synopsis This dissertation examines the erosion of minority rights in Malaysia through the implementation of special measures in favour of the majority Malays. This dissertation will consider the appropriateness, effectiveness and legitimacy of these special measures under cunent international law standards. This involves a comparison of Malaysia's constitutional, legislative and statutory provisions with international principles of customary and treaty law, and applicable regional declarations. This dissertation will conclude by recommending appropriate policy and legislative reform, if such measures are found to be appropriate in the circumstances. Preamble Malaysia achieved independence fiom Britain on 31 August 1957. The Merdeka Independence Proclamation declared that the nation was to be 'founded upon the principle of liberty and justice and ever seeking the welfare and happiness of its people'. Insightful words for a nation built upon by racial, cultural and religious separatism, as the term 'its people' was presumably meant to encompass both the majority Malays as well as all ethnic minorities.' Unfortunately, the sentiment expressed in the Merdeka proclamation was marred by ethnic polarisation and its resultant ethnocentric legal and political system. The reasons for this will be explored in chapter one, which considers Malaysia's historical and cultural development and the eventual mass pluralisation of Malaysia without a unifying national identity. An understanding of the formation of Malaysia's cultural hegemony, and its subsequent ethnic polarisation, is required to appreciate the current status of Malaysia's ethnic minorities. Part A will consider in detail the preferential policies in favour of Malays introduced by the government following the 1969 race riots and the resulting effect this had on the economic, social and cultural rights of non-Malays. The introduction of these policies also led to the implementation of race based quota systems in the education, employment and business sectors. Correspondingly, the socio-economic position of non-Malay minorities have been affected. The legal implications of these policies are discussed in the proceeding chapters and the reasonableness of these policies will be measured against international law standards. To undertake this assessment, Part B discusses the role of international law and examines its implications to Malaysia. It should be noted fiom the outset that although Malaysia is a member State of the United Nations, it has elected not to ratify significant human rights treaties. Given this, chapter two considers the role of customary law as a part of international law and its implications to the observance of fundamental human rights. This chapter aims to establish that Malaysia as a member of the United Nations, and by virtue of customary law, is bound to recognise fundamental human rights. As this dissertation discusses Malaysia's observance of minority rights at international law, part C examines the availability of fundamental human rights to Malaysia's minorities. Part C reconciles Malaysia's pro-Malay preferential policies with minority rights and considers whether minority rights in Malaysia have been eroded through such policies pursuant to international law standards. Chapter four determines whether the language rights of Malaysia's non-bahasa speakers, who also constitute the ethnic minorities, are recognised and protected by Malaysia's national language policy. This chapter also assesses the impact of Malaysia's national language policy and planning on the education and employment rights of non-Malays given the introduction of language based quota systems in both sectors. Chapter five examines the role of Islam in Malaysia and considers the extent of religious freedom available to non-Muslims in Malaysia Chapter six deals with Malaysia's restrictive laws and how these laws were relied on to revise and modify Malaysia's legal system and policies to benefit Malays whilst simultaneously impacting on the civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of non-Malay minorities. Chapter six also considers the potential risks associated with the government's continued reliance on these restrictive laws to 'control' interethnic tensions. On the assumption that Malaysia has breached relevant international law standards in some instances, part D recommends possible methods of legislative and policy reform which may be adopted by the government to remedy these breaches. Part D is the concluding chapter of this dissertation. In concluding, this dissertation examines the impact of ethnic divisions on social and political policies in Malaysia and considers the extent of government intervention in the economy based on race which has ultimately impacted on the protection and implementation of minority rights in Malaysia. It is the writer's opinion that the source of ethnic conflict lies within the introduction of legal doctrines which are purposellly detrimental to the rights of minorities. Accordingly, the concluding chapter recommends reforms to Malaysia's legal system and policies to rninirnise the risk of an eruption of inter-ethnic tensions. The aim of this dissertation is to demonstrate that Malaysia's politicisation of competing ethnic interests has resulted in the maintenance of preferential policies detrimental to minority rights and contrary to international law.

