South Africa’s silent killer: stifling dissent and public disclosure
Public health workers face severe consequences for revealing potentially deadly corruption and maladministration.
Date: 2023-03-23
Time: 11:00 to 13:00
Venue: Online via Zoom (register to attend online) or in person, ISS Conference Room, Pretoria (register to attend in-person)
Attend via webcast
Public health workers are severely constrained in their ability to speak out about the corruption and maladministration that is driving health institutions towards collapse. Those who try to do so are faced with disciplinary action, intimidation or death.
Free speech and access to information are vital for holding governments to account. However, a new report by the Campaign for Free Expression on the limits of free speech in the public health sector uncovers how the public service regulatory framework worsens the problem.
This seminar is a partnership between the Campaign for Free Expression (CFE), the Progressive Health Forum (PHF) and the Institute for Security Studies (ISS).
Moderator: Gareth Newham, Head, Justice and Violence Prevention, ISS
Panelists:
- Prof Alex van den Heever, Chair, Social Security Systems Administration and Management Studies, Wits School of Governance, and affiliated to the PHF
- Prof Ebrahim Variava, Adjunct Professor at Wits, Internal Medicine (Johannesburg Hospital), Head of Department, Internal Medicine at Klerkdorp Tshepong Hospital, North-West, and affiliated to the PHF
- Hanifa Manda, Project Manager, Campaign for Free Expression and Young African Leaders Fellow 2021, School of Transnational Governance, European University Institute
