3 September 2025, Johannesburg – SECTION27, representing the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC), and Sonke Gender Justice (Sonke), welcome the Western Cape High Court ruling to admit the organisations as amici curiae (friends of the court). The main application, brought by S.H and Sex Workers Education and Advocacy Taskforce (SWEAT), against the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services and others seeks to decriminalise sex work in South Africa. The hearing was held from 1-2 September 2025, during which SECTION27 made oral submissions on behalf of TAC and Sonke in their bid for admission. The main hearing will be on 18 to 20 May 2026 at the Western Cape High Court Division, Cape Town.
The main applicants are challenging provisions that criminalise sex work. TAC and Sonke will give evidence in the main application that demonstrates the impact of the criminalisation of sex work on the constitutional right to have access to healthcare services, including reproductive healthcare. The evidence presented by TAC and Sonke shows that sex workers are frequently denied access to essential health services and that their interactions with the public health system are shaped by stigma, criminalisation, and fear of police surveillance. The criminalisation of sex work thus significantly impedes the realisation of sex workers’ right to health, leading to poorer health outcomes and violating their fundamental human rights.
We will also argue that criminalisation of sex work also has an impact on the right to freedom and security of the person and freedom from violence. For sex workers, the criminalisation fosters an environment of greater vulnerability to violence, often perpetrated by those in positions of authority. Since sex work is illegal, sex workers are reluctant to report assaults for fear of being charged with sex work-related offences. The organisations will present evidence of sex workers’ lack of trust in the police and evidence of sexual violence and rape perpetrated by the police.
TAC and Sonke have both been at the forefront of human rights activism for many years. Their argument will further highlight the impact of criminalisation of sex work on the right to equality and non-discrimination. The enforcement of laws criminalising sex work disproportionately targets poor, black, female, transgender, and gender-diverse individuals. These populations are not only over-represented in sex work due to structural exclusions from the formal economy but are also more likely to face violence, harassment, and extortion from law enforcement officials. Both organisations are of the view that criminalisation entrenches systemic patterns of discrimination and exclusion. The legal framing of sex work as deviant or immoral reinforces gender stereotypes that stigmatise women who are perceived as transgressing traditional sexual norms. This directly contravenes South Africa’s constitutional commitment to a society based on human dignity, equality, and freedom.
TAC and Sonke’s participation in this case underscores the urgent need to end laws that criminalise sex work and undermine sex workers’ rights to access healthcare services, safety, dignity, and equality in South Africa.
For media queries contact:
SECTION27 – Pearl Nicodemus | nicodemus@section27.org.za | 082 298 2636
TAC – Butho Mpofu | ngqabutho.mpofu@mail.tac.org.za | 072 225 9675
Sonke – Namuma Mulindi | namuma@genderjustice.org.za
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