Whistle-blower A new national initiative called Courage Hub SA aims to strengthen whistleblower protection and ethical leadership in South Africa.
Image: File
In a decisive move to combat corruption and bolster the safety of whistleblowers, a new national initiative called Courage Hub SA was officially launched in Johannesburg on April 27.
Proudly labelled as South Africa’s first Ethics and Storytelling Centre, the platform aims to unite civil society organisations, governance experts, and whistleblower advocates to provide structured support for individuals who expose wrongdoing.
The initiative comes at a time when whistleblower safety in South Africa remains under intense scrutiny, following a series of high-profile killings and intimidation cases linked to corruption reporting in both public institutions and the private sector.
Among the most widely cited cases is that of Babita Deokaran, a senior Gauteng Department of Health official who was assassinated in 2021 after flagging irregularities linked to hundreds of millions of rand in procurement at Tembisa Hospital.
Her killing, which investigators linked to her role in exposing corruption, has become a symbol of the risks faced by whistleblowers in the country.
More recently, concern has been raised over other reported killings and attacks on individuals linked to corruption investigations, including witnesses in broader state capture and law enforcement-related probes. In late 2025, a former police officer and protected witness in a corruption inquiry was shot dead outside his home after testifying about alleged links between senior officials and criminal networks, further intensifying fears about witness protection failures.
Civil society organisations have repeatedly warned that whistleblowers remain vulnerable due to weak protection systems, slow investigations, and the absence of consistent security guarantees once individuals come forward. Advocacy groups argue that while South Africa has legal frameworks in place, enforcement and protection mechanisms remain inconsistent and often ineffective in high-risk corruption cases.
Courage Hub SA says it aims to respond directly to these challenges by providing a public-facing platform that combines protection guidance, storytelling, education programmes and media production.
Speaking ahead of the launch, whistleblower advocate Cynthia Stimpel said the most persistent failure remained the lack of physical protection for those who expose wrongdoing.
"The most consistent failure is the physical protection of whistleblowers," she said, adding that perpetrators act with increasing confidence while "the current legislation does not protect any of the above".
Stimpel also criticised the capacity of law enforcement in handling whistleblower-related cases.
"The SAPS have not protected whistleblowers. They have lost and mismanaged cases. They do not have the empathy, compassion, competency to protect any whistleblower," she said.
She added that despite years of public concern, the overall risk environment has not significantly improved.
“The risks have remained largely unchanged… The killings continue unabatedly.”
The hub will also focus on practical support for whistleblowers, including safety guidance and referrals to civil society organisations such as OUTA, PPLAAF, Whistleblower House and Corruption Watch.
Stimpel said storytelling would play a central role in the initiative, both as a form of advocacy and recovery.
"We will give the whistleblower a voice… to speak is part of a healing journey," she said.
Organisers say the platform will also roll out school-based programmes aimed at promoting ethical leadership among young people, alongside public dialogues on governance and accountability.
Courage Hub SA aims to support more than 100 whistleblowers over the next three years and reach tens of thousands of people annually through media and engagement programmes.
Guest speakers at the launch included Defend Our Democracy representative Martha Ngoye and OUTA CEO Wayne Duvenage, alongside civil society partners and whistleblower advocates.