History of the Institute
The Dullah Omar Institute started its work under the name 'Community Law Centre', an organisation borne out of the struggle against apartheid.
The Community Law Centre opened its doors in 1990 with the help of the Ford Foundation. Adv Dullah Omar, a human rights lawyer, was its first director. The Centre played a major role in the negotiations towards a democratic South Africa. First staff members included prominent activists such as Bulelani Ngcuka, Dr Zola Skweyiya, and Brigitte Mabandla. Working with Albie Sachs and Prof Kader Asmal they participated in the constitutional negotiations. Ever since our inception, we have been a major contributor to policy formulation for South Africa’s constitutional order and increasingly, elsewhere on the continent.
Click here for a video about the history of the Community Law Centre.
In 2015, the Community Law Centre was renamed into the Dullah Omar Institute for Constitutional Law, Governance and Human Rights to honour our founding director and the first Minister of Justice in a democratic South Africa. We host the prestigious Dullah Omar Memorial Lecture to pay tribute to the rich legacy of the late Adv Dullah Omar.
