troubling cost: the exploitation of children.
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2 July 2025
The Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, strongly condemns the detention of Faith Zaba, editor of the Zimbabwe Independent, by Zimbabwean authorities over an article allegedly "undermining the authority" of President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
Ms Zaba was detained by Zimbabwean police on 1 July 2025, in connection with Muckracker, a satirical column published in the Zimbabwe Independent. The piece mocked Zimbabwe’s recent assumption of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) chairmanship, describing the regional bloc as a “trade union of dictators.” The Zimbabwe Independent is a weekly publication known for its independent journalism and critical reporting.
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On Monday, 30 June 2025 the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria and the Faculty of Law, University of Cape Town co-hosted a one-day international conference as part of the 34th Christof Heyns African Human Rights Moot Court Competition.
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The Centre for Human Rights, in partnership with the Centre for Child Law both at the Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, and Dullah Omar Institute for Constitutional Law, Governance and Human Rights, University of the Western Cape as well as the Université de Namur hosted the annual Advanced Human Rights Course on Children’s Rights in Africa from 23 to 27 June 2025. The course was also supported by the Global Campus of Human Rights.
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The Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria in partnership with the Democracy Development Program, is hosting a regional symposium entitled 'Rethinking Democracy in Southern Africa: Lessons from the 2024 Electoral Cycle'. The event is scheduled to take place on 31 July 2025 at the University of Pretoria. This timely symposium will bring together policymakers, electoral stakeholders, civil society leaders, and academics to critically reflect on the significant political shifts that occurred during the 2024 electoral cycle across Southern Africa. These include South Africa's coalition governance, Mozambique's post-election unrest and the challenges to the dominance of liberation movements in Botswana. The symposium will provide an opportunity to assess regional democratic trends and electoral integrity, as well as the future of democratic inclusion.
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The Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, through its Expression, Information and Digital Rights (EIDR) Unit, participated in the 13th African School on Internet Governance (AfriSIG25) and the African Internet Governance Forum (Africa IGF 2025). Both events were hosted in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
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Petition Summary:
Join the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria in demanding justice and freedom for two pro-democracy Members of Parliament in Eswatini who were unjustly sentenced for standing up for the people’s right to democratic reform.
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20 June 2025
According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), at the end of 2024 an estimated 123,2 million people were forcibly displaced worldwide. This sobering figure reflects the devastating impacts of conflict, persecution, environmental disasters, and widespread human rights violations.
Nowhere is this crisis more evident than in Africa.
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Every year on June 18, the world comes together to observe the International Day for Countering Hate Speech, a solemn reminder that words can wound deeply and sometimes irreparably. Hate speech is not a new problem. Throughout history, language has been weaponised to demean, divide, and destroy, but today, in our interconnected digital age, the scale, speed, and sophistication of hate speech’s spread are unprecedented. This is especially true in Africa, a continent marked by extraordinary diversity in ethnicity, religion, culture, and language, where hate speech can quickly inflame tensions and threaten peace. The devastating consequences of hate speech in Africa are not merely theoretical. The 1994 Rwandan genocide stands as the darkest example, where incendiary radio broadcasts and printed propaganda dehumanised the Tutsi minority, turning words into deadly action. This tragedy also became a powerful lesson in the importance of vigilance, legal safeguards, and coordinated responses to hateful rhetoric.
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On this International Day for Countering Hate Speech, the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, joins the global community in amplifying the call for urgent and coordinated action to confront the rise of hate speech, especially as it proliferates through artificial intelligence (AI) technologies and digital platforms. While the phenomenon of hate speech is not new, its reach and consequences have grown dramatically in the digital era.
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The Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria is accepting abstracts on the Domestic Implementation and Impact of Decisions of The African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. Accepted papers will be presented at a two-day conference on 30 September – 01 October 2025, to deliberate on the state of implementation of the decisions of African Children’s Committee and to consider pathways for improved domestic implementation of decisions.
