These people, many of them living on flood-prone land, are routinely left to cope on their own especially during severe weather conditions, despite the fact that the main responsibility for preparing for and responding to these disasters lies with the government.

Amnesty International South Africa’s new report Flooded and Forgotten: Informal Settlements and the Right to Housing in South Africa examines the incidence and impact of floods, both large scale and seasonal caused by heavy rain, on residents of informal settlements and underserved areas in South Africa, particularly in Johannesburg, eThekwini, and Cape Town.

“Informal settlements in South Africa along with other underserved areas like temporary relocation areas, are a sore reminder of the racial injustice and disenfranchisement that were hallmarks of the colonial and apartheid regimes preceding 1994. However, this does not mean that we must ignore the fact that the ongoing housing crisis and the failure of successive governments to guarantee the right to access to adequate housing among other human rights,” Amnesty International South Africa Executive Director Shenilla Mohamed said.

“The government is failing the millions of people trapped in these underserved areas, especially in a time when economic hardships and poverty are rife. People live in informal settlements because there is a lack of affordable and accessible formal housing and sometimes because they are the only affordable means of living close to work or work opportunities. Article 10 of South Africa’s Constitution, which is part of the Bill of Rights is clear that everyone has inherent dignity and the right to have their dignity respected and protected, no matter who they are.”

More government action urgently needed to deal with increased risk of flooding

The recent floods in June 2025 in the Eastern Cape province, which caused the death of over 100 people and washed away the homes of thousands of people, was a stark reminder that urgent and long-term action by the government is needed. While South Africa’s Disaster Management Act and National Disaster Management Framework aim to reduce the risk of disaster, there is ample evidence that not enough is being done towards this end.

Based on the experiences of people living in informal settlements documented in Amnesty International’s report, interviews with experts and practitioners in the field and a review of reports, laws and policies, evidence shows that South Africa’s response to flooding disasters – whether major or seasonal– is patchy and piecemeal, with not enough done to prepare for such events.

For example, people displaced by KwaZulu-Natal floods in 2022 are still in temporary emergency accommodation in poor conditions nearly three years later, indicating a lack of preparedness for recovery efforts. Some of those displaced died after they were relocated to an area that was severely flooded in 2025, highlighting a serious failure to ensure that flood victims are relocated to safety. In the case of seasonal flooding, the support and assistance that many residents of informal settlements experience is alarmingly poor or absent, Amnesty International said.

Although the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Human Settlements, in their response to Amnesty International, dated 30 October 2025, asserted that “informal settlements are not planned settlements and inherently their establishment would not be preceded by the availability of basic services”, South Africa remains bound by constitutional and international obligations to provide essential services to all residents, including those living in informal settlements.

“The reality, as documented in Amnesty International’s report, is that millions of South Africans living in informal settlements are deprived of these rights due to central government neglect, under-resourced municipalities, and poor urban governance, not simply because their settlements are unplanned,” Mohamed said.

“The lack of access to adequate, well-located affordable housing in South Africa has also led to the growth of informal settlements in floodplains and low-lying areas which means that people living there are increasingly impacted by flooding.”

The climate crisis is making the situation far worse

Human-induced climate change has also exacerbated the risks of flooding, already a seasonal problem in South Africa’s informal settlements and underserved areas. As elsewhere in the world, this means that people who have contributed the least to climate change due to their low consumption patterns and are least able to cope with flooding are the worst affected by the impacts of climate change.

One of the main concerns expressed to Amnesty International in all three metropolitan areas was that the regular seasonal flooding of informal settlements and underserved areas was rarely seen as warranting a disaster response by the municipalities. The residents were simply left to fend for themselves and rely on charitable organisations.

A woman from Freedom Park in Johannesburg said: “We have no help from anyone, we have to stay and fix it, we can’t run away… where will we go?”

South Africa must meet its human rights obligations

South Africa has a plethora of laws and policies on issues around access to housing, provision of essential services such as water and sanitation, upgrading of informal settlements, a healthy environment, and preparing for and responding to disasters. It is also a state party to all the major international and regional human rights instruments including the UN International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights which guarantees the rights to access adequate housing, water and sanitation.

