Events: Constitution Hill Human Rights Festival

Celebrating its 7th year, the Human Rights Festival returns for the 2025 edition at Johannesburg’s Constitution Hill, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, from the 20th to 23rd March.

The event invites the public to commemorate South Africa’s Human Rights Day on 21 March and celebrate the memory of those liberation heroes who took a stand for human rights in the Sharpeville 1960 massacre.

The festival aims to build greater awareness and knowledge around human rights and to promote the importance of an active citizenry. The event strives to build solidarity, social cohesion and tolerance of difference and heal divisions in our communities. Moreover, the festival serves as both a global inspiration and a display of the strength of South Africa’s ubuntu culture in working towards a just and inclusive society.

Civil society organisations have worked with Constitution Hill to shape a unique programme. Hosted alongside the Constitutional Court and using venues in the Old Fort and Women’s Jail, the festival will bring together the public; community-based organisations; social movements; government and non-governmental organisations, and international organisations.

The four-day event is FREE to all. The gates open at 10h00 on the 20th, 21st and 22nd of March. On Sunday, March 23rd, Constitution Hill invites the public to come together for the 8km WeThePeopleWalk Walk through the city with a fun-filled program kicking off at 7 am and returning to the site for activities and the local makers market.

Event Highlights:

20 March

• Gauteng MEC Lebogang Maile will deliver a public lecture at Constitution Hill’s Women’s Jail Museum to honour the life and legacy of Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, a fearless icon of South Africa’s struggle for democracy. 
• The opening of Qhakaza: Pain Undefined, curated by Gift Kgosierileng, which explores how Winnie Mandela used fashion as a form of resistance and empowerment. Through carefully selected pieces, photographs, and multimedia installations, the exhibition highlights how her iconic style became a tool for reclaiming agency and asserting dignity in the face of systemic oppression.
• NGO capacity building sessions; learners’ programs and public dialogue sessions. The day ends with an NGO and filmmakers’ networking session.

21 March: 09h00 – 19h00

• Official opening ceremony – 1000 Drums for solidarity. Drumming serves as a powerful tool to amplify marginalised voices and foster solidarity within community groups.
• Multiple interactive sessions including workshops and dialogues
• Family fun at the children’s village
• Local authors’ book fair and book readings
• Film festival showcasing local and global talent
• Live poetry segments from local talent
• Support Local at the curated maker’s market

22 March: 09h00 – 22h00

• Multiple interactive sessions including workshops and dialogues
• Family fun at the children’s village
• Local authors’ book fair and book readings
• Film festival showcasing local and global talent
• Live poetry segments from local talent
• Support Local at the curated maker’s market
• Enjoy the Sounds of Freedom live show from 17h00 – 21h00, headlined by multi-award-winning artist, composer, arranger and producer Mandisi Dyantyis

23 March: 07h00 – 15h00

• The iconic WeThePeople Walk is an 8km walk through the streets of Johannesburg to promote human rights. Founded in 2014, it typically attracts thousands of attendees.

Reserve your free daily pass at www.humanrightsfestival.co.za (passes are limited).