Zuko Komisa
- South Africa’s government has criticised a US human rights report as “inaccurate and deeply flawed.”
- The ministry argued the report used misleading information and failed to acknowledge legal processes.
- The statement contrasted the US findings with a UN report that praised South Africa’s land reform.
South Africa’s Ministry of International Relations and Cooperation has expressed its “profound disappointment” with a recent human rights report on the country, calling it inaccurate and deeply flawed.
The report, published by the U.S. State Department, has been criticised for relying on “a-contextual information and discredited accounts.”
The ministry highlighted several key concerns, including the report’s handling of a case involving the deaths of farm workers. South Africa’s government argues that the report misleadingly presented the incident as an “extrajudicial killing,” despite the matter being actively adjudicated by the country’s independent judiciary.
The statement also condemned the report’s lack of acknowledgement for the robust processes in place to investigate police use of force.
In a strong rebuttal, South Africa’s government pointed to the U.S. having exited the UN Human Rights Council and questioned its credibility in producing what it called “one side fact-free reports without any due process or engagement.”
The ministry also highlighted documented human rights concerns within the United States, such as the treatment of refugees.
The statement drew a contrast between the U.S. report and a recent assessment from the United Nations Human Rights Office in Geneva.
The UN praised South Africa’s new Land Expropriation Act, describing it as a “critical step in addressing the country’s racially imbalanced land ownership.”
To provide a more accurate picture, the ministry has committed to releasing a set of documents for public review later this week.
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