No abstract / Mini Dissertation (LLM)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Mercantile Law / LLM / Unrestricted

No abstract / Thesis (LLD)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Private Law / LLD / Unrestricted

Although the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act (PAJA)1 provides for instances where administrative decisions and actions are reviewable, decisions are most likely to be reviewed based on their irrationality. However, there is still uncertainties as to what exactly constitute an administrative action and when is an administrative decision irrational and therefore reviewable. In other words, what is the scope of rationality of administrative actions? There seems to be more questions than there are answers on this aspect, this is mostly caused by the fact that executive as another organ of state in the fore front of administrative decisions has not covered itself in glory in this regard due to a possible lack of understanding of the Constitution, or a simple insouciant, equanimous and lackadaisical interpretation of the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act. This warrants analysis to ascertain what exactly rationality is and where and when is it applicable. / Mini Dissertation (LLM)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Public Law / LLM / Unrestricted

No abstract / Mini Dissertation (LLM)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Centre for Human Rights / MPhil / Unrestricted

The problem identified concerns the lack of the South African law to reasonably accommodate visually impaired persons, with specific reference to the law of contract, as found in the common law and consumer protection legislation. This jurisprudential lack of reasonable accommodation is limited to the formality requirement of ‘in writing’. The aim of this mini-dissertation will be to analyse the current legal position in such a manner so as to identify where the common law and relevant consumer protection laws fail to accommodate, discriminate against, show a disregard for and neglect the interests of visually impaired persons. In addition, I will provide an exposition of what the legal position vis-à-vis visually impaired persons ought to be in the context of the problem as already identified above. Consequently, the following normative question will be answered: ‘How ought the principle of reasonable accommodation influence the formality requirement of ‘in writing’, in both consumer legislation and the common law?’. / Mini Dissertation (LLM)--University of Pretoria, 2018. / Mercantile Law / LLM / Unrestricted

No abstract / Mini Dissertation (LLM)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Private Law / LLM / Unrestricted

The main purpose of this dissertation is to discuss the influence of the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 (“CPA” or “the Act”) on product liability in South Africa whilst taking into account the common law position which finds application in situations where the CPA does not apply. Under the South African common law, the only recourse available to consumers who suffer harm or sustain an injury as a result of a defective product, is a claim under the law of contract or the law of delict. Claims under both the law of contract and law of delict unfortunately have its shortcomings, most notably the consumer under the law of contract has to prove that a breach of warranty occurred and that a contractual nexus existed between the parties. Whereas under the law of delict the consumer is required to prove fault on the part of the supplier of the defective goods, which in most cases proved to be a difficult or impossible task and as a result the consumer is left without any effective recourse. The court in Wagener v Pharmacare was also not prepared to impose strict product liability on the producer but left it to the legislature to do so. The legislature answered the call with the enactment of section 61 of the CPA, which has introduced a so-called strict product liability regime for harm caused by defective goods. Section 61 of the CPA states that the producer or importer, distributor or retailer of any goods is liable for any harm caused wholly or as a consequence of supplying any unsafe goods a product failure defect or hazard in any goods or the inadequate instructions or warning provided to the consumer pertaining to any hazard arising from or associated with the use of any goodsirrespective of whether the harm resulted from any negligence on the part of the producer, importer, distributor or retailer, as the case may be. Many academics have applauded the CPA in this respect. However, the defences available to a supplier in terms of the CPA have led to some criticism. Section 2(2) of the CPA also provides that foreign and international law may be incorporated when interpreting and applying the CPA and as section 61 of the CPA shares similarities with the European Directive on Product Liability of 1985 (“EU Directive”), it is accordingly useful to consider the application and interpretation thereof. The final conclusion drawn from this dissertation, is that the CPA makes provision for a modified strict product liability regime and could in more than one instance be regarded as defective in itself. It is however contented that the CPA is a step in the right direction and future interpretations by our courts of section 61 are welcomed. / Mini Dissertation (LLM)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Mercantile Law / LLM / Unrestricted

