<p>In the aftermath of World War Two, the International Community has shown a renewed commitment towards the protection of human rights. However, whether during wars or under dictatorial regimes, numerous human rights abuses occurred everywhere in the world, from Latin America to Eastern Europe and from Southern Europe to Africa. Countries which experienced oppressive governance or outrageous atrocities has to address the legacies of their past on the return of democratic rule or peace. In other words, they had to emerge from the darkness of dictatorship or civil war in order to establish a democracy. Today, after 14 years of civil war, Liberia is faced with the challenge of achieving a successful transition where the imperatives of truth, justice and reconciliation need to be met. The purpose of this research paper was to make some recommendations on the way the accountability process in Liberia should be shaped as far as prosecution is concerned.</p>

This research analyzed all juveniles involved in a homicide, both victims and offenders, in the city of Dallas, Texas from the years 1988 through 1997. This study addressed several research questions including the identification of risk factors common to both victims and offenders. Data for this study was obtained from the homicide files of the Dallas Police Department. The findings in part identify specific profiles of the victims and offenders, as well as identifying comparisons of risk factors between the two groups. Also identified are the relationships between the offenders and victims. Conclusions from this research present implications for law enforcement agencies, as well as furthering the etiology of juvenile homicide.

The problem of this study concerns ethnoviolence on the campus of a predominantly white, state-supported university in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metropolitan Area. In order to study ethnoviolent behavior, the effects it has on the victims, and the perceptions that minority students have of the campus climate, all African-American, Hispanic, and international students enrolled at The University of Texas at Dallas were mailed a questionnaire.

This thesis examines prosecutorial challenges of the International Criminal Court (ICC/the court) in relation to the dwindling legitimacy prosecuting under Article 5 of the Rome Statute and other relevant international law principles. The study attempts a prognosis of the future shape of ICC prosecutions in light of the challenges and proposes reforms to the operations of the Court and its constitutive instrument to improve the dispensation of justice. The focus of the study is substantive international criminal law, developments in relevant case laws of international courts and tribunals, structure and procedures of the ICC and relevant principles within the context of elements of the Crime of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and the Crime of aggression. The thesis further evaluates the role of the Court as it ensures international cooperation with domestic efforts to promote the ‘Rule of law’, uphold the principles of international humanitarian law, human rights law and combat impunity being the first permanent treaty-based international criminal court with the intent and purpose of ending impunity for perpetrators of the most serious crimes of concern to the international community and thus contributes to the prevention of such crimes. Additionally, the International Criminal Court advances international criminal justice, particularly with regard to victims by providing not only legal justice but also participation in the process and restorative justice to rebuild the society after mass violence. The thesis is an analysis of the prosecutorial challenges at the International Criminal Court, using its legal framework and jurisprudence to establish facts and reach new conclusions.

1 Summary Crimes against humanity, together with war crimes, crime of agression and Genocide, create a group of so called crimes under the international law. For these crimes it is characteristical that they are so grave and so dangerous that their punishment is a matter of the whole international community. Such punishment for these crimes has already been carried out several times on international level. As an example we can use the tribunals for former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, which are still operating. This thesis deals with crimes against humanity in practice of International Criminal Court. This court, unlike the previous international criminal tribunals, is a permanent judicial institution. The main focus of the research is a substantive law characteristic of crimes against humanity i.e., physical and mental elements of these crimes. The aim of the thesis is to find out whether the International Criminal Court brought some progress to substantive law definition of aforementioned crimes. The thesis is divided into four chapters. The first chapter deals with the position of crimes against humanity in the system of the international law. The aim of this chapter is to define the basic terms of the subject and to determine the position of crimes against humanity in the system of the international law. The...

This thesis deals with crimes against humanity and war crimes in the practice of the International Criminal Court, an institution established to prosecute the most serious crimes of concern to the international community as a whole (which include, in addition to the two types mentioned above, genocide and crimes of aggression). Prosecution of these crimes changed significantly from the military tribunals following World War II to the ad hoc tribunals for former Yugoslavia and Rwanda and finally to the International Criminal Court, which was created as a permanent international institution in 1998 at the Rome Conference and became operational in 2002 after its Statute reached the required number of ratifications. The aim of this thesis is to introduce how crimes against humanity and war crimes have been conceived in the practice of the International Criminal Court with respect to the development of their concept and prosecution by the previous criminal tribunals. The thesis is divided into three main chapters. In the first one, I introduce the topic, specifically the development of the idea to establish a permanent international criminal tribunal as well as its eventual establishment. Furthermore, the first chapter also includes a theoretical introduction to the jurisdiction of the International...

A research report submitted to the School of Human and Community Development, Faculty of Humanities in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master’s in Community-Based Counselling Psychology, September 2017 / Crime on campus may threaten the sustainability of society. Literature states that a university has an ethos – good or bad – and that such moral criteria can transform students’ characters, defining them for future societies. This study reviewed literature to find evidence of a relationship between empathy and helping attitudes/prosocial behaviour, as well as the psychological impact of the fear of crime and victimisation on empathy and helping attitudes. The aim was to explore the existence of a relationship between the levels of empathy in South African students at the University of the Witwatersrand, and the helping attitudes of the same student cohort. A secondary aim was to determine whether empathy and helping attitudes were influenced by the fear of crime and victimisation at a specific South African. The research design was a non-experimental, cross-sectional survey designed to assess levels of empathy, victimisation, fear of crime, and helping attitudes in students who were willing to participate in the study. A university non-probability convenience population was chosen as an appropriate source of data, in accordance with previous research conducted. Firstly, a series of analysis was run; most of the scores on the independent sample t-tests had no statistically significant effect on the scores of helping attitudes, fear of crime on campus, and empathy. The MANOVA was determined to have had no statistically significant effect on the scores of helping attitudes, fear of crime on campus and empathy. Despite the MANOVA indicating no statistically significant results, further analysis was run, the hierarchical multiple regression scores indicated a statistically significant effect on the scores of helping attitudes, fear of crime, and empathy. The significance of current research is that it looks at the progression of factors that could lead to students’ fear of crime on campus. / XL2018

