The assassination of Gauteng Health employee, Babita Deokaran, has become a stark reminder of the danger and plight faced by whistleblowers on a daily basis in South Africa.

The assassination of Gauteng Health employee, Babita Deokaran, has become a stark reminder of the danger and plight faced by whistleblowers on a daily basis in South Africa. Despite the widespread outrage caused by the assassination, retaliation against whistleblowers continues to garner headlines in South Africa. Examples include Armand Swart, who was shot 23 times outside his workplace shortly after his employer had reported price gauging of approximately 4,650% to state-owned rail company Transnet, and most recently the death of Pamela Mabini, community activist and a whistleblower in the Timothy Omotoso rape case, who was gunned down outside her home in the Eastern Cape.

Whistleblowers play a fundamental role in the promotion of accountability in both the public and the private sector. Former Chief Justice Raymond Zondo described whistleblowers as "the final defence against corruption and state capture." The current primary source of protection in South African law for whistleblowers is the Protected Disclosures Act No. 26 of 2000 ("PDA"), as amended. Over the past two years there has been much debate on the appropriateness and effectiveness of the current legislation. There appears to be consensus that the legislation falls significantly short on destigmatising whistleblowing and in the protection...

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