South Africa boasts one of the most progressive, elaborate and consultative climate governance frameworks in the Global South. However, children, who are among the groups most acutely affected by climate change, remain largely invisible to the country's climate law, policy and decision-making architecture. This article examines South Africa's normative framework to determine...
This article argues that the impact of the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights should not be measured solely by direct compliance with its contentious judgments, which remains weak and is undermined by withdrawals of individual-access declarations. Instead, it builds on the concept of res interpretata as a theory of authority: The idea that the Court's judgments and...
The implementation and impact ofthree African Court judgments against Tanzania - Jebra Kambole v Tanzania, Bob Chacha Wangwe & LHRC v Tanzania and Tike Mwambipile & Equality Now v Tanzania - reveal the full spectrum of compliance outcomes and the power of 'extra-compliance' effects in advancing human rights despite systemic challenges across regional human rights systems. The...
One of the central challenges in the implementation of any reparations awarded or recommended by supranational bodies such as the African Court on Human and Peoples' Rights lies in identifying what initiates the national-level administrative processes that must follow. Failure to implement is often attributed to a lack of 'political will', but this conceals the intricate network...
This article examines the impact of precautionary measures (also known as provisional or urgent measures) adopted by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) to protect individuals at imminent risk, focusing on those deprived of their liberty. Detainees, among the most vulnerable groups, are at heightened risk in contexts where the rule of law is under threat. The...
Indigenous rights in Africa are often considered a domain of rights, which seeks to dislocate national priorities for communitarian purposes and does not fit the logic of state-centred development. This vision is part of a contention that disputes the relevance of recognising diversity in divided societies, a move that privileges the state over its communities and affects the...
This article examines the importance of the state's acknowledgment of responsibility and public apology as a measure ofjust satisfaction for victims of human rights violations. From a comparative perspective, the article examines the use of this satisfaction measure in the Inter-American and African human rights systems and the arguments in favour of its adoption by the African...
This article investigates potential collaboration between the African Court and the African Commission regarding the implementation of the Court's judgments and decisions. Non-compliance with human rights rulings is a pervasive challenge affecting all human rights bodies. While each institution may adopt its own strategies, a common approach is strongly encouraged, especially...
Malawi has recently introduced significant legal reforms, including the Data Protection Act (2024) and the establishment of a Data Protection Authority (2025), to safeguard citizens' digital rights. While these measures provide an essential foundation for data governance, their enforcement remains weak, and surveillance practices, such as social media monitoring and mandatory SIM...
An important feature of the revival of constitutionalism in Francophone African countries has been the establishment of constitutional courts with the power to review the constitutionality of laws and other norms before they are enacted or implemented. Constitutional review was intended not only to ensure the balance between the three traditional powers but also to protect hard...
Digital privacy and freedom of expression in Uganda are in peril. Despite subscribing to the basic tenets of democracy, social justice and the rule of law, the Ugandan government has emerged as one of the modern-day digital space tyrants, becoming infamous for exercising excessive powers over digital spaces for political reasons. Such notoriety has been compounded by the...
Targeted or bulk interception of communications is a permanent feature of contemporary society. Ancient states deployed rudimentary practices such as raiding mailmen, shooting carrier pigeons and rerouting telegrams. In modern times, the interception of communications happens effortlessly. Under these laws, interception targets are usually not informed. Laws compel public and...
This article critically examines the ramifications of the stringent enforcement ofrestrictive and prohibitive communication surveillance laws and practices, which unjustifiably traduce fundamental human rights and freedoms pertinent to Zimbabwean elections. Based on doctrinal legal research, this article examines how state surveillance, facilitated by laws permitting the...
Artificial intelligence is the use of machines and computer systems to mimic human intelligence processes. In Africa, AI is already being used in domains such as health care, finance, manufacturing, law, transport, military technology and, now, specifically, surveillance technology. It is estimated that at least 14 states have already begun using smart policing and safe city...
This article examines the potential of market inquiries as a competition law mechanism to realise the right to nutritious and adequate food. By probing the intersection ofcompetition law and food security, it demonstrates how market inquiries can interrogate and dismantle structural barriers within food markets, ensuring accountability and fostering an enabling environment for...
South Africa's domestic refugee legislation and regulations have expanded the grounds of cessation of and exclusion from refugee status by introducing prohibitions on the political participation of refugees and asylum seekers. These political prohibitions place significant barriers in the way of democratic participation in one's country of origin and ban outright any 'political...
This article explores mayoral term limits in South Africa. The Structures Act, which governs the functioning of local municipalities, outlines specific provisions regarding the tenure of mayors and executive mayors. These provisions allow for a maximum of two consecutive terms in office but leave open the possibility of serving additional non-consecutive terms after a hiatus. The...
The Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act 4 of 2000 (PEPUDA) is a cornerstone of South Africa's anti-discrimination framework, aiming to uphold equality and prevent unfair treatment. However, its capacity to protect transgender individuals is hindered by several lacunae. This article critically examines whether PEPUDA adequately safeguards the rights...
According to the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (OPCAT), state parties are required to establish or designate national preventive mechanisms (NPMs) mandated to conduct regular, independent and unannounced visits to all places of deprivation of liberty and to issue recommendations aimed at...
Intimate partner violence is a pervasive violation of women's human rights worldwide. Women employ various strategies in response to intimate partner violence, including seeking assistance from informal or formal sources. Using a qualitative research approach, this article aims to explore the characteristics of these help-seeking sources and investigate the motivating and...
The human right to water is essential for human dignity and well-being. In Cameroon, a substantial proportion of the population, particularly in rural areas, lacks access to safe and affordable water. This article critically examines Cameroon's legislation on the human right to water and the implementation thereof. The central argument of the study is that while Cameroon has a...
The Ongwen case marks a turning point in international criminal justice in several respects. It presented an opportunity for the International Criminal Court (ICC) to clarify the concept of transgenerational harm and reassess the standard of evidence required to prove this type of harm. One of the novel and fundamental issues refers to repairing transgenerational harm. The...
After four decades of international debate, the United Nations seems closer than ever to the adoption of a new covenant on the right to development. The final draft of the covenant has unique features in the form of a framework convention that allows more flexibility and regulation in subsequent protocols. The raison d'etre of the covenant will be its unique role in ensuring...
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child Africa are the two foremost instruments on the rights of the child that are applicable in Africa. From a cultural perspective, the African continent is culturally diverse and requires that when considering the child's right to education, the interrelatedness of...
This discussion is a reflection on the decision on 28 February 2022 by the High Court of South Africa, Western Cape Division, sitting as an Equality Court, in the matter of Baba & Others v Clicks Group Limited & Another. On 4 September 2020 an unknown person posted an image of four women on social media. The circulation of this image caused an outcry on the premise that the image...