Welcome to the Free SA Press Centre, your go-to hub for all media-related resources. Here, journalists, reporters, and media professionals can access our latest statements, press releases, and official commentary on key issues affecting South Africa. Whether you need background information, expert opinions, or media contacts, our Press Centre ensures you stay informed with accurate, timely updates.
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The Foundation for Rights of Expression and Equality (Free SA) has launched a national campaign calling on South Africans to speak out against the draft regulations under the Prevention and Combating of Hate Crimes and Hate Speech Act, 2023. The Department of Justice and Constitutional Development is currently accepting public
The Foundation for Rights of Expression and Equality, Free SA, has issued a strong caution against the National Minimum Wage Commission’s proposed wage hike for 2026, calling it a “policy of exclusion” that risks deepening South Africa’s already catastrophic unemployment crisis. In its submission, authored by Free SA Director Paul
Free SA has launched a national campaign calling for the full repeal of South Africa’s Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) Act and related legislation, following government’s announcement that it will merely “review” the existing system. The campaign follows recent comments by Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, Parks Tau, signalling
Civil rights organisation Free SA will tomorrow formally submit its opposition to the proposed Business Licensing Bill, 2025, calling for the immediate withdrawal of the legislation in its current form. In its upcoming submission, which has to date been signed by more than 280 members of the public, to the
Free SA has launched a national campaign opposing the proposed Business Licensing Bill of 2025, which seeks to centralise and control who can do business in South Africa, how they may operate, and where they are allowed to trade. The civil rights organisation has called the Bill a dangerous move
Free SA warns that the recent decline in South Africa’s official unemployment rate to 31.9% in Q3 2025 masks a dangerously unequal and unsustainable economic reality. Behind the headline figures, provinces like the Eastern Cape remain trapped in deepening joblessness, while nearly half of South Africa’s working-age population is underutilised,
Civil society organisation Free SA has submitted formal comments to the Ministry of Police, urging government to ensure that any amendments to the Firearms Control Act are preceded by transparent and inclusive consultation with all affected stakeholders. The submission follows growing concerns over the lack of formal engagement with groups
Free SA is sounding the alarm on a deeply troubling development buried within the Draft Electoral Laws Amendment Bill: the proposed establishment of a Polling Ombud with sweeping powers to censor political information in the run-up to elections. This proposal represents a direct assault on South Africa’s democratic values of
Civil rights organisation Free SA is calling for a legislative sunset clause on Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE), arguing that South Africa’s current empowerment framework is outdated, constitutionally tenuous, and economically harmful. Free SA has launched a national campaign urging Parliament to review and time-limit all BEE-related legislation, ensuring any
The Foundation for Rights of Expression and Equality (Free SA) urges all South Africans to seize the rare and critical opportunity to participate in Parliament’s Ad Hoc Committee inquiry into the damning allegations made by Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi. Lt Gen Mkhwanazi’s testimony on 6 July 2025 laid bare a
The Foundation for Rights of Expression and Equality (Free SA) today denounced the South African government’s exclusion of firearms stakeholders from ongoing legislative discussions surrounding the Draft Firearms Control Amendment Bill. In a country already burdened by rampant crime, policy-making behind closed doors will only deepen mistrust and further alienate
Civil rights organisation Free SA has launched a nationwide campaign opposing the newly implemented Employment Equity (EE) targets, which the organisation warns amount to unconstitutional racial quotas. The regulations apply to all companies with more than 50 employees and will enforce race-based targets across skilled, professional, and management levels over
Free SA strongly opposes the Department of Basic Education’s proposed BELA Regulations, which it says represent a “deeply undemocratic power grab” threatening parental rights and school autonomy. The draft regulations – ostensibly framed to standardise school governance – grant disproportionate powers to provincial Heads of Department (HoDs), enabling them to
Free SA strongly rejects the so-called “National Dialogue” spearheaded by President Cyril Ramaphosa’s administration as a performative and exclusionary exercise. Despite its promises of unity, this project is neither national nor a dialogue, and has exposed and probably worsened the gaping divide between the state and its citizens. Instead of
Free SA has warned that South Africa’s Q2 2025 year-on-year employment growth of just 0.3% should not be celebrated. Given that this does not even match population growth, 0.3% is essentially an economy in reverse, meaning unemployment is effectively worsening in real terms. All is not lost, however. Free SA
The Foundation for Rights of Expression and Equality (Free SA) today announced a nationwide mobilisation to halt the Public Service Insourcing Bill (B19-2025). The draft legislation, now before Parliament, would compel every organ of state to absorb a wide range of functions in-house, including security, cleaning, information technology, transport, auditing,
Free SA has launched a bold public campaign asking the question many South Africans are quietly contemplating: Do we still trust commissions of inquiry? The question comes in the wake of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s recent announcement of a commission of inquiry into allegations of corruption involving Police Minister Senzo Mchunu.
Free SA calls for the urgent establishment of an independent judicial commission of inquiry following explosive allegations made by KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi. These claims implicate senior political leaders, including the Minister of Police, Senzo Mchunu, in deliberately sabotaging investigations into politically motivated murders. Mkhwanazi revealed evidence of
Free SA has made a formal submission to Parliament expressing its strong opposition to the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) Amendment Bill [B 26—2018], warning that the proposed nationalisation of the central bank threatens the country’s economic stability, institutional independence, and international credibility. The Bill, introduced by MP Julius Malema,
The Foundation for Rights of Expression and Equality (Free SA) has welcomed the Department of Basic Education’s newly published BELA implementation guidelines, which rightfully affirm the power of school governing bodies (SGBs) to determine their own language and admissions policies within a constitutional framework. Free SA strongly supports efforts that
Free SA proudly announces the winners of the 2025 Young Leaders Awards, honouring extraordinary young South Africans whose efforts are driving positive change in their communities and across the nation. Each category winner takes home a R7,500 prize in recognition of their outstanding contributions. These young changemakers exemplify courage, innovation,
Cape Town – Free SA today welcomes the Department of Basic Education’s newly issued Guidelines for the Implementation of the 2024 Amendments to the South African Schools Act. Just in time for Youth Day, these guidelines reflect a meaningful and commendable effort by Minister Siviwe Gwarube and her team to
The Foundation for Rights of Expression and Equality (Free SA) expressed deep concern over the latest labour market figures released by Statistics South Africa, which show that the official unemployment rate has returned to 32.9% in the first quarter of 2025, with the total unemployed exactly where it was a
Free SA has drafted its proposed Power to the People Constitutional Amendment Bill which is to be submitted to Parliament at the end of May. This is in response to Parliament’s call for proposed amendments to be submitted until 31 May 2025. Free SA is calling on all South Africans
“While politicians celebrate Workers’ Day with slogans, we at Free SA are asking a more serious question: where are the jobs?” Free SA spokesperson Reuben Coetzer. As South Africa marks Workers’ Day on 1 May, Free SA stands not with the elites in regalia or the podiums heavy with empty
As South Africa commemorates Freedom Day this Sunday, Free SA urges the public to reflect not only on the progress made since 1994—but also on the freedoms we are now at risk of losing. While this day honours our hard-won democracy, civil liberties, and human rights, the reality in 2025
Free SA has submitted a formal appeal to the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies to end the South African Post Office’s (SAPO) monopoly over reserved postal services, labelling the current model as “outdated, dysfunctional, and economically unjustifiable.” The submission comes amid mounting evidence that SAPO is unable to fulfil its universal
The civil rights organisation and public participation platform Free SA has issued a strong warning against proposed amendments to the Firearms Regulations under the Private Security Industry Regulation Act, calling the draft regulations “vague, unworkable, and a serious threat to public safety.” The organisation, which facilitates public participation in policymaking,
Free SA is proud to announce that public voting has officially opened for the inaugural Young Leaders Awards, a landmark initiative aimed at recognising and uplifting South Africa’s most inspiring young trailblazers. These awards honour exceptional young South Africans under the age of 35 who are making transformative contributions across
That this budget was passed without the consensus of all coalition partners, reveals a worrying disregard for democratic collaboration and public accountability. The Foundation for Rights of Expression and Equality (Free SA) expressed deep concern over the regressive fiscal measures introduced in South Africa’s 2025 Budget, particularly the increase in
Civil society has claimed a significant victory for public participation and democratic accountability after the Minister of Health, Dr. Aaron Motsoaledi, announced the withdrawal of contentious regulations banning the sale, importation, and manufacture of food products containing hemp and cannabis. The reversal comes in the wake of mounting pressure from
As South Africa prepares to commemorate Human Rights Day, Free SA is calling for urgent action to uphold non-racialism as a foundational principle of the Constitution, rather than allowing it to be reduced to mere rhetoric. In its latest report, Non-Racialism: Empty Filler or Constitutional Cornerstone?, Free SA highlights how racial
The Foundation for Rights of Expression and Equality (Free SA) has taken legal action against the Minister of Employment and Labour, Hon. Nomakhosazana Meth, demanding the immediate withdrawal of the unlawful 4.2% increase in the National Minimum Wage (NMW). The wage hike, gazetted on 4 February 2025, was implemented without
Free SA has officially delivered a proposal to His Excellency, the President of the Republic of South Africa, calling for a significant reduction of the country’s bloated cabinet from 77 to just 26 executive members. The current cabinet structure—one of the largest and most expensive in the world—costs taxpayers over
Civil rights organisation Free SA has formally demanded answers from the Minister of Health, Dr. Aaron Motsoaledi, regarding the recently published Regulations Relating to the Prohibition of the Sale, Importation and Manufacture of Foodstuffs Containing Any Part of the Plant or Component Derived from the Genus Cannabis Sativa L, Hemp, Hemp Seed Oil
“If the Minister fails to act, Free SA will take legal action to challenge the decision and hold the government accountable.” — Reuben Coetzer, Spokesperson for Free SA Free SA has sent a formal letter of demand to the Minister of Employment and Labour, Nomakhosazana Meth, calling for the immediate
Free SA welcomes the decision to postpone the national budget speech amid fierce opposition to a proposed VAT hike. This moment marks a critical shift in South African politics—proof that Parliament is no longer a rubber stamp for bad policies and that reckless tax increases will no longer be pushed
South Africa’s latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) for Q4 2024 shows a marginal decline in unemployment, with 132,000 more people employed and 20,000 fewer unemployed, bringing the official unemployment rate down from 32.1% to 31.9%. While Free SA welcomes any progress in tackling unemployment, this slight improvement does not
The Foundation for Rights of Expression and Equality (Free SA) has registered its concerns regarding the proposed National State Enterprises Bill, which it suggests will usher in ‘state capture 2.0’. The organisation has submitted a detailed parliamentary submission (see attached) outlining the risks contained in the Bill as part of
As South Africa once again finds itself entangled in the fallout of global political disputes—this time amid tensions involving US President Donald Trump, the ANC-led government, and lobby groups, the Foundation for Rights of Expression and Equality (Free SA) is urging the Government of National Unity (GNU) to abandon its
President Cyril Ramaphosa’s 2025 State of the Nation Address (SONA) has once again reinforced a troubling reality: government is committed to repeating the same failed policies while ignoring the structural reforms necessary to rescue South Africa from economic stagnation, governance failures, and declining public trust. No Real Commitment to Local
Free SA, the Foundation for the Rights of Expression and Equality, has written to President Cyril Ramaphosa today to urge him to repeal this harmful legislation. This follows their recent condemnation of President Ramaphosa for signing the Expropriation Act into law. In the wake of the assent of this troublesome piece
The Foundation for Rights of Expression and Equality (Free SA), a non-profit organisation dedicated to upholding democratic principles and promoting civic engagement in legislative issues, has written a letter to the Minister of Basic Education, Siviwe Gwarube, to raise serious concerns about the harms posed by the Basic Education Laws
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