Event information

18 July 2019, 18:00-19:30

Downloads

Invitation Flyer >

Nelson Mandela Human Rights Lecture

Event

 Nelson Mandela, Deputy President of the African National Congress of South Africa, raises his fist in the air while addressing the Special Committee Against Apartheid in the General Assembly Hall. 22 June 1990  Nelson Mandela, Deputy President of the African National Congress of South Africa, raises his fist in the air while addressing the Special Committee Against Apartheid in the General Assembly Hall. 22 June 1990

On the occasion of Nelson Mandela International Day, Michelle Bachelet, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and Albie Sachs, Former Judge of the South African Constitutional Court, will reflect on the current challenges faced by human rights and how to move the human rights agenda forward based on their experiences.

Welcome Remarks

Andrew Clapham, Professor of Public International Law, Graduate Institute
Nozipho Joyce Mxakato-Diseko, Ambassador, South African Permanent Mission to the United Nations Office in Geneva

Keynote Speech

Albie Sachs, Former Judge, Constitutional Court of South Africa

Remarks

Michelle Bachelet, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights

Closing Remarks

Frans Viljoen, Director, Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria

The Nelson Mandela Human Rights Lecture is presented by the Centre for Human Rights of the University of Pretoria, the Washington College of Law at the American University, and the Human Rights Council Branch at the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights , the Global Campus of Human Rights, Switzerland, the South African Permanent Mission to the United Nations and the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies.

This lecture is part of the Nelson Mandela World Human Rights Moot Court Competition and will be followed by a reception.

Registration

You need to register via this online form to attend this event.

Live Stream

This event will be live streamed on the Graduate Institute's YouTube channel.

Video

Nelson Mandela Human Rights Lecture

On the occasion of Nelson Mandela International Day, Albie Sachs, Former Judge of the South African Constitutional Court, and Michelle Bachelet, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, reflect on today’s challenges to human rights and how to move the human rights agenda forward based on their personal experiences.

 

MORE ON THIS THEMATIC AREA

SIDS Training GHRP News

Practical Training on Human Rights Council Procedures Strengthens SIDS/LDCs Engagement

21 July 2025

Sixteen diplomats from fifteen Small Island Developing States and Least Developed Countries participated in a two-day Practical Training on Human Rights Council Procedures.

Read more

Enforced Disappearances Event

'Short-term' Enforced Disappearances

23 September 2025, 13:00-14:00

This side event will bring together stakeholders to discuss the growing concerning recurrence to short-term enforced disappearances worldwide, and the challenges they pose for victims and accountability.

Read more

Special Rapporteur Sign Event

Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in an Era of Escalating Armed Conflict: Where Can International Human Rights Law Help?

25 September 2025, 18:30-20:00

This evening dialogue will present the publication: International Human Rights Law: A Treatise, Cambridge University Press (2025).

Read more

Open dump Training

Protecting Human Rights and the Environment

15-19 September 2025

Participants in this training course will gain practical insights into UN human rights mechanisms and their role in environmental protection and learn about how to address the interplay between international human rights and environmental law, and explore environmental litigation paths.

Read more

A general view of participants during of the 33nd ordinary session of the Human Rights Council. Training

The Universal Periodic Review and the UN Human Rights System: Raising the Bar on Accountability

10-14 November 2025

This training course will explore the origin and evolution of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) and its functioning in Geneva and will focus on the nature of implementation of the UPR recommendations at the national level.

Read more

Project

Follow-up Review Pilot Series

Started in November 2021

Read more

A destroyed camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Khor Abeche, South Darfur, Project

Understanding the Relationship between Conflict, Security and the Human Right to a Clean, Healthy and Sustainable Environment

Started in May 2023

This project will develop guidance to inform security, human rights and environmental debates on the linkages between environmental rights and conflict, and how their better management can serve as a tool in conflict prevention, resilience and early warning.

Read more

Cover of the 2023 Geneva Academy Annual Report Publication

Annual Report 2024

published on July 2025

Read more