With a history of racial discrimination, which inevitably led to illegal occupations of private and public land and subsequent violent evictions, South Africans have enjoyed constitutional protection against illegal and forcible evictions since the mid-1990s. Sweden, a country considerably less accustomed to illegal occupations, does not guarantee the same protection against forcible evictions. However, the recent influx of Roma from Romania and Bulgaria to Sweden without the means to support themselves has resulted in an increase of illegal occupations and led to evictions from publicly owned land. This paper examines: (i) how the case of South Africa relates to the situation in Sweden, (ii) the extent of legal protection offered by Sweden relating to the right to housing and (iii), whether when carrying out such evictions, Sweden respects European legislation and precedent. The results show that South African and European courts have interpreted the right to housing as a right to alternative accommodation for illegal occupants. With no constitutional right to housing in Sweden, legislation only guarantees the right to housing for holders of a permanent right of residence. For EEA citizens, such as Romanians or Bulgarians, the right of residence is conditional. In the absence of a legal obligation to consider the situation of illegal occupiers or to provide alternative accommodation, there seems to be a gap in Swedish legislation; leading to a failure on the behalf of the state to adhere to European commitments and to protect those most vulnerable in society.

This thesis explores the British Commonwealth experience of occupation in Japan from 1945-1952. It draws on official and private records from the four participating British Commonwealth countries ??? Australia, Britain, India and New Zealand- to examine the complex relationship that developed between the occupying troops and the occupied Japanese population in the period between the cessation of hostilities and the formal ratification of a Peace Treaty. The thesis begins with an analysis of the preconceptions British Commonwealth troops brought with them to Japan, to establish the context for their cross-cultural encounter with Japan and the Japanese people. An understanding of the historical background enables the impressions formed by BCOF troops during the occupation to be presented not as random observations, but as part of a tradition of contact and cultural critique. The British Commonwealth experience in Japan was shaped by a number of external factors. Delays in moving to Japan weakened media and public interest in the force, eroded morale and precipitated a ???foreign force??? mentality. Once in Japan, the dominant US presence, the subordinate status of BCOF and the shortcomings of the isolated, rural area allocated to the force were a source of disappointment and frustration. But the difficulties attending British Commonwealth involvement in the occupation should not obscure the simultaneous development of a significant cultural encounter. The circumstances of the occupation created a particular dynamic between BCOF troops and Japanese civilians. The responsibilities and obligations that SCAP conferred on the British Commonwealth force invested BCOF personnel with authority over the Japanese. The disparity in power was reinforced by participation in occupation tasks that confirmed their status as occupiers. The occupation relationship was heavily influenced by the nature of personal interactions established between BCOF personnel and the Japanese people. Service in Japan provided opportunities for troops to reassess their views of the Japanese in the light of personal experience. For some, the cultural differences they observed only reinforced their sense of the ???otherness??? of the Japanese. For many others, the occupation provided a bridge between war and peace, as contact with Japanese people eased the intense hatreds generated during the war. For most British Commonwealth personnel, service with BCOF impacted in some way on the beliefs they held about Japan and the Japanese.

This thesis explores the British Commonwealth experience of occupation in Japan from 1945-1952. It draws on official and private records from the four participating British Commonwealth countries ??? Australia, Britain, India and New Zealand- to examine the complex relationship that developed between the occupying troops and the occupied Japanese population in the period between the cessation of hostilities and the formal ratification of a Peace Treaty. The thesis begins with an analysis of the preconceptions British Commonwealth troops brought with them to Japan, to establish the context for their cross-cultural encounter with Japan and the Japanese people. An understanding of the historical background enables the impressions formed by BCOF troops during the occupation to be presented not as random observations, but as part of a tradition of contact and cultural critique. The British Commonwealth experience in Japan was shaped by a number of external factors. Delays in moving to Japan weakened media and public interest in the force, eroded morale and precipitated a ???foreign force??? mentality. Once in Japan, the dominant US presence, the subordinate status of BCOF and the shortcomings of the isolated, rural area allocated to the force were a source of disappointment and frustration. But the difficulties attending British Commonwealth involvement in the occupation should not obscure the simultaneous development of a significant cultural encounter. The circumstances of the occupation created a particular dynamic between BCOF troops and Japanese civilians. The responsibilities and obligations that SCAP conferred on the British Commonwealth force invested BCOF personnel with authority over the Japanese. The disparity in power was reinforced by participation in occupation tasks that confirmed their status as occupiers. The occupation relationship was heavily influenced by the nature of personal interactions established between BCOF personnel and the Japanese people. Service in Japan provided opportunities for troops to reassess their views of the Japanese in the light of personal experience. For some, the cultural differences they observed only reinforced their sense of the ???otherness??? of the Japanese. For many others, the occupation provided a bridge between war and peace, as contact with Japanese people eased the intense hatreds generated during the war. For most British Commonwealth personnel, service with BCOF impacted in some way on the beliefs they held about Japan and the Japanese.

Doctor Legum - LLD / The research problem of this study is the jurisprudential inconsistency in the application of the right in section 26(3) of the South African Constitution's Bill of Rights. The inconsistency is due to inadequate conceptualisation of the substantive requirements of meaningful engagement (ME) by the South African Constitutional Court (ConCourt). The central argument is that the development of a community engagement model based on the substantive requirements of ME will enhance the application of section 26(3). This study commences by illustrating the disempowering nature to the squatters of the apartheid evictions in South Africa. To tighten influx control, the apartheid regime introduced a battery of laws that disempowered the squatters. The apartheid-induced disempowerment of the squatters penetrated into the democratic dispensation. In the examination of the normative context of evictions post-1994, this study identifies six primary drivers for substantive involvement of the occupiers during evictions. The six primary drivers seek to address the disempowering trajectory during evictions.