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The Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, is convening the 13th Annual Disability Rights in Africa conference from 4 - 5 November 2025. The theme for this year’s conference is “The African Disability Protocol: Promise and challenges.” The conference aims to critically engage with the substantive content of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Africa (African Disability Protocol) and to interrogate strategies for its successful implementation, to bring about the desired social change. The conference will explore the unique contribution of the African Disability Protocol, in light of the existence of other human rights instruments that already address the subject of disability and are widely ratified by African States. These other instruments include the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (African Charter). The annual disability conference is a flagship platform for convening dialogue among key stakeholders on disability rights and to spotlight pertinent and emerging disability rights concerns in the African region.
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Second Child-Led Conference and Engagement with the ACERWC Working Group on Climate Change on Child Rights-Based Approaches to Climate Action in Africa
As a build up to the commemoration of the Day of the African Child (DAC 2025) in Lilongwe Malawi, the Centre for Human Rights hosted 2 events in Malawi on the 15 June 2025. The first, was the second child-led conference and the second, an engagement with the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child’s (ACERWC) working group on Children and Climate Change. Both events were focused on climate change and child-rights based approaches to climate action in Africa.
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The Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria in collaboration with the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva Switzerland codially invite you to the 6th annual Nelson Mandela Human Rights Lecture, which forms part of the Nelson Mandela World Human Rights Moot Court Competition.
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Students who have completed their doctoral studies in law at an African University in 2024 are encouraged to submit their doctoral theses for consideration for the Christof Heyns Memorial Thesis Award, which is awarded annually. The winning thesis will be published in book form by the Pretoria University Law Press (PULP).
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The applications to undertake the individual consultancy and develop the General Comment on Article 28 should be submitted by email to the Secretariat of the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child via ACERWC-SECRETARIAT@AfricanUnion.org with a copy to SenaitY@africanunion.org. The deadline for submission is 04 July 2025 at 23:00 South African Standard Time.
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The recent murder of Olorato Mongale is not an isolated tragedy. It is a painful reminder that South Africa’s criminal justice is failing and refusing to learn from its own history. Recent reports suggest that Olorato was a victim of a syndicate. Her death has now been confirmed as yet another femicide in a country with some of the highest rates of gender-based violence in the world. Disturbingly, the men now implicated in her abduction and killing were previously arrested and released on bail on kidnapping charges.
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A conference on the African-Caribbean Dialogue on Justice through Reparations was held on 2 and 3 June 2025 at the University of Pretoria’s Future Africa campus. The event was organised and hosted as a collaboration between University of Pretoria’s Centre for Human Rights and South African National Research Foundation Chair in International Constitutional Law, the University of The Bahamas, Université de Goma, Africa Judges and Jurists Forum and the Bahamas National Reparations Committee. The conference brought together scholars on one of the most current and controversial topics of the century, namely, reparatory justice for the transatlantic enslavement of Africans and its continuity through colonialism.
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The Free State Centre for Human Rights, University of the Free State, South Africa, in collaboration with the Department of Law and Political Science, University of Siena, Italy, the Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria, South Africa, the Human Rights Centre, University of Dayton, USA, Universidade Autonomia de Lisboa, Portugal, and the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights will present the eighth International Conference on the Right to Development under the theme “critical minerals and the right to development.” This Conference scheduled to take place at the University of Siena in Italy from 4 to 6 November 2025.
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On 29 May 2025, the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria (the Centre) collaborated with the Bridgitte Mabandla Justice College to host a training workshop on Access to justice for persons with disabilities in South Africa. This collaborative effort between the Centre and the Bridgitte Mabandla Justice College is pursuant to a memorandum of understanding that was entered into by the two organisations on 22 August 2024 in which they agreed to work together to strengthen the capacity of court clerks on various human rights issues including the rights of persons with disabilities.
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The Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria invites applications for a two-day residential capacity-building training on litigating sexual and reproductive health
and rights (SRHR) claims before national and regional mechanisms in Africa. The training will be held for two days (Thursday 7 - Friday 8 August 2025) in Pretoria, South Africa.
