The South African Zionist Federation (SAZF) welcomes the ruling by the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) finding Dr Tlaleng Mofokeng, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health, guilty of unprofessional conduct for using abusive and inappropriate language on social media and for bringing the medical profession into disrepute.
According to the HPCSA’s official finding, Dr Mofokeng was found to have violated Regulation 4(9) of the Health Professions Act through conduct unbecoming of a medical professional and contrary to the ethical standards of her profession.
The ruling follows a formal complaint lodged by the SAZF regarding a series of offensive and inflammatory posts by Dr Mofokeng, in which she vilified Israel and Jewish supporters using racist, derogatory, and profane language.
In January 2025, after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced a brief delay in the Gaza ceasefire, Dr Mofokeng, serving as the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health, posted on X (formerly Twitter): “F** you Netanyahu.”
When UN Watch Executive Director Hillel Neuer called on the United Nations to take action, she replied: “You white man. Evil scum. Voetsek.”
These remarks, made while holding office as a United Nations mandate-holder, were widely condemned and reported by News24, Ynet News, and the South African Jewish Report as a serious breach of professionalism and decorum.
The HPCSA has now ruled that her conduct brought the medical profession into disrepute and violated the ethical obligations binding all South African healthcare practitioners.
Given Dr Mofokeng’s senior role at the United Nations, this ruling carries particular significance. The UN Code of Conduct requires Special Rapporteurs to maintain restraint, integrity, and impartiality in their public communications, standards she blatantly ignored.
While the HPCSA ruling deals specifically with her professional behaviour, Dr Mofokeng’s public conduct also reflects a broader pattern of bias and hostility among certain UN officials. Her office and advocacy platform have previously been cited in international proceedings, including South Africa’s case against Israel at the International Court of Justice, where serious concerns have been raised about the impartiality of UN-sourced reports.
This decision therefore underscores the growing concern that individuals entrusted with global human-rights mandates are abusing their positions to advance partisan, defamatory, or discriminatory agendas.
It follows another controversy earlier this week, when service was attempted on UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese after her public address at the Nelson Mandela Foundation event. The South African sheriff was duly authorised by the Department of Justice to serve legal papers in a US based defamation case based on Albanese making false and inflammatory remarks against Christian organisations. Albanese accused them of complicity in “genocide”, comments widely condemned as defamatory and prejudiced.
The SAZF commends the HPCSA for its decisive action in upholding integrity and accountability within the medical profession. The ruling sends a clear message: South African professionals who use their platforms to spread hate, racial slurs, or incite hostility will face consequences.
Professional standing carries a duty to act with impartiality, ethics, and respect for all communities. Those who exploit their status to promote prejudice or hatred undermine not only their own credibility but also the institutions they represent.
The SAZF calls on all South Africans, especially those representing the country or international organisations, to conduct themselves with dignity, professionalism, and respect for diversity.