This is a mixed research methods study based at the forensic mental health unit of Weskoppies Psychiatric Hospital in Pretoria, Gauteng Province, South Africa. The overarching aim of the study was to help add insights that could indirectly inform the wider discourse on sexual offending in society and to the body of knowledge on the prevention of sexual violence – including in forensic mental health. Qualitative and quantitative methods were applied through concurrent and transformative mixed research methods, premised on the philosophical stance of pragmatism. Records of individuals accused of sexual offences were explored and in-depth interviews with individuals accused of sexual offending and / or other types of charges referred for observation in terms of the Criminal Procedure Act, 51, 1977 (CPA 1977) were conducted. Psychiatric and psychosocial features and general perspectives on sexual offending were explored. Data collection was done from the end of 2014 to the end of 2015. In terms of findings, the record-based component of the study revealed that the majority of those referred were mentally capable, were known to the victims and lived in close proximity to them. Boys and girls, elderly women and socially isolated individuals seemed the most vulnerable irrespective of the mental capacity of the accused at the time of an alleged incident. In-depth interviews revealed scepticism, myths and new locally relevant ways of defining sexual violence. Socio-economic determinants of health seemed to render potential perpetrators of sexual offending vulnerable to violence and included adverse childhood events, poverty, unemployment and inequality. Experiences during and after arrest revealed possible human rights violations of alleged offenders by communities and law enforcement systems. Mental illness worsened stigma even in the hands of law enforcement systems. Central phenomena viz. ‘the perceived oppression of men’ and ‘vulnerability’ of potential victims and potential perpetrators emerged. A tentative theory of ‘vulnerability’, as an explanation and an approach to preventing sexual and other forms of violence in society, is proposed for both victims and potential perpetrators. Public health, socio-ecological frameworks of sexual violence prevention and other explanatory and prevention frameworks on sexual offending seem aligned to the study’s findings. Patriarchy, collective violence inherited from South Africa’s past, social cognitive theory on learning, trauma re-enactment, and other factors seem to play a role. In terms of mixed research contributions, a need for robust ways of studying diverse populations such as South Africa is emerging. Further, an initial stance of studying prevention of sexual violence from a victim-centred advocacy lens, has been transformed to yield accused individuals’ advocacy issues as well. Multi-system prevention approaches involving at-risk potential perpetrators, and not just victims, seem to be the next frontier for research and interventions. The study reveals insights that may contribute to the field of violence prevention. / Thesis (PhD)- University of Pretoria, 2018. / Psychiatry / PhD / Unrestricted

This ethnography shows how certain aspects of the Pretoria Boeremark can be seen to have symbolic resonances with contemporary South African society. Reflecting both economic and cultural practices since 1994, as well as the ways in which it can be construed as being paradigmatic of Afrikaans whiteness in the post-Apartheid era, and how dissonance within this dominant whiteness can be created in the neo-liberal nature of South African society. Markets are amongst the most ancient forms of commercial exchange as well as, in South Africa today, being at the forefront of a globalised cosmopolitanism. The Pretoria Boeremark straddles this divide, being both a source of household provisioning and a ‘modish’ place to sample culture through food. An exploration of the Boeremark’s history, its location in the changing Pretoria suburb of Silverton and its adoption of “free-market” principles lays the foundation for a descriptive ethnography of the market. This ethnography, constructed from participant observation and interviews with vendors and customers, explores the ways in which commercial and non-commercial exchanges at the market lead to what Carsten’s calls “practices of relatedness” and how these practices serve to construct the market as a, nominally, Afrikaans cultural phenomenon. All these explorations come together to illustrate the Boeremark, based on the entanglement of economic, social and cultural aspects of the market, as a possible microcosm of South African economic and cultural practices. / Mini Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2018. / Anthropology and Archaeology / MA / Unrestricted

In this investigation, the aim was to explore optimal performance experiences through the lived experience of flow amongst professional full-time and part-time orchestral musicians. The study followed an IPA approach and data were collected through semi-structured interviews. Eight professional orchestral musicians took part in the study, three full-time and five part-time. The study endeavoured to identify factors that influence flow positively and negatively and to ascertain whether there are factors unique to South African context. The findings identified four superordinate themes: factors that influence flow, performance environment, impact of life experiences, and comparing the flow experiences of full-time and part-time orchestral musicians. The first superordinate theme, Factors that influence flow, included subordinate themes instrument, repertoire, conductor, venue, fellow-players and balancing the level of challenge and skill. The second superordinate theme, Performance environment included the following two subordinate themes: solo-, chamber- and orchestral settings, and rehearsal- or performance settings. The third superordinate theme, Impact of life experiences, explored maturity, emotional investment as well as life experiences as subordinate themes. Lastly, the differences between the experiences of full-time- and part-time orchestral musicians regarding their view of the musical activities in which they engage, formed the fourth superordinate theme. This theme included responses about income, available time and frequency of playing, pressure and playing music for the love of it. In conclusion, it became apparent that both full-time and part-time professional orchestral musicians can relate to the experience of flow and that multiple factors exist which can positively or negatively affect their flow experiences. / Mini Dissertation (MMus)--University of Pretoria, 2018. / Music / MMus / Unrestricted