Uncovering Reparations: Lessons from Palestine and South Africa: A talk with Lubnah Shomali & Tshepo Madlingozi (Online)
Global discussions increasingly highlight the necessity and role of reparations to achieve accountability, redress and justice for historical injustices. If done effectively, reparations have an essential role in decolonial processes. The Ongoing Nakba of the Palestinian people and the “post-apartheid” situation of South Africa offer an opportunity to reflect on the importance of reparations and decolonization in dismantling the structures of foreign domination and systems of oppression.
For Palestinians, this involves confronting the continuation and consequences of root causes of the Ongoing Nakba: Israeli forced displacement and transfer, colonization, apartheid and genocide. For South Africans who are living a ‘post-apartheid’ reality characterised by a lack of reparations and sustainable social reconciliation, there continue to be ongoing efforts working to redress the issues around what true reconciliation and justice should look like.
Join BADIL, Makan & the South Africa Human Rights Commission for an upcoming webinar that aims to provide a space to educate participants on the ongoing Nakba and the process of dismantling apartheid and reparations in South Africa; examine the legal, political, and moral foundations for reparations; discuss the South African case as a precedent, highlighting its achievements and failures; and explore strategies for advocacy, accountability, and global solidarity in advancing reparations.
About Tshepo Madlingozi
Tshepo is the Commissioner of the South Africa Human Rights Commission.
Trained in law and sociology, he is a scholar-activist whose work focuses on decolonization, reparative justice, human rights, and participatory democracy. In 2024, the President of South Africa appointed Madlingozi as a full-time Commissioner at the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC), an independent constitutional body. At the SAHRC, he is responsible for the Anti-racism, Education, and Equality key areas.
About Lubnah Shomali
Lubnah is a Palestinian activist and has worked with BADIL since 2012. She aims to advance a rights-based decolonial framework and solution for Palestine, centering the Palestinian people’s inalienable rights to self-determination and return, and is responsible for BADIL’s donor relations, fund development, and legal and international advocacy.
About BADIL
BADIL Resource Center for Palestinian Residency and Refugee Rights is an independent, human rights non-profit organization committed to defend and promote the rights of Palestinian refugees and internally displaced persons. Our vision, mission, programs and relationships are defined by our Palestinian identity and the principles of international humanitarian and human rights law. We seek to advance the individual and collective rights of the Palestinian people on this basis.
About Makan:
Makan is an independent, non-partisan organisation dedicated to interconnected learning. Our approach is grounded in a belief that education is a liberatory act that can lay the ground for structural change. Situating Palestine within the context of other human rights, social justice and global liberation movements, we work towards transformation by adopting educational approaches that capture the history of the Palestinian struggle and the realities on the ground. We aim to support advocates as part of a community that is not only well-informed, interconnected, and empowered, but passionately committed to cultivating a future for Palestinians built on freedom, justice, and dignity.