Johannesburg, October 2026: The Press Council of South Africa congratulates Judge Navanethem Pillay on receiving the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize, an honour recognising her lifelong commitment to justice, human dignity, and international law.
The Council welcomes this distinction with profound national pride and a deep appreciation of the significance of her work. Throughout her distinguished career, Judge Pillay has upheld, in judicial proceedings, the principles of fairness, courage, and respect for human dignity that a free media is duty-bound to uphold.
A particularly significant chapter in Judge Pillay’s career offers an enduring lesson for journalists. She presided over the “Media Case”, a trial of those responsible for Radio Télévision Libre des Mille Collines and the newspaper Kangura in relation to their role in the Rwandan genocide.
Their broadcasts and articles identified targets and incited acts of slaughter. In sentencing one defendant, she observed that he had caused thousands of deaths without lifting a weapon.
The judgment established a boundary that the journalism profession must always uphold, namely that while freedom of expression warrants the strongest protection, it cannot shield those who employ it as a weapon of harm.
This lesson extends well beyond Rwanda. It is well documented that dehumanising language can cause harm even before physical violence occurs. Accordingly, every newsroom bears responsibility for assessing whether its language advances or diminishes respect for human dignity.
The Press Council’s Code of Ethics and Conduct requires journalists to report truthfully, accurately and fairly, while respecting human dignity. Judge Pillay led the way in upholding these principles when adjudicating the gravest crimes known to humanity. In awarding the prize, the Norwegian Nobel Committee warned that international law is under tremendous pressure and that its institutions are under attack. In this context, fair, evidence-based reporting is an essential component of the architecture of peace.
The Council therefore urges South Africa’s journalists, editors, and media owners to honour this occasion through professional conduct by reporting on people’s lives with due care, subjecting every claim to rigorous scrutiny, and challenging inflammatory language and hate speech wherever they arise.
The Press Council joins South Africans and human rights and justice advocates worldwide in acknowledging Judge Pillay’s exceptional contribution and extends its sincere congratulations on the conferral of this distinguished honour.
Phathiswa Magopeni, Executive Director, Press Council of South Africa.
Issued by: Press Council of South Africa
