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The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC or Commission) and Freedom Park have formally recorded a collaborative agreement which will see both bodies strengthen a rights-based approach to human rights and social cohesion in the work and ethos of both organisations.

Freedom Park, which has been mandated by Government to provide a pioneering and empowering heritage destination in order to mobilise for reconciliation and nation building in our country, will be working closely with the SAHRC to strengthen responses to challenges facing social cohesion in respect of the observance of basic human rights amoung diffent groups. The bodies intend to maximise respect for human rights through mutual collaboration whereby they collaborate on events to be held during Human Rights month; and collaborate in the conduct of specific dialogues, seminars pertaining to human rights, social cohesion and nation building.

The SAHRC released its 2016/2017 Annual Trends Analysis Report on 10th December 2018 which documents trends in complaints brought to the Commission. The complaints trends across all provinces in the country indicate that status inequality, race-based discimination and hate speech continue to be among the highest complaints received by the Commission. The prevalance of these challenges, by their very nature, impacts on the country’s social cohesion and nation building project, and highlight a need to explore alternative ways of responding to the increasing lack of social cohesion in the country – particularly along racial lines.

Thus, to enhance and facilitate efficient and effective collaboration between the Commission and government, which is not only at the coalface of building a united South Africa, but is also constitutionally bound to eradicate systematic social and economic inequalities which were generated by our history of colonialism, apartheid and patriachy, the SAHRC and Freedom Park today [24 May 2019] entered into a formal agreement in the form of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The MoU will see the implementation of a series of joint actions which focuses on social cohesion, nation building and transformation of society.

The combined SAHRC/Freedom Park effort is in recognition by both institutions of the need to join resources and respond more appropriately to racialised social cohesion challenges facing our country. The MoA is thus anchored on the belief that through collective action, the ultimate goal of tranforming society, to which South Africa has committed itself to, will become a reality.

It is not by chance that the signing of the MOU coincided with the commemmoration of Africa Day, which is itself recognition of a shift on the African continent towards an era of universal human rights for all African – based on principles of equality and unity. The SAHRC has every expectation that this collaboration will be a value-add, will contribute meaningfully to social cohesion in the country, and greatly benefit communities in line with the values of the Constitution.

Issued by the South African Human Rights Commission