“Despite South Africa having strong legislation and policy and clear international commitments as with so many other things in this country, implementation remains the issue. The reality points to obvious failures of the government to adequately and thoroughly realise these obligations and this comes at a huge cost to the human rights, lives and livelihoods of millions of people,” Mohamed said.

The South African government must provide access to adequate housing for people living in the country and commit to upgrading informal settlements with access to essential services in a manner that complies with human rights law and standards, including through budgetary and policy commitments, according to Amnesty International.

It must also mobilise all the necessary human, financial and technical resources to ensure that disaster risk reduction is fully integrated into urban planning processes and these are implemented with a view to protecting residents of informal settlements from disasters, climate change related or otherwise, and protecting their human rights.

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This is according to Amnesty International South Africa’s Executive Director Shenilla Mohamed, who said that anything less than a thorough investigation “is a blatant disregard for ensuring the protection of everyone’s rights to safety and life in South Africa. This cannot be just another inquiry that leads to no justice or accountability.”

In addition to investigating the allegations, the Commission will report on the effectiveness or failure of existing oversight mechanisms, and the adequacy of current legislation, policies and institutional arrangements in preventing infiltration of law enforcement agencies.

Taking into consideration the nature of the allegations and evidence uncovered, the Commission will have the power to refer matters for immediate criminal investigations and prosecutions. The Commission itself, however, is not a criminal proceeding and action will need to be taken by law enforcement agencies to ensure accountability.

“People in South Africa are tired of costly commissions that are long drawn out and lead to no accountability. The mere fact that another commission is being established is an indictment of our justice system and state institutions. We need to see concrete and enforceable action to fight crime and not more processes that delay justice. President Ramaphosa has an opportunity, and the power, to tackle corruption within the state quickly and decisively. Failure to do so has a massive impact on the rights of the people who live in South Africa”, Mohamed said.

The cost of a failing criminal justice system

Amnesty International South Africa said it has documented many instances of the failure of the criminal justice system to deliver justice for victims and survivors of crime. Fikile Ntshangase was an environmental activist and human rights defender who was silenced with six bullets five years ago. There have still been no arrests for her murder. Lindokuhle Mnguni and Nokuthula Mabaso were activists and human rights defenders part of the Abahlali baseMjondolo movement who were killed in 2022, and there has still been no accountability for their deaths.

“We are seeing a decline in the ability of the South African Police Service (SAPS) to resolve murders, and clear failures in their ability to respond to and investigate crimes. While the commission of inquiry is underway, the President must ensure the proper management of law enforcement agencies and ensure that crime does not worsen over this period,” Mohamed said.

There is already a widespread lack of trust in the police. Research by the Human Sciences Research Council shows that public confidence in the SAPS is generally low, dipping after key moments of intense violence and brutality, like the Marikana massacre and the unrest in July 2021. An Afrobarometer survey also showed that only 26% of people surveyed had “somewhat” or “a lot” of trust in police. The lack of trust in the police contributes to an environment of impunity, impacting people’s willingness to report crimes and on trust in the rule of law, Amnesty International said.

“We remind SAPS of the governing principles for national security provided in the South African Constitution, that ‘National security must reflect the resolve of South Africans, as individuals and as a nation, to live as equals, to live in peace and harmony, to be free from fear and want and to seek a better life’. We reiterate our call for the protection of whistleblowers during the Commission’s proceedings,” Amnesty International said.

Explosive allegations

On 6 July 2025, Provincial Commissioner Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi held a press conference where he publicly accused the Minister of Police, members of SAPS, the judiciary, and high level politicians of colluding with criminal syndicates. Mkhwanazi accused the Minister of Police, Senzo Mchunu, of interfering in investigations and disbanding the political task team on political killings for ulterior motives.

