In conversation with Dr Satang Nabaneh

On 13 and 14 November 2023, the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria  hosted over 50 scholars, researchers and activists from all over the world to commemorate Professor Ngwena’s exceptional contributions to human rights and to highlight his pioneering work in advancing sexual and reproductive health rights in Africa. During this conference, Dr Satang Nabaneh launched her book titled: “Choice and Conscience: Lessons from South Africa for a Global Debate”. On this episode, Africa Rights Talk sits down with Dr Nabaneh about her book, the inspiration behind the book, the significance of the chosen title “Choice and Consequence”, the main arguments presented in the book, the  key takeaways from the research, how this book contributes to the ongoing debate on conscientious objection and her future plans for research.

The book “Choice and Conscience: Lessons from South Africa for a Global Debate” is a socio-legal analysis of the highly debated issue of conscientious objection in abortion care. The book offers a fresh and insightful perspective on how legal norms construct and maintain power relations. Using a socio-legal approach, Dr Nabaneh draws on both traditional legal scholarship and African feminist intellectual traditions, providing a nuanced understanding of how legal norms construct and maintain power relations. By focusing on the experiences of nurses in South Africa, Dr. Nabaneh explores the complexities of conscience, discretionary power, and socio-cultural and political factors that influence nurses’ decisions about whether or not to conscientiously object. The book is published by Pretoria University Law Press (PULP)

Dr. Satang Nabaneh is a socio-legal scholar, researcher, consultant, and human rights advocate with expertise on human rights, comparative constitutional law, and democratisation. She is a post-doctoral fellow at the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law at the University of Pretoria, where she manages and coordinates the academic program (doctoral and masters) in Sexual and Reproductive Rights in Africa (SRRA). Dr. Nabaneh’s research interests include a broad range of issues related to human rights, women’s rights, democracy, and constitutionalism. She has substantial experience conducting research including systematic desk reviews and field research in multiple countries. Her work has been published in journals such as the Health and Human Rights Journal, International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics, African Disability Rights Yearbook, Constitutions of the World, and the yearly I·CONnect-Clough Center Global Review of Constitutional Law. Dr. Nabaneh is competent, passionate, and committed to scientific research and policy change, especially in advancing the understanding, analysis, and finding solutions to advance development, human rights protection, good governance, rule of law, and democracy.

This conversation was recorded on 17 November 2023.

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VyGPIPkWYPw 

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