Programme News
4 April 2005
(Press release)
In a letter to the Minister of Home Affairs yesterday Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) demanded the release by 16:00h today of some 20 asylum seekers and refugees who are being detained at the Lindela Repatriation Centre.
Lawyers for Human Rights has successfully secured the release of some 20 asylum seekers and refugees who were in detention at the Lindela Repatriation Centre.
In a letter to...
3 November 2004
(News)
Refugee horror exposed Hearing told of death, torture and sodomy By Jonathan Ancer and Shaun Smillie They come here seeking a better life, but many of them end up beaten, detained - or in a mortuary. At a hearing into xenophobia yesterday, Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) accused the government of not living up to its international obligations to protect foreigners...
8 September 2004
(Press release)
An urgent application will be brought before the Pretoria High Court today by the Centre for Child Law and the court-appointed curator ad litem for 13 unaccompanied foreign children. The main purpose of the application is get a court order to force the Department of Social Development’s bring the children, presently detained in Dyambo Youth Centre, before the Krugersdorp Children’s Court in order...
13 August 2004
(Press release)
The protection and care of unaccompanied foreign children came under the spotlight today in the Pretoria High Court. In a precedent-setting judgment, Judge Annemarie de Vos castigated the “apathy” of government officials who had failed to act in accordance with South Africa’s Constitution, statutory law and their own stated policy and were also in breach of international law.
The judgment...
22 April 2003
(Press release)
In the matter of Lawyers for Human Rights and Others v Minister of Home Affairs and others, LHR acting in the public interest, won an important legal victory today in the Pretoria High Court in which Judge Ben du Plessis declared core aspects of the new Immigration Act concerning the arrest and detention of foreigners unconstitutional. The judgment is a milestone in that it confirms and protects...
25 March 2002
(Press release)
Lawyers for Human Rights won a landmark case against the Department of Home Affairs and the Airports Company of South Africa (ACSA) yesterday. LHR approached the court yesterday in an attempt to prevent the Australian authorities from deporting a political asylum seeker from Australia via South Africa to a country where he fears persecution and torture and to allow its client to apply for asylum...
10 August 2001
(Press release)
Following the controversial debate surrounding reparations, the Geneva preparatory meeting of the UN World Conference Against Racism has recently decided to remove all reference to the 1951 Refugee Convention from the conference’s program of action, undermining its responsibility to fight the scourge of racism, xenophobia and related intolerances in the world. Lawyers for Human Rights joins Human...
23 April 2001
(News)
HUMAN rights lawyers are threatening legal action against the home affairs department for ordering border posts to turn back asylum-seekers and refugees arriving through neighbouring states.The lawyers claim the directive contravenes the Refugee Act, and that the department is preparing amendments to the law to make its actions legal. They accuse the government of putting at risk the lives of...
18 May 1999
(News)
At the end of May 1999, the Security of Farm Workers Project launched a booklet called "Die Okkupeerder: A resource book for eviction cases". The book was inspired from the work that the Project does and, in particular our daily interaction with the many service providers, advice office workers, para-legals and trade unions that assist people who are threatened with eviction. Download...