Pregs (or Pregaluxmi) Govender (born 15 February 1960) is a feminist human rights

activist, author and former African National Congress (ANC) Member of Parliament from
South Africa.[1][2] She was appointed in 2008 by the South African Parliament to be one of
seven Commissioners of the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC), and in
2009, made Deputy Chairperson.[3] In 2016, she was amongst 73 candidates nominated
for the position of South Africa's public prosecutor.[4]

Childhood ,education and early activism

Govender was born in Cato Manor, Durban in 1960. Her father is the award-winning
South African playwright Ronnie Govender. Govender studied at the Durban Indian Girls
High School (now Sastri College) and went on to do a Bachelor of Arts degree at
the University of Durban-Westville.[5]

Govender became an anti-apartheid activist in 1974, at the age of 14. While at high
school, she raised funds for political detainees. A few years later, she publicly confronted
apartheid police, "charg[ing] into the guns and batons". [6] She taught English at schools
and universities in Durban, before going on to join the trade union movement in the
1980s, including as the National Educator for the Clothing and Textile Union. [3] She was
also a volunteer for the Natal Organisation of Women during the 1980s.[7] In 1991, she
established South Africa's first Workers' College at the University of the Western Cape.

Career in democratic South Africa

During the negotiated transition to democracy in South Africa, Govender was employed
by the Women's National Coalition to manage its Women's Charter campaign. This
mobilised two million women to influence the drafting of South Africa's Constitution.[9]

In 1994, she was elected to the inaugural democratic Parliament as an ANC Member of
Parliament (MP), and chaired the Parliamentary Committee on Women as well as
convened the gender and economic group of the finance committee. She became known
for her spearheading of the South African Women's Budget, one of the first instances
ofGender Budgeting in the world.[10] Govender resigned as MP in 2002, registering her
opposition to the arms deal in the Defence Budget vote in 2001, especially at a time when
the ANC needed to address the impact of HIV/AIDS on women and girls. She was the
only member of Parliament to oppose the arms deal, and following her farewell speech,
the former ANC political prisoner Ahmed Kathrada said, "Please continue to make us
walk tall, by your courage and devotion."[2]

Commenting on Govender's career as an MP, political scientist Tom Lodge said in 2003,
"In 2001, the most obviously independent ANC parliamentary initiatives were to be found
in the joint monitoring committee on the status of women, chaired by Pregs Govender,
which challenged government on spending priorities and Aids policy. In 2001, Govender
abstained from voting on the defence budget. Such assertive behaviour may become
increasingly exceptional."[11]

Govender chaired the Independent Panel Assessment of Parliament from 20072009.

[12]
In November 2008, Govender was voted unanimously by the South African Parliament
to become SAHRC Commissioner, and began her term in January 2009. She was then
appointed Deputy Chairperson in October 2009. Govender leads the Basic
Services,Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against
Women (CEDAW) and Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) programmes at the
SAHRC.[3]