This work offers an analysis of the legal regime for refugee protection in Africa, broadly construed as including both refugee law and human rights elements. The regime is addressed in two parts. Part One analyses the treaty regime, principally comprised of the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, the 1969 Organization of African Unity Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa and the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights. The latter two regional instruments are examined in depth. This includes the first fulsome account of the 1969 Convention's drafting, and original analysis of the relationships of interpretation and the relationships of conflict that arise between the various treaties comprising the regional refugee protection framework. Significant attention in this regard is devoted to various aspects of the relationship between the international and the regional refugee treaties, and to the relationships between African refugee law on the one hand and African human rights law on the other. Part Two focuses on the institutional architecture supportive of the treaty framework addressed in Part One. The Organization of African Unity is addressed in a historical sense, and the contemporary roles of the African Union, the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights and the various African human rights courts are canvassed. This account of the treaty framework, and the institutional architecture, for refugee protection on the continent is the first broad analytical account of the regional law of refugee protection in Africa.

Die navorsingsondersoek is toegespits op tug en straf as agogiese fenomene. Besinning oor tug en straf in pedagogiese, juridiese en ander lewensituasies bring die verband tussen modi van menswees en oorsake van oortredings aan die lig. Juridies-agogiese aspekte van tug is met die pedagogiese vergelyk. 'n Bespreking van tersaaklike statutere bepalings ten opsigte van tugmaatreels en lyfstraf in die onderwyssituasie het aan die lig gebring dat lyfstraf met die grootste versigtigheid en verantwoordelikheid toegepas moet word. Menseregte, strafteoriee wat die doel van straf aandui en alternatiewe vir lyfstraf wat die menswaardigheid van die oortreder bewaar, word bespreek. 'n Moontlike verloop van die strafhandeling is aan die lig gebring. Hierdie verloop beklemtoon dat straf, en veral lyfstraf, nie noodwendig deel van tug hoef te wees nie, omdat tug 'n begeleidingshandeling is. / The research concentrated on discipline (admonishment) and punishment as agogic phenomena. Consideration of discipline and punishment in pedagogic, judicial and other situations in life discloses the connection between modes of being human and reasons for transgressions. Judicial-agogic discipline are compared to pedagogic aspects. A discussion of relevant statutory stipulations relating to disciplinary measures and corporal punishment should either be applied with the greatest care and responsibility or else abolished. Human rights, punishment theories specifying the aim of punishment, and alternatives for corporal punishment which maintain the human dignity of the transgressor are discussed. A possible course of punitive action is revealed. This course stresses that punishment, especially corporal punishment, need not necessarily be part of discipline because discipline is accompaniment. / Educational Studies / M. Ed. (Fundamentele Pedagogiek)

Text in Afrikaans / This study aims at determining the value which is attributed to a wife's household actions in terms of section 7(3)-(6) of the Divorce Act 70 of 1979. The nature, quantity and quality of a wife's contribution are discussed on the basis of various decided cases and on the basis of factors which influence the extent of the redistribution of assets. The comments of various writers on sections 7(3)-(6) of the Divorce Act 70 of 1979 are also discussed. Since there are few decided cases in South Africa which are relevant to this study, a number of foreign legal systems are looked at by way of comparison to determine possible directional trends with regard to the value of a wife's services in the household. / Die doel van hierdie studie is om die waarde van die vrou se dienste in die huishouding te bepaal binne die konteks van eise ingevolge artikels 7(3)-(6) van die Wet op Egskeiding 70 van 1979. Die aard, kwantiteit en kwaliteit van die vrou se bydrae word bespreek aan die hand van regspraak en aan die hand van faktore wat 'n invloed op die omvang van die herverdeling van bates het. Verskeie outeurs se kritiek teen artikels 7(3)-(6) van die Wet op Egskeiding 70 van 1979 word ook bespreek. Aangesien daar in die konteks van hierdie studie min Suid-Afrikaanse regspraak is, word 'n aantal buitelandse regstelsels vergelykenderwys bespreek om moontlike rigtinggewende neigings ten opsigte van die waarde van die vrou se dienste in die huishouding te bepaal. / Private Law / LL. M.

