"It is lonely. It is frightening. It is costly."
That is how PRASA whistleblower Martha Ngoye described being a whistleblower at the opening of Courage Hub SA in Johannesburg on Freedom Day.
The centre aims to support whistleblowers, amplify their stories and promote accountability. Cynthia Stimpel, a former South African Airways executive who blew the whistle at the airline, will serve as a director.
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"When wrongdoing becomes normalised, when rules are bent to serve networks of power rather than the public interest, those who speak up are treated as threats to be neutralised, not voices to be heard," said Ngoye.
As South Africa considers the new Protected Disclosures Bill, Ngoye cautioned that laws to protect whistleblowers, while well intentioned, often failed in practice.
"Even the best laws cannot function in a toxic institutional culture, one where loyalty is measured by silence and compliance by complicity," she said.
Whistleblowers in South Africa often face serious personal and professional risk, including losing their jobs, legal pressure and even death.
Ngoye said Courage Hub will give whistleblowers a space to be heard and supported instead of being isolated.
Inside the centre are photographs and personal accounts of whistleblowers, some of whom were killed.
"Courage is about using your brain and your heart when every cell of your body is screaming at you to fight or flee, and still following through on what you believe is right," said Ngoye. "Those who bury wrongdoing have no interest in the future."
