Human rights in South Africa are protected under the

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these princ ...

. The 1998 Human Rights report by Myles Nadioo noted that the government generally respected the rights of the citizens; however, there were concerns over the use of force by law enforcement, legal proceedings and discrimination. The

Human Rights Commission A human rights commission, also known as a human relations commission, is a body set up to investigate, promote or protect human rights. The term may refer to international, national or subnational bodies set up for this purpose, such as nationa ...

is mandated by the

South African Constitution The Constitution of South Africa is the supreme law of the Republic of South Africa. It provides the legal foundation for the existence of the republic, it sets out the rights and duties of its citizens, and defines the structure of the Gover ...

and the Human Rights Commission Act of 1994, to monitor, both pro-actively and by way of complaints brought before it, violations of

human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...

and seeking redress for such violations. It also has an educational role.

Apartheid era

Apartheid was a system of segregation and discrimination implemented by a White minority onto the Black majority. For example, Blacks were not allowed to buy land outside of land reserves despite being the indigenous population. Many of South Africa's anti-apartheid laws have been enacted while keeping in mind that what is seen by the international community, human rights organisations, and the Black majority in the country as the social and legal injustices associated with apartheid, and its anti-apartheid message has been hailed as an exemplary face of a Sub-Saharan nation.

Education rights

The South African government has legislated for equal education throughout the country. This legislation includes the White Paper on Education and Training 1995 and the South African Schools Act, Act 84 of 1996. Nevertheless, there have been issues in the implementation of these laws, and according to a 2020 report by Amnesty International, South Africa has one of the most unequal educational systems in the world, with the widest gap between the test scores of the top 20% of schools and the remaining 80%. The South African government tends to focus primarily on the quality of

higher education Higher education is tertiary education leading to award of an academic degree. Higher education, also called post-secondary education, third-level or tertiary education, is an optional final stage of formal learning that occurs after comple ...

. Additionally, there is not much racial integration in state schools. Though laws allow for integration, many schools remain predominantly one race. Encouragingly, the number of students completing Grade 12 has significantly increased in recent years, going from 3.7 million South Africans aged 15 and over in 1996 to 11.6 million in 2016.

Rural schools

Most of the

Education in South Africa Education in South Africa is governed by two national departments, namely the Department of Basic Education (DBE), which is responsible for primary and secondary schools, and the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET), which is re ...

comes from rural schools. In fact, approximately 79% of Black South Africans live in rural communities. However, the government has neglected the quality of education in these rural areas. Issues with rural schooling include: poor facilities, lack of clean water, lack of resources, and unmotivated teachers. Considering poor facilities, some schools are not structurally stable and are at risk of collapse, with some schools even lacking electricity. Most schools with more than 500 children lack proper sanitation for toilets while some schools don't have toilets at all. Furthermore, many rural schools are in remote areas without direct access to clean water. Water is generally kilometers away and unclean because animals bathe and drink in it. This lack of water is a particular issue in the daytime when the temperature is highest. The remoteness of these rural schools is also a particular problem because they are quite distant from pupils' homes. And, many schools do not remedy this issue with transport. Additionally, many schools lack the needed books and supplies for learning. In June 2010, the Government Gazette recognised that these unfavorable learning environments increase rates of absenteeism of teachers and dropout rates of students. Some students do not have enough food to eat and are hungry during school. This hunger causes a lack on concentration and makes learning environments less favorable.

Rights for disabled children

Though South Africa ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in 2007, children with disabilities still do not have equal access to education. In many situations, a state school is able to determine which students are able to enroll and the school may simply reject a disabled child without any consequences. In cases where the student is able to enroll in a public school, a school may lack the resources necessary to effectively teach children with disabilities. Additionally, children with disabilities in state schools are forced to pay fees—such as for an assistant—that other students are not required to pay. South Africa has schools that cater for students with disabilities, but these schools are limited in number and require fees to be paid. The limited number of schools forces children to either board or use costly transport. In 2000, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child was specifically concerned with the lack of implementation of South Africa's agreement to guarantee free primary education. South Africa still struggles to provide free primary education for all. Additionally, many disabled students are not able to access quality education because they are on waiting lists for schools that cater to students with special needs. For example, in 2015, there are approximately 5,552 children with disabilities on waiting lists.