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The Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa (HRDA) Alumni Association of the Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria, proposes to organise a specialised blog writing workshop as its inaugural activity for 2025. This event aims to enhance the professional writing skills of HRDA alumni and current students while fostering knowledge exchange on human rights topics across Africa.
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On 28 May 2025, the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, hosted a virtual launch of the Access to Information in Africa Newsletter. This milestone event provided an opportunity to reflect on the evolving access to information landscape in Africa, celebrating progress, confronting persistent challenges, and identifying strategic priorities for the future.
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The Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, invites you to a hybrid discussion on the landmark judgment of the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights in Application No. 019/2018 Centre for Human Rights & Others v. The United Republic of Tanzania which reaffirmed the rights of persons with albinism. The application was filed as part of the Centre’s response to the plight of persons with albinism in the United Republic of Tanzania, and in particular challenged the State’s failure to protect persons with albinism from widespread discrimination, persecution and humiliation that have occurred since time immemorial.
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On Friday 23 March 2025, the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria (Centre) and the Université Catholique d’Afrique Centrale (UCAC) co-hosted the Julius Osega Memorial Lecture at UCAC, Ekonou Campus in Yaoundé, Cameroon. The Julius Osega Lecture is an annual lecture on governance and human rights in Africa, held within the framework of a consortium of 13 African universities that present the Master’s programme in Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa (HRDA). UCAC is one of these partner universities.
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The Sexual and Reproductive Rights in Africa (SRRA) Digest is an initiative of the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria. It runs quarterly and features works on emerging sexual and reproductive health/rights (SRHR) issues in the African region. The SRRA Digest invites past and present students, researchers, policymakers, advocates, academics and civil society to contribute to robust dialogue on SRHR by submitting case analyses, opinion pieces and short articles.
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Over the past few months, the Zimbabwe Human Rights Association (ZimRights) has been engaging in a nationwide and diaspora-wide consultation process on the state of human rights in Zimbabwe and the critical role of Zimbabweans living outside the country. These dialogues have been both rich and meaningful, and ZimRights expresses sincere gratitude to all those who have contributed.
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The African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (African Court), the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (African Commission), and the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (African Children’s Committee) are pleased to invite submissions for fully developed articles and case discussions aiming to make ground-breaking academic-style contributions to the human rights discourse in Africa.
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The Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, cordially invites you to the official launch of the Access to Information in Africa Newsletter. This special publication features articles presented during the 2023 seminar marking the 10th anniversary of the Model Law on Access to Information in Africa, complimented by additional contributions from researchers across the continent. Although two years have passed since the anniversary, the Model Law continues to be a significant influence in shaping national access to information frameworks and implementation efforts across the continent. This virtual launch not only marks the public release of the newsletter but also offers an opportunity to reflect on the evolving access to information landscape in Africa, celebrating progress, examining ongoing challenges, and identifying priorities for future action.
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Congratulations on ranking within the Top 24 teams.
Kindly take further note that all teams that intend on attending must confirm in writing that they will be able to do so by Friday 23 May 18:00hrs SAST/CET and individuals who need a visa to enter Switzerland must send their passport copy and complete the UN Visa Support Information form below in order for me to facilitate a visa support letter through the UN office.
You are also reminded of the registration fees that will be required and are thereby referred to part 13 of the official rules for the applicable fees.
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The Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, cordially invites you to a panel discussion on the Opportunities and Pitfalls for Access to Justice for Women under the AU “2025 year of justice for Africans and Peoples of African Descent through reparations” which will take place on 28 May 2025 from 11:00 to 12:30.
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The African Union (AU) declared 2025 as the “Year of Reparations” under the theme “Advancing Justice through Reparations: Reparations, Restoration, and Renaissance”. Reparations for historical injustices and human rights violations due to slavery, colonialism, and other forms of exploitation against people of African descent is one the burning issues of our time.
