On 26 June, the world commemorated International Day in Support of Victims of Torture. The prohibition of torture is enshrined in many international and regional human rights instruments including the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and...
The Southern Africa Human Rights Defenders Network (Southern Defenders) welcomes the decision of the Southern Africa Development Community’s (SADC) to deploy a fact-finding Mission to eSwatini following the escalating political crisis that has seen egregious human rights violations due to...
It has been 52 years since two brave transgender womxn, one of African descent and another of Latin American descent, set forth a movement that would to this day be celebrated worldwide as Pride. The Stonewall riots of 1969 set the tone for what would be a lasting movement, a scream, a stance...
The Southern Africa Human Rights Defenders Network (SAHRDN) seeks applications from womxn for its 2021 Communications Fellowship. The Communications Fellow will work with primarily the SAHRDN’s Gender and Social Inclusion Advisor and the SAHRDN Secretariat to manage SAHRDN’s public communications...
TERMS OF REFERENCE Conduct Needs Assessment on the situation of womxn human rights defenders with regards to access to support mechanisms and services, identifying the risk and protective factors to enhance their safety and security Duration of Assignment: Until 7 July 2021 Purpose and objectives...
The Southern Africa Human Rights Defenders Network (SAHRDN) conducted an Assets and Needs Assessment for Human Rights Defenders in Zimbabwe (the assessment or ANA) between July and December 2020. The assessment occurred during and was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and associated national...
The Southern Africa Human Rights Defenders Network (SAHRDN or Defenders Network) and the Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum (the Forum) write to bring to your attention the egregious human rights violations of Zimbabwean student leader and human rights defender Alan Moyo and requests your urgent...
Kinshasa and Johannesburg The Southern Africa Human Rights Defenders Network (SAHRDN) calls on the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to immediately and unconditionally release four human rights defenders (HRDs) and leaders from the community of Mwingi who were arbitrarily...
We are deeply alarmed by the rapid shrinking of civic, democratic, and civil society space in Uganda ahead of the January 2021 elections. We call on the authorities in Uganda to exercise self-restrain, respect human life and uphold its own constitution, as well as observe its regional and...
23 October 2020 “I refused to sign. I cannot sell out my people. And if need be, I will die for my people.” Tragically, grandmother Fikile Ntshangase’s words became a reality when she was gunned down in her home at Ophondweni, near Mtubatuba, on the evening of 22 October 2020. Mama Ntshangashe was...
22 October 2020 Civil society letter endorsed by over 65 organisations To: President John Magufuli Tanzania: Systematic restrictions on fundamental freedoms in the run-up to national elections Excellency, We, the undersigned civil society organizations, are deeply concerned about the continued...
On October 22, 2020, an important case comes for decision before the Federal High Court sitting in Kaduna, north-west Nigeria. The case – brought by Professor Chidi Anselm Odinkalu – will have an important impact on the rights of people in Nigeria to voice their opinions in matters of public...