Human Rights and Health
The Legacy of Apartheid
January 1998Read the report (pdf)
Human Rights and Health was prepared at the request of the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission and shows how, during the apartheid period, the leadership of the health sector in South Africa subordinated ethical and human rights obligations to the racist practices and political repression of the state. To protect and promote human rights in the health sector, the report recommends an overhaul of codes of professional conduct to incorporate human rights standards, a reform of professional societies and education, and the monitoring of human rights in health.