Human Rights
Victory for consumers as court rules against salary deductions
Single mother and sole breadwinner Lisinda Bailey became tearful in court after Western Cape High Court Judge Siraj Desai declared the deductions which had been made from her salary were “invalid and unlawful.”
Barbara Maregele
News | 8 July 2015
Is Operation Fiela to be extended?
Operation Fiela was instituted in May for two months in response to xenophobic violence in Kwazulu-Natal and Gauteng. The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) and the South African Police Service (SAPS) carry out its raids.
Mariska Morris
News | 7 July 2015
Mining - coming to a protected area near you
On 28 May 2015 the Traditional Healers Organisation laid criminal charges against mining company Aquila Steel SA (Pty) Ltd and three of its directors for illegally causing extensive damage to one of South Africa’s most sacred cultural sites.
Tracey Davies
Opinion | 6 July 2015
Court dismisses eviction of retired Montagu farmworker
A retired farmworker and his family who were evicted from their home on Langdam farm in Montagu last year are entitled to move back to their farmhouse, the Land Claims court in Cape Town ruled this week.
Barbara Maregele
News | 3 July 2015
Disturbing court judgment ignores our rights
On 23 June the Pretoria High Court struck from the roll an application by Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) that tried to put an urgent end to Operation Fiela. Lara Wallis explains why this is deeply concerning.
Lara Wallis
Opinion | 1 July 2015
Steel giant’s environmental records exposed
Earlier this week, the Vaal Environmental Justice Alliance formally released the long-sought Environmental Master Plan for the Vanderbijlpark Steel Works owned by international steel giant ArcelorMittal (AMSA). AMSA only handed over this Master Plan, a series of expert reports on the environmental and health impacts of the steel works compiled in 2003, in December 2014, after being ordered to do so by the Supreme Court of Appeal.
Melissa Fourie, Robyn Hugo and Nicole Löser
Opinion | 29 June 2015
Marikana Commission dodges compensation issue
What compensation should there be for the victims of the Marikana massacre? The answer given in Judge Ian Farlam's final report released by President Zuma on Thursday night differs substantially from the recommendations given by the Marikana Commission's evidence leaders.
Ashleigh Furlong and GroundUp staff
News | 26 June 2015
Court to decide if Operation Fiela is constitutional
Is Operation Fiela lawful? Judge Jan Hiemstra in the North Gauteng High Court will hear argument today from Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) that it isn’t.
GroundUp Staff
News | 23 June 2015
Army closes down Cape Town Station
On World Refugee Day this weekend, South African police, traffic officials, metro police, brand specialists, immigration officials and defence force members shut down Cape Town Station's taxi terminus as part of Operation Fiela. The four-hour operation brought commuters to a standstill as taxis were not allowed in or out on a busy Saturday morning. Dozens of foreign nationals were arrested.
Bernard Chiguvare and GroundUp Staff
News | 22 June 2015