A universal human dignity, conceived as an inherent and inalienable value or worth in all human beings, which ought to be recognised, respected and protected by others, has become one of the most prominent and widely promoted interpretations of human dignity, especially in international human rights law. Yet, it is also one of the most difficult interpretations of human dignity to justify and ground. The fundamental problem rests on how one can justify bestowing an equal high worth to all human lives, whilst also attributing to all human life a worth that is superior to all non-human animal life. To avoid the speciesist charge it seems necessary to provide further reasons, over and above species membership, for why all humans have a unique worth and dignity. However, intrinsic capacities, such as autonomy, intelligence or language use, are too demanding for many humans (including foetuses or the severely cognitively disabled) to meet the required minimum standard, whilst also being obtainable by some non-human animals, regardless of where the level is set. This thesis offers a solution to this problem by turning instead to the significance of the relational ties between individuals or groups that transcend individual capacities and abilities, and consequently does not require that all individuals in the group need meet the minimum required capacity for full moral status. Rather, it is argued that a universal human dignity could be grounded in our social nature, the interconnectedness and interdependence of human life and the morally considerable relationships that can and do arise from it, especially in regards to our shared vulnerability and dependence, and our ability to engage in caring relationships. Care represents the antithesis to the dehumanizing effects of humiliation, and other degrading and dehumanizing acts, and as a relational concept, human dignity is often best realised through our caring relationships. The way that individuals and groups treat each other has a fundamental role in determining both an individual’s sense of self-worth and well-being, as well as their perceived public value and worth. Thus, whilst species membership is not in itself morally fundamental or basic, it often shapes the nature of our social and moral relations. These relational ties between humans, it is argued, distinguish us most clearly from other non-human animals and accord human relationships a special moral significance or dignity.

O instituto jurídico da responsabilidade civil é um dos instrumentos previstos em lei, do qual qualquer paciente pode se valer para promover uma ação de reparação de danos contra o cirurgião-dentista, pelos prejuízos causados. Com o incremento do número de processos, