Parliament holds first public hearings on Hate Crimes and Hate Speech bill
There’s a genocide against LGBTQI+ people in this country, and it’s critical to have legislation that will really harness the fact that these crimes are motive- and message-driven,” the deputy chair of the Hate Crimes Working Group (HCWG), Thozama Njobe, told Daily Maverick following the HCWG’s presentation to Parliament on Tuesday. The HCWG — a coalition of civil society organisations aimed at spearheading advocacy and reform initiatives pertaining to hate crimes in South Africa — was one of several organisations that briefed Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Justice and Correctional Services on the Prevention and Combating of Hate Crimes and Hate Speech Bill.