Navi Pillay grew up in apartheid South Africa, and that experience of living under a system built on racial injustice shaped everything that came after. Long before the world knew her name, she was already pushing against structures designed to keep people like her out of spaces of power.
From those beginnings, Pillay built a career that took her to some of the most consequential legal and human rights forums in the world. BBC correspondent Joe Inwood traces how her path from South Africa led her to become a central figure in shaping international law and accountability.
Her influence stretches across some of the most contested situations in modern history, from Myanmar to Gaza. Whether you agree with her positions or not, Pillay is someone whose voice has consistently landed at the center of the hardest conversations the international community has had to have.
If you have not yet looked closely at who she is and how she got here, now is a good time to start.
Originally published by BBC Africa.