Political rights

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

has a liberal constitution that protects all basic political freedoms. However, there have been a number of incidents of political repression as well as threats of future repression in violation of this constitution leading some analysts and

civil society Civil society can be understood as the "third sector" of society, distinct from government and business, and including the family and the private sphere. However, this patronage infringes on the rights of the people, especially those in poverty. 40% of South Africans are dependent on the state to supply necessities. This dependence on the state lessens the autonomy of South Africans in need of this assistance. These necessities are supplied in the form of grants, which require governmental documents to obtain. Consequently, bureaucracy plays a major role in an individual's ability to obtain a grant and thus obtain necessities. Politicians gain substituents based on material promises. If the politicians fulfill these promises, often the recipients are only those who supported the politicians. Essentially, voters dependence on the state precludes their ability to vote based on ideological platforms. This phenomenon does not align with the democratic principles of South Africa.

Welfare

As of 2021, roughly 30% of South Africans (18 million out of the country's population of 60 million) received government grants. This number increased sharply during the

coronavirus pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identifie ...

; in October 2020, more than 70% of South Africans were living in a household receiving government support. The 1997 "White Paper on Social Welfare" outlines South Africa's social welfare policy. The White Paper on Social Welfare focuses on providing South Africans with opportunities for increased autonomy. For example, White Paper on Social Welfare stipulates the provision of public works projects. The White Paper also emphasizes the significance of non-state welfare organizations in providing welfare. Such organizations include non-governmental organizations (NGO's) and religious organizations. Additionally, the White Paper focuses on the government providing welfare specifically to families. But, the White Paper has relatively fewer provisions for the elderly. The government expects families to take responsibility for caring their elderly relatives, partly because of cultural values. The White Paper also covered child support grants and refrained from stereotyping concerning the gender roles in a family. For instance, the White Paper did not specifically refer to the male in a household as the "breadwinner". Racial disparities in the cities of South Africa still exist, despite the country's having long since ended apartheid. Many black South Africans still struggle to obtain basic needs such as housing, living in under-maintained townships, while many urban white South Africans reside in gated communities with a heavy presence of private security. The Sowetan Live has recently reported that "...indeed the city has contributed to" building "4,000 social homes in 11 districts" with more than 350,000 residents still in need of immediate housing relief.

Health

The Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital, Soweto

South Africa has a plethora of infectious disease cases. Malaria is major cause of death because of a lack of resources to treat patients. Additionally, the water is dirty with human and industrial waste which contributes to the spread of disease. Many deaths are caused by poverty rather than a lack of cures for a disease. Poverty is a major reason for death because poor families are not able to afford proper health services and hospitals are not able to buy enough supplies. Additionally, people living in South Africa who are illegal immigrants lack resources for health care that is non-emergency. For example, many of the people living in the

Hillbrow Hillbrow () is an inner city residential neighbourhood of Johannesburg, Gauteng Province, South Africa. It is known for its high levels of population density, unemployment, poverty, prostitution and crime. In the 1970s it was an Apartheid-design ...

Health Precinct are not legal and have poor health resources. Specifically, some hospital buildings were built before World War II. Furthermore, the Hillbrow community has high rates of Sexually Transmitted Diseases. East Rand Hospital

HIV/AIDS

South Africa has the largest number of people living with HIV/AIDS in the world, 7.5 million as of 2021. It was first detected in 1982. The disease was first detected in homosexuals, but it rapidly spread to heterosexuals. Because of the rapid spread, the government tried to step in and help. However, South Africa was in the last years of apartheid during the time when HIV/AIDS was becoming an epidemic. Thus, the South African government had great difficulty mitigating the effect of the epidemic. For instance, because of the desegregation of schools and the controversy surrounding that, the government did not focus on providing quality sex education that specifically focused on HIV/AIDS. Additionally, the local and federal governments had disagreements about the allocation of funds for HIV/AIDS prevention, thus causing inefficiency and gridlock. Also, some of the money allocated to HIV/AIDS prevention was misused. For example, a musical called ''Sarafina II'' was projected to increase awareness about AIDS and AIDS prevention. However, the play was not clear and did not significantly help with sex education. Much of the HIV/AIDS treatment and progress have been funded by non-profit organizations such as

WHO Who or WHO may refer to: * Who (pronoun), an interrogative or relative pronoun * Who?, one of the Five Ws in journalism * World Health Organization Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Who, a creature in the Dr. Seuss book '' Horton He ...

and

UNAIDS The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) (, ONUSIDA) is the main advocate for accelerated, comprehensive and coordinated global action on the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The mission of UNAIDS is to lead, strengthen and support an ...

