Image: SuppliedAs democracy and human rights face mounting challenges across Africa - from rising authoritarianism, shrinking civic spaces, and digital repression to persistent inequality and conflict - the University of the Western Cape (UWC) has reaffirmed its historic commitment to social justice through the 2025 Summer School for human rights defenders (HRDs).
The Summer School is hosted by UWC’s Politics and Urban Governance Research Group (PUG) through its initiative, the African Universities Hub for Human Rights (AUH).
Across the continent, countries such as Egypt, Ethiopia, Eswatini, Rwanda, Cameroon, Tanzania and Sudan illustrate the growing threats to civic freedom. Journalists are being arrested, independent media outlets shut down, activists harassed, and internet access restricted. Governments are increasingly weaponising the law to persecute those calling for accountability, democracy, and human rights, while using digital surveillance and disinformation to control narratives and silence dissent.
The Summer School brought together HRDs, including civic activists, academics, journalists, and student activists from across Africa. Together, they explored how the global political shifts are affecting democracy and human rights, shared knowledge and skills for strengthening resilience and mitigating risk and highlighted how universities can serve as sanctuaries for critical inquiry and bastions of human rights and democratic protection.
The Summer School forms part of the African Universities Hub for Human Rights’ (Africa Hub) work to protect human rights defenders. The Africa Hub also runs a protective fellowship, launched in 2024, which offers HRDs a safe space for reflection, learning and collaboration.
The AUH, a flagship initiative of PUG, functions as both an ideas lab and a bridge between academia and civil society, fostering exchange, skills development and solidarity among defenders navigating increasingly hostile environments.
Delivering the keynote address at the 2025 Summer School on the 29th of September, Deprose Muchena, the Director of the Resources Futures in Africa Programme at Open Societies Foundations (OSF), painted a sobering picture of the realities facing HRDs in the context of democratic backsliding.
“What we have experienced in the last decade or so is a phenomenon where democracy itself has produced autocrats. That huge mandate allows them to go after groups they see as standing in the way of their variant of democracy,” said Muchena.
He emphasised that human rights defenders (HRDs) needed to match the sophistication of the dictators and the political system they are fighting, in the wake of its consolidation by autocrats.
“As HRDs, we are in the phase where courage is necessary but not sufficient to confront the system that we are operating under; we also must read to understand the world we live in,” said Muchena.
His point underscored the importance of spaces such as the Summer School, which equipped HRDs with the knowledge and skills to work more effectively.
Speaking about economic factors, one of the key developments he highlighted was the danger that the extraction of critical minerals needed for the green economy posed for human rights and activists in Africa. “The extraction of those resources often leads to environmental and human rights attacks,” he said.
To confront these challenges, Muchena called upon HRDs to appreciate that their work is complex and changes may take time. “There must be an indomitable spirit in us that suggests that we can emerge victorious,” he said.
“Sometimes the bigger the crisis, the bigger the opportunity. You must work as an ecosystem that can produce tremendous results that can unlock further opportunities that can make our societies much freer.”
While the Summer School celebrated the idea of universities as safe spaces, not all participants shared that experience. A human rights defender from Eswatini, who requested anonymity for safety reasons, described a different reality.
“In Eswatini, universities are expected to be safe spaces for human rights defenders and student activists. But unfortunately, it is the complete opposite,” she said. “The king or the government appoints most university management and administrators, so they are loyal to state interests. Student activists face constant victimisation, suspensions, expulsions, and intimidation simply for raising their voices.”
She also highlighted how education policy has been weaponised to suppress dissent. “Our government has cut scholarships for courses like journalism, political science, and law, because these fields are seen as producing human rights defenders and critical voices. Students who wish to study these areas must do so without support. It’s another way to silence future defenders.”
Despite these challenges, she described the AUH Summer School as a “safe and eye-opening space” where she could connect with others facing similar struggles.
“What stands out for me,” she said, “is that across Africa, we face one big elephant in the room - the violation of human rights by our own leaders.”
UWC Rector and Vice-Chancellor, Professor Robert Balfour, in a speech presented on his behalf by the Deputy Dean of EMS Faculty, Professor Derek Yu, reflected on the pressures facing African youth and the role of higher education in defending democracy: It read: “Across Africa, young people, especially women, are the most exposed to unemployment and exclusion. When we combine economic hardship with declining trust in institutions and shrinking civic spaces, the risks faced by human rights defenders become even greater.”
Prof Balfour’s statement emphasised that universities had both a moral and academic responsibility to protect academic freedom.
“Without academic freedom, we lose the space for critical inquiry and accountability,” he noted. “Universities must remain sanctuaries for open debate and civic innovation. Repression adapts through surveillance, restrictive laws, and disinformation; universities must be ready to respond.”
Prof Balfour’s speech linked UWC’s present-day commitment to its historic roots. “Born in the struggle against apartheid, UWC has always stood for human dignity and democracy,” he said. “Today, that legacy continues through initiatives like the African Universities Hub. Supporting human rights defenders is not symbolic - it’s central to who we are.”
Prof Balfour expressed gratitude to donors, partners and the 2025 AUH fellows for their dedication to advancing human rights education across Africa. “Your presence speaks to courage and resilience,” he concluded. “Defending human rights cannot be the task of a few; it must be woven into the mission of every university on this continent.”
The Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Student Development and Support, Professor Matete Madiba, handed out certificates of participation and encouraged the human rights defenders to continue their fight for social justice.