Ramaphosa subsequently established a Commission of Inquiry headed by Acting Deputy Chief Justice Madlanga to investigate the allegations. The Commission of Inquiry will be required to provide interim reports within three months, and then again at the six month mark. The final report will be submitted to the President, Speaker of the National Assembly and the Chief Justice of South Africa. The Speaker of the National Assembly has also directed three portfolio committees of parliament to consider the allegations against Minister Mchunu.

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“Today marks the beginning of 16 Days of Activism against GBV. It is deeply troubling that, in a country where women remain unsafe, some still hold the belief that there are circumstances under which a woman deserves to be beaten or punished,” said Shenilla Mohamed, Executive Director of Amnesty International South Africa.

“Such attitudes are alarming in a nation where approximately 15 women are murdered daily, 172 are assaulted, and an average of 116 rapes are reported each day.”

The release of the first national GBV prevalence study, conducted by the Human Sciences Research Council shows that almost 36% of women reported experiencing physical and/or sexual violence during their lifetime. This translates to an estimated 7 847 438 women.

It was worrying to see that 10.7% of men surveyed believed that a woman should tolerate violence in order to keep her family together, and 8.3% of men believed that there are times when a woman deserves to be beaten, Amnesty International South Africa said. The majority of men, at 69.5%, believed that a woman should obey her husband, while 9.1% of women agreed with the statement that if a wife does something wrong, her husband has the right to punish her.

“It is clear that the high rates of GBV in South Africa are perpetuated by a culture of silence and ‘acceptance’. We need more people reporting crimes of GBV and calling out the toxic social and cultural norms that exist at every level of society,” Mohamed said.

“There needs to be consequences for those who perpetuate violence. This is where the broken criminal justice system has failed victims of GBV. It is because of this failing system, and more importantly the shoddy investigative work and lack of implementation of legislation, that there is little deterrent for perpetrators.”

According to the SA Police Service’s 2023/24 annual crime statistics, there were 42 569 reported cases of rape. While this is a 0.5% decrease from the previous financial year, this still equates to just over 116 cases of rape a day. Additionally, there were 7 418 cases of sexual assault. This is down 0.9% from the previous year. While there was a slight decrease in cases of reported rape and sexual assault, the numbers are still too high and this does not necessarily mean that there was less rape and sexual assault.

“We continue to see failures by the SAPS, as evident in the cases of Popi Qwabe and Bongeka Phungula. Since 2020 Amnesty International South Africa has been campaigning for justice for these two young women who were brutally murdered seven years ago. Since their murders, their families have received little to no communication on the status of the case, leaving them in the dark with no hope of justice being served,” the organisation said.

Last year, National Director of Public Prosecutions Shamila Batohi wrote to Amnesty International South Africa informing them that although the Director for Public Prosecutions in Gauteng had decided that there was insufficient evidence at this stage to proceed with prosecution, the decision had been taken to refer the matter to an inquest. The matter was referred to the Protea Magistrate’s Court for the inquest, but since then there has been no indication of when the inquest will start despite our regular follow ups.

“While society needs to do its part in fighting against toxic norms, attitudes, and gender-power relations, the state also needs to play its part. The police and the state continue to fail all who live in South Africa by not acting with the urgency and seriousness this requires. This failure to do more is violating people’s rights to safety, life and dignity,” Mohamed said.

“Enough is enough! More action is needed, and it is needed now.”

16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence is an international campaign that began in 1991 and runs every year between 25 November (International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women) and 10 December (Human Rights Day).

Join thousands of people who have signed the pledge to interrupt and end gender-based violence in South Africa now.

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The human rights organisation during a media briefing at Constitution Hill on Wednesday 7 August said its new report details the state’s failure to adequately respond to various forms of harassment, intimidation and violence, including almost complete impunity for perpetrators.

AbM is a movement of more than 150 000 people living in informal settlements in South Africa. For almost two decades, they have advocated for the right to adequate housing, an end to forced evictions, and access to education, water, electricity, sanitation, healthcare and refuse removal. They have also argued for land to be released for public housing, and organised land occupations, marches, mutual aid projects, and other activities.