Possible causes

There are multiple theories about the causes for the HIV/AIDS epidemic in South Africa. Some theorize that migrant workers were a source of the proliferation of the disease. The migrant workers usually would not see their wives and families for months, so they had extramarital sexual intercourse in the cities. Then, later during the holidays, husbands would return home and unknowingly infect their wives with the disease. Another theory is that the culture makes South Africa more vulnerable to the epidemic. For example, male circumcision at birth reduces the risk of the child getting HIV/AIDS. However, many South Africans do not do this procedure because it is not traditional to do circumcision at birth. Additionally, a lack of quality healthcare can exacerbate the epidemic. There is quite a disparity between public and private healthcare. Overall, public hospitals provide worse care than private hospitals do. Public hospitals are generally overcrowded and understaffed. In fact, 82% of South Africans are cared for by 27% of South Africa's general physicians. The difference in these percentages is caused by general physicians moving to the private healthcare sector and by brain drain. Brain drain is when professionals emigrate from their home country to work elsewhere. Also, the disparity is caused by the fact that private hospitals have more resources and funds than public hospitals do because of the higher fees at private hospitals.

Deportation of foreigners

The South African government has been criticised by

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization, headquartered in New York City, that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. The group pressures governments, policy makers, companies, and individual human r ...

for deporting hundreds of thousands of Zimbabwean refugees and treating victims of political violence as

economic migrant An economic migrant is someone who emigrates from one region to another, including crossing international borders, seeking an improved standard of living, because the conditions or job opportunities in the migrant's own region are insufficient. Th ...

s. By sending refugees back to persecution,

has asserted that South Africa is violating the

refugee convention The Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, also known as the 1951 Refugee Convention or the Geneva Convention of 28 July 1951, is a United Nations multilateral treaty that defines who a refugee is, and sets out the rights of individuals ...

and international law. On 17 September 2020,

published a 64-page report detailing the widespread xenophobic violence in

. The report also contained video footage and witness testimony. Despite the March 2019 adoption of a government action plan to combat

xenophobia Xenophobia () is the fear or dislike of anything which is perceived as being foreign or strange. It is an expression of perceived conflict between an in-group and out-group and may manifest in suspicion by the one of the other's activities, a ...

, African and Asian foreigners in the country suffer routine harassment and abuse.

Sexual and LGBT rights

Sexism

South Africa has had some issues concerning gender inequality in court cases. A prominent example is that of Jacob Zuma's Rape Trial in 2006. "Khwezi, a female AIDS activist, brought Zuma to court for raping her. As his defense, Zuma claimed that he could "have liaisons with women" quite easily, so he asserted that he would not have raped Khwezi. Zuma also used Zulu culture as support for his defense. Some of Zuma's supporters gathered outside of the courthouse and burned photographs of Khewzi and yelled phrases like "Burn the Bitch. " These actions caused gender activists to protest against sexism and to raise concern about the fact that the judge allowed the court to admit evidence about Khwezi's sexual history, but did not admit evidence from Zuma's sexual history. Many people felt that Zuma went against the modern South African liberal democracy because he represented patriarchy at a relative extreme.

Rape

in 2018/19, South African police recorded 41,583 rapes, though experts have warned that it is difficult to assess how many more cases have not been reported. A 2009 survey found one in four South African men admitted to raping someone and another survey found one in three women out of 4000 surveyed women said they had been raped in the past year. Rapes are also perpetrated by children (some as young as ten). Child and baby rape incidences are some of the highest in the world. A number of high-profile baby rapes that included extensive reconstructive surgery to rebuild urinary, genital, abdominal, or tracheal systems have appeared.

Same-sex marriage

The Civil Union Act 17 of 2006 legalized same-sex marriage in South Africa. It was a direct response to the '' Minister of Home Affairs v Fourie'' case, where the

Constitutional Court A constitutional court is a high court that deals primarily with constitutional law. Its main authority is to rule on whether laws that are challenged are in fact unconstitutional, i.e. whether they conflict with constitutionally established ...

declared the lack of legal recognition of same-sex relationships unconstitutional and gave Parliament a year to remedy the situation. South Africa's post-apartheid constitution was the first in the world to outlaw discrimination based on

sexual orientation Sexual orientation is an enduring pattern of romantic or sexual attraction (or a combination of these) to persons of the opposite sex or gender, the same sex or gender, or to both sexes or more than one gender. These attractions are generall ...

