SIBUSISO KHASA: SA has the chance to lead on human rights

SA recently took its seat at the 52nd session of the UN Human Rights Council now under way in Geneva. The session will bring some of the first tests of the country’s three-year term after it was overwhelmingly elected to the body last year. The question is: will it be a leader on human rights at the council or will it disappoint? 

SA’s last stint at the UNHRC, between 2017 and 2019, was marred by inconsistency, and at times its actions have been described as abandoning human rights. The one that drew wide attention and condemnation, and was described as “shameful'' by some, was its decision to abstain from voting on the resolution regarding the human rights of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar in 2017. 

In addition, a study published by the SA Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA) shows that Pretoria did not take a stand on several resolutions that were aimed at addressing human rights in countries such as Syria, Iran and Belarus. 

Importantly, SA’s support for the rights of Palestinians has been unwavering and unambiguous. The SAIIA study indicates that in 2017 the country voted in favour of all five of the UNHRC’s Israel-related resolutions, which were aimed at protecting the rights of Palestinians. On March 7, SA’s parliament voted in favour of a resolution to downgrade the status of the Israeli embassy. 

The country has also championed issues such as opposition to racism, and we desperately need continued leadership on interconnected goals: to promote and protect the rights of the Palestinian people and to dismantle racism. 

Many states at the UNHRC still refuse to acknowledge the reality in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) for what it is: a cruel system of oppression and domination that we have known all too well in SA — apartheid. We need SA, and as many other states as possible, to continue efforts at the UNHRC and beyond to help dismantle racism and apartheid, whenever and wherever they are found, including in Israel and the OPT. 

But SA’s protection of human rights should not end there; it must also lead the charge elsewhere. During its tenure on the UNHRC the country faces many important decisions, including human rights issues in Ukraine and Ethiopia. First, will it vote at the present session to renew the commission of inquiry established by the UNHRC after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine?

Amnesty International SA urges the country to do so as the organisation documents human rights violations witnessed during the conflict and is collecting and preserving evidence of crimes. More than a year after the invasion, the international community must show its continued resolve to put victims’ rights at the heart of all justice efforts — and that includes SA.

Disappointingly, SA abstained from voting at the UN General Assembly last month where a resolution was adopted calling for the end of the war in Ukraine, and demanded Russia’s immediate withdrawal from that country.

Secondly, will SA push back against Ethiopia’s efforts to prematurely end the mandate of the UNHRC’s investigative mechanism — the International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia? In the absence of credible domestic avenues for accountability, this mechanism is critical for victims and survivors in the wake of the recently ended conflict in the country’s northern Tigray Region. Should SA fail to support the mandate it will have failed to show leadership on human rights globally and in Africa. 

The country’s responsibilities as a member of the UNHRC do not end there. Each member is charged with “uphold[ing] the highest standards in the promotion and protection of human rights”, including at home. SA’s membership is also an opportunity for the government to reflect on human rights in its back yard. 

Gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF) continues to soar: the latest quarterly crime statistics show reported rapes increased by 9.8%  between October and December 2022 compared to the same period the previous year. The government continues to deliver broken promises on GBVF, and there is little regard for the right to life and safety. 

Human rights defenders and whistle-blowers such as Athol Williams and Patricia Mashale have been forced to flee the country, and others like Fikile Ntshangase and Babita Deokaran have been killed. Over the years at least 24 members and activists of Abahlali baseMjondolo, the social movement representing the interests of shack dwellers and the poor in SA, have been killed.

While President Cyril Ramaphosa has promised that “the relevant law enforcement agencies are taking the necessary steps to address the immediate concern about the safety of whistle-blowers”, that does not seem to be the case. 

For SA to have the greatest impact at the UNHRC it must stop being selective and protect the human rights of all “without distinction of any kind and in a fair and equal manner”.

SA could, and should, take leadership on human rights — at home and abroad. 

• Khasa is a campaigner at Amnesty International SA.