A research report submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts in Clinical Psychology In the faculty of Humanities at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg July 2017 / This research project is a part of a larger umbrella study that aims to explore the perceived psychological effects of Silent Protest day at the University of Witwatersrand. The research participants were students that participated in the event, whether or not they have been victims of sexual violence, or participated to show support for those who have. The intention of this research project was to identify factors that influence the disclosure of sexual violence on the Silent Protest day but also in general, and to explore the process of, and reasons for keeping silent about or disclosing the experience of sexual violence (whether to one person or to many). Sexual violence is a considerably big problem in South Africa, and unfortunately the majority of sexual offences go unreported. It has been shown that survivors of sexual violence often display signs of psychological distress and might develop a psychological disorder. The silence and stigma around sexual violence can prevent victim-survivors from reporting incidents and most importantly from seeking help. Research has shown that emotional inhibition about and/or nondisclosure of traumatic events is significantly associated with psychological problems such as dissociation, anxiety, depression, PTSD and mood disorders. The aims of this research project were therefore to get a better understanding of the nuances surrounding the actual process of disclosure on Silent protest day and in victim-survivors lives, to explore why individuals decide to, or not to, disclose sexual violence, and the emotional and psychological aspects and effects that are elicited and experienced within that process. Five participants that had participated in the 2015 Silent Protest were interviewed. The themes that emerged from the research were: factors that may prevent disclosure; factors that may facilitate disclosure; factors that appear to have a mixed effect on disclosure; and the researcher’s reflections on participants’ disclosure to her. Underlying these themes were various sub-themes such as feelings of shame, not knowing how to disclose, fear, having the opportunity to disclose; the nature of the relationship to the perpetrator; anticipated reaction from others; the survivor’s general feelings on disclosure, and their views of other survivors’ experiences of disclosure. The findings imply that the ability to tease out and understand the survivors’ internal processes from the external factors is key in aiding the actual process of disclosure in a supportive manner. / XL2018

A research report submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts in Clinical Psychology in the Faculty of Humanities at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, August 2017 / This study forms part of the broader project by Dr Yael Kadish, aimed at exploring participants’ experiences of the annual Wits Silent Protest against sexual violence march. This particular study aimed to explore how male supporter participants in the Silent Protest made meaning of their participation in the protest, how they experienced participation in the protest as men, and to explore the views of the male supporter participants on how the protest can improve the experiences of male supporter participants in order to improve male participation. This study is an exploratory study that made use of a qualitative research design. Six males who participated in the Silent Protest at the University of the Witwatersrand in 2015 were interviewed. Participants were recruited on the day of the protest and data was collected using semi-structured in-depth interviews. Reflexivity throughout the research process included considerations of being a woman interviewing men on a relatively sensitive issue, as well as touching on the overlap of advocacy and researcher roles. Five major themes were derived from the interviews: Personal Reasons for Participating in the Protest; Lack of Knowledge and Understanding of the Purpose of the Protest; Sexual Violence Happens only to Women; Negotiating one’s Sense of Masculinity in the Silent Protest; and More Male Faces Needed in the Protest. These themes illuminated three major findings in this study: The first of these is that the issue of sexual violence was thought by interviewees to be a women’s issue. The second is that they often feel that they are unfairly painted as potential perpetrators of sexual assault. Lastly, the third is that participation in the protest appears to be in direct contravention of the ideals of hegemonic masculinity. Finally, it is suggested that in order to lower societal desensitization and the level of tolerance for sexual violence and to effect real social change, it is important to include all members of society - individuals from all social and gender groups and categories, not just women. / XL2018

Les minorités religieuses représentent souvent une composante de la population et se caractérisent par leur différence religieuse qui peut les rendre vulnérables à diverses menaces. Assurer la sécurité et la stabilité des sociétés comportant des minorités religieuses impose l’adoption de dispositions spécifiques. La protection pénale représente ici le moyen juridique le plus efficace, à travers la dissuasion réalisée par les sanctions et les mesures adoptées. Cette étude vise à déterminer le fondement et la portée de ladite protection accordée à des minorités et ce, en établissant une comparaison entre deux systèmes différents devant la religion, le système religieux (libyen et égyptien) et le système laïc (français). Le Statut de la Cour pénale internationale en tant qu’axe complémentaire sera ici un élément neutre par sa position ni laïque, ni religieuse. Cette comparaison s’attachera à l’impact du système juridique adopté quant aux droits des minorités religieuses. / Religious minorities are often a component of the population and are characterized by their religious difference that can make them vulnerable to various threats. Ensuring security and stability of societies with religious minorities requires the adoption of specific provisions. The criminal protection, here, represents the most effective legal means, through deterrence achieved by sanctions and measures adopted. This study aims to determine the effectiveness of that protection extended to minorities in terms of foundation and reach, by making a comparison between two different systems in front of religion: the religious system (Libya and Egypt) and the secular system (French). The Statute of the International Criminal Court as a complementary axis, here, is a neutral element in its position nor secular or religious. This comparison will focus on the impact of the legal system adopted regarding the rights of religious minorities.