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This year commemorates the 31st anniversary of the establishment of democratic governance in South Africa which is ‘based on the will of the people’. South Africa exemplifies a democracy distinguished by a progressive constitution. Since then, it has made major strides in fostering a unified and inclusive nation, while safeguarding democratic values such as equality, respect for human rights, and a government that prioritizes the interests of its people. In the May 2024 general elections, no party achieved a majority for the first time. Consequently, in June 2024, a Government of National Unity (GNU) was established marking a collaborative effort aimed at promoting accountability, transparency, and public participation in governance. Thus far, the GNU has performed admirably, with the exception of the recent stalemate regarding the budget. According to the Commission for Human Rights (2002) some of the essential components of democracy include free and fair elections, a commitment to human rights, and adherence to the rule of law, the separation of powers, a diverse political party system, judicial independence, and a free and independent media. As articulated by former President Nelson Mandela in his 1994 inauguration speech: “We have, at last, achieved our political emancipation. We pledge ourselves to liberate all our people from the continuing bondage of poverty, deprivation, suffering, gender and other discrimination”.
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On this 15th day of May 2025, the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria (the Centre) joins the international community in commemorating Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD). This international initiative aims to raise awareness about digital access and inclusion, particularly for the more than 1.3 billion persons with disabilities (PWDs) worldwide. GAAD began in 2011 as a blog post by Joe Devon, urging developers to consider digital accessibility. Since then, it has evolved into a global movement, observed across industries, sectors, and regions. Today, GAAD continues to spotlight the often invisible barriers that hinder full and equal participation in the digital world, advocating for a future where technology is truly inclusive for all. The Centre for Human Rights stands in solidarity with this movement, advocating for a digital future that is inclusive, accessible, and equitable for all.
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The Centre for Human Rights (the Centre) hosted a two-day training workshop to strengthen the capacity of persons with albinism and their representative organisations on how to engage with the Equality Courts in South Africa. Held from 6 – 7 May 2025, the workshop sought to provide information on how persons with albinism can seek redress for unfair discrimination, harassment, and hate speech through the Equality Courts in South Africa.
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On 6 and 7 May the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria proudly co-hosted the Equality Court Clerk Workshop with the Brigitte Mabandla Justice College (‘the College’) in Pretoria.
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The SOGIESC Clinic at the Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria cordially invites you to International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT).
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The Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, with the support of the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA), cordially invites you to apply for its Capacity Building Workshop on Strategic Litigation and Advocacy for human rights defenders working on the promotion and protection of the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, and other non-binary and gender-nonconforming persons in Africa.
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On 23 and 24 April 2025, the Centre for Human Rights (CHR), Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria in collaboration with PANOS, convened a stakeholder engagement on elections and information ecosystem with a particular focus on the upcoming elections in Malawi and Zambia. The event was convened in Lusaka, Zambia, in anticipation of the national elections scheduled for 2025 in Malawi and 2026 in Zambia.
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Reporting in the Brave New World: The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Press Freedom and the Media
On the occasion of World Press Freedom Day, which was commemorated on 3 May 2025, the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law at the University of Pretoria joined the global community in reaffirming the importance of press freedom as a pillar of democratic societies and a safeguard for the protection of human rights.
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The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights is inviting comments on its Draft Study on Human and Peoples’ Rights and Artificial Intelligence (AI), Robotics, and Other New and Emerging Technologies in Africa.
The study was initiated following the adoption of Resolution 473 during the Commission’s 31st Extraordinary Session in 2021, which, recognising both the opportunities and risks posed by technologies such as AI and robotics, mandates the conduct of a comprehensive study on their impact on human and peoples’ rights as protected under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and other relevant human rights instruments.
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BACKGROUND
Privacy and data protection have become increasingly critical in the digital era as states worldwide accelerate digital transformation. The rapid adoption of digital technologies, the expansion of e-governance, and the digitisation of services have led to an unprecedented collection, processing, and storage of personal data. While these developments offer immense opportunities, they also pose significant concerns regarding data security, privacy breaches, and the protection of individuals from intrusive surveillance and misuse of personal information by both state and nonstate actors.