. South Africa was the first country in Africa, and the fifth in the world, to legalise same-sex marriage.

Intersex rights

Intersex Intersex people are individuals born with any of several sex characteristics including chromosome patterns, gonads, or genitals that, according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, "do not fit typical bin ...

people in

have some of the same rights as other people, but with significant gaps in protection from non-consensual cosmetic medical interventions and protection from discrimination. The country was the first to explicitly include intersex people in anti-discrimination law.

Labour rights

Legal

South Africa has implicit and explicit labour regulations. Its implicit labour regulations are stated in the Constitution and set the boundaries for explicit regulations. Explicit regulations are set by employers and are specific to each job. On the other hand, implicit regulations are the Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995, the Basic Conditions of Employment Act 75 of 1997, the New Employment Equity Act 55 of 1998, and the Skills Development Act 97 of 1998—each with subsequent amendments. The Labour Relations Act 66 allows workers to create unions and collectively bargain. Over the years, the number of unions in South Africa have declined. Also, there are fewer federation-associated trade unions and more independent trade unions in South Africa today. The Basic Conditions of Employment Act 75 has regulations concerning working hours, leave, and termination. The New Employment Equity Act 55 was created to lessen discrimination. It also provides parameters for affirmative action. The Skills Development Act 97 promotes worker productivity and competitiveness in the market.

Unions

South Africa has some labour related issues. One aspect is the formation of unions. In fact, 22% of South African workers are union members. In 2012, the Marikana Massacre occurred. The Marikana Massacre was the killing of 44 platinum miners who were on strike to earn increased wages. 78 people were wounded and 259 were arrested. One reason for this brutality was that the strike was not protected. Additionally, poorly paid farm workers have been striking. One example is of the Western Cape Farm worker strike in which the workers were mostly female. The strike resulted in 3 deaths, but the workers got a 52% increase in pay. This strike was also unprotected. There was another platinum mining strike in 2014, but it differed from the 2012 platinum mining strike because it was protected. The protection prevented police brutality. In fact, this strike lasted for five months. Consequently, the world's platinum production decreased by 40% because of the lack of labour. The worker's wages did increase as a result but, the workers also suffered losses because of the "no work, no pay" policy in South Africa. Workers who strike are generally strongly motivated, even with protected strikes, because there is much risk of loss.

Foreign

The union membership rate in South Africa is one of the highest in the world. Furthermore, the risk of union conflict is a deterrent for foreign companies. South Africa is receptive to foreign companies because they create jobs. The unemployment rate in South Africa is approximately 30%. The government encourages foreign and disadvantaged domestic company partnership by giving benefits to foreign companies. Also, the South African government requires that businesses with government contracts donate to social programs. Also, South Africa has high numbers of migrant workers from rural areas throughout Africa, which gives foreign companies a large labour force to choose from.

Historical situation

The following chart shows South Africa's ratings since 1972 in the

Freedom in the World ''Freedom in the World'' is a yearly survey and report by the U.S.-based non-governmental organization Freedom House that measures the degree of civil liberties and political rights in every nation and significant related and disputed territori ...

reports, published annually by Freedom House. A rating of 1 is "free"; 7, "not free".

International treaties

South Africa's stances on international human rights treaties are as follows:

Notes

:1.Note that the "Year" signifies the "Year covered". Therefore the information for the year marked 2008 is from the report published in 2009, and so on. :2.As of 1 January. Until 1994 the Head of Government was the

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

. From 1984 to 1994 it was the State President, and since then has been the

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

. :3.The 1982 report covers the year 1981 and the first half of 1982, and the following 1984 report covers the second half of 1982 and the whole of 1983. In the interest of simplicity, these two aberrant "year and a half" reports have been split into three-year-long reports through extrapolation.

References

External links

2012 Annual Report
by Amnesty International
Freedom in the World 2011 Report
by Freedom House
World Report 2012
by

International Human Rights Administration
{{DEFAULTSORT:Human Rights In South Africa

Politics of South Africa