AbM reports that 25 members have been killed over the past 18 years since the movement’s formation in 2005, with the first killings reported in 2009. There have only been two convictions. In one case, two suspects were released after evidence disappeared. According to AbM, some of these killings occurred during protests, police raids or evictions, while others were targeted, with killers often warning their victims that they were being targeted.

While AbM members across South Africa have been targeted, the new report, compiled over the last two years, focuses on the eKhenana informal settlement in KwaZulu-Natal because the most recent killings occurred there and because the commune’s struggles represent the risks and challenges experienced by the wider movement.

Eight AbM members from eKhenana have been killed, including three in a span of six months in 2022. Amnesty International South Africa said its investigation found that all three—Nokuthula Mabaso, Ayanda Ngila and Lindokuhle Mnguni—were either key witnesses in cases of killings of fellow AbM members or the subject of “baseless, trumped-up charges such as murder or assault”. AbM members told Amnesty International South Africa that at least five of the eight killed in eKhenana were killed due to their activism.

Sibusiso Zikode, President of the movement, told ProtectionWeb that many of the killers work for politicians who feel AbM is disrupting corrupt activities or feel threatened by AbM as it operates beyond political, and particularly ANC, oversight. Hitmen are also hired by construction mafias and tenderpreneurs as well as business mafias, he said. Some police are even working against AbM and reporting to these entities.

Zikode said the new Amnesty International report will put pressure on the state to take action, and provide international scrutiny. He is hopeful new leadership in the Government of National Unity will also take the threats to AbM more seriously, and also address related killings of chiefs, traditional leaders, and councillors.

Police complacency

In its report, Amnesty International found that death threats directed at members of the eKhenana commune and AbM’s leadership are commonplace, but all AbM interviewees told Amnesty International of a pattern of police refusing to open and conduct thorough and effective investigations, collect evidence, or make arrests following threats and attacks. The three members killed in 2022 all received threats ahead of their killing, but police did not take any measures to provide effective protection to them, according to AbM members interviewed.

While some South African Police Service (SAPS) officers have supported AbM, the movement’s members reported a general lack of trust in law enforcement, which has also led to a decline in reporting cases to police. In one case, an AbM member receiving death threats was told to come back to the police station with those making the threats.

In addition to the report, ‘Our lives count for nothing: Threats, attacks and killings of members of Abahlali baseMjondolo (shack dwellers) movement in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province’, Amnesty International South Africa on Wednesday also launched its Justice for Abahlali campaign, #HandsOffAbahlali.

The campaign calls for lawmakers to introduce new legislation to recognise and implement protection mechanisms for human rights defenders (HRDs). The campaign further calls on the SAPS to impartially, swiftly and effectively investigate threats, and attacks against human rights defenders, including the killing of AbM members with a view to bringing all those responsible to justice in fair trials.

“It is time for the South African government to publicly acknowledge—at the highest levels of local and national authorities—the threats, attacks and intimidation faced by AbM members as they carry out their important human rights work. The authorities must also ensure impartial, timely and effective investigations into all threats and attacks, hold the perpetrators accountable in fair trials and provide the necessary protection of AbM members,” said Shenilla Mohamed, Amnesty International South Africa Executive Director.  ”No individual should ever be threatened or harmed in any way, let alone killed, for standing up for human rights.”

The Amnesty International report recommends the Presidency, the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, the Ministry of Police, and the South African Human Rights Commission must it react swiftly and effectively to threats, harassment, and killings of human rights defenders; and proactively create a safe and enabling environment for them to carry out their work without fear of reprisals. “This includes publicly recognising…the legitimate work of AbM and all HRDs and the need for their protection; adopting legislation that recognises, and protects HRDs; and impartially, timeously and effectively investigating cases of threats, harassment, and killings of AbM members to ensure those responsible are brought to justice,” the report stated.

At the time of publication of the Amnesty International report, authorities – including the SA Police Service and National Prosecuting Authority – had not responded to its findings or calls for action.

The full Amnesty International report can be found here.

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