The main objective of this thesis is to provide information about the legal status and activities of a municipality mayor. The topic is related to the analysis of municipality organization and relations among its institutions according to the current legislation, as well as the evaluation of the position of a mayor in various situations that he may encounter during the performance of his duties. The thesis can be divided into several parts. One part consists of the first two chapters which describe the development of local governments and their current legislative framework. The next part consists of chapters Three to Five which deal with the specific functions of a mayor, his rights and obligations in various situations, the start and the end of his mandate, and the position of a deputy mayor. The last part is chapters Six and Seven which describe the legislative framework for local governments in Slovakia and the election process of a mayor there. The seventh chapter primarily deals with the problem concerning the changes in the way mayors are elected in the Czech Republic, from indirect election to a direct one. This diploma thesis is an attempt to summarize information related to the topic. It concerns various spheres of activities of a mayor, legislative framework of the function, which...

M.A. / A child cannot be treated like an adult in many way. Therefore, the approach towards children in all respects of human life are totally different from that of adults. In the field of rights too, the child is vulnerable and often is unaware of his rights given the age, let alone fighting for them. While an adult often fights for his rights, a child requires some sincere person in authority to identify the rights of children, and implement it for them. This thesis aims to introduce to the scholar the intricate and careful approach a society and an individual should have towards that sensitive child. This being the case, children's rights are sometimes manipulated against them by their guardians or those having direct access or influence over them . The severity of this abuse can be gauged from the fact that, whereas the damage of an external attack can be ascertained, the damage left by internal abuse of children cannever be ascertained, and is thought to leave lifelong physical as well as emotional scars. The need to protect children against such a background in this day and age is as acute as ever. The necessity of a work of this nature fills the void in the human rights arena towards defenceless children and provides ammunition to combat abuse, while not actually delving into the aspect of childabuse. The main thrust of this thesis is to highlight the attitude of Islam towards children from the pre-Prophetic times of the Holy Prophet of Allah, Muhammad ibn `Abdullah sallallahu alaihi wa sallam, to modern times. To what extent has the shari`ah of Islam attached importance to the identifying and implementing of children's rights, and for that matter, what is the true status of a child in Islam to be accorded with such numerous protection and rights. It may be argued that this thesis would have been much more fruitful had the aspect of child-abuse been also included. In response, child-abuse is another dissertation of its own and by only educating on the rights of children, child-abuse can be easily identified if these are denied or withheld from any child. It can be safely said that in this fast changing times, the adage of the jungle law survival of the fittest most aptly applies. Not so with the case of children, who have not the makings and capabilities of surviving in a world which they expect their very abusers to reveal to and make comfortable and safe for them. Those in authority got to protect them, and reveal a generation of children untarnished by an abusive background or badly illusioned mode of thinking.

M.A. (Social Work) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

Magister Legum - LLM / The main objectives of this study were to identify the role that customary law and traditional leadership can play, without compromising their current positions or future recognition through legislation, in creating a better life for their constituents. The study analysed diverse issues such as legislative reform, the future role and functions of traditional leaders, training needs of traditional leaders, and the impact of a possible lack of commitment by national and provincial government on the training of traditional leaders to fulfill their functions within the ambit of the Constitution. / South Africa

Magister Legum - LLM / The impact of cultural practices on the advancement of women in Africa: a study of Swaziland and South Africa / South Africa

Magister Legum - LLM / Although the concept of human rights is very much accepted as part of human existence throughout the world today, there is still much controversy surrounding the idea of rights for children. The Constitution, however, not only recognises the fact that like all other members of society, children are capable of being bearers of human rights but emphasises also the special position of children in society by granting them specific rights in the Constitution. Health rights are particularly important for children as the entitlements and obligations created by such rights are necessary for children to realise their full potential. In this thesis the entitlements and obligations attached to children'shealth service rights in the COnstitution are explored. / South Africa