South African Christian News: Telling the God Stories of Africa
The surprise tabling of the contentious ‘Hate Speech Bill’ in parliament this week raises serious religious freedom concerns writes Advocate Nadene Badenhorst of Freedom of Religion SA (FOR SA) in this special report. It has come to our attention that the controversial draft Prevention and Combating of Hate Crimes […]
In a recent “open letter”, Martina Navratilova, one of the greatest tennis players of the modern era and a well-known LGBT activist, slammed former tennis great Margaret Court for her comments on same-sex marriage and an article she wrote expressing concern that a child born to a high profile lesbian […]
John Qwelane’s case is an important one for freedom of speech writes Advocate Nadene Badenhorst in this special report on the issues and implications of this high-profile hate speech hearing. After many years, the controversial case of Qwelane v Minister for Justice & Others finally came before the Johannesburg High […]
Redraft of proposed legislation good news for religious freedom Deputy Minister of Justice John Jeffrey this week conceded that the controversial Hate Speech Bill was ‘overbroad’ and should be reconsidered taking into account concerns raised by the religious sector. He was addressing religious leaders at a meeting in Cape Town […]
The Church and the Press are two fundamental pillars of civil society that stand for freedom of speech. Our recent history is a clear example of the important role that the Church and the media played in the struggle against Apartheid. In fact, at one stage the Church was the […]
It is a sad day for democracy and the fundamental right of freedom of speech and expression when the State decides to legislate what is (or is not) acceptable speech, and further prescribes criminal sanctions in the form of fines and jail time for those who may be found guilty […]
Freedom of Religion SA (FOR SA) has prepared a sample submission on the Hate Crimes and Hate Speech Bill which churches and individuals can copy or adapt and submit to government by January 31 2017 which is the deadline for submissions. With its very broad definition of hate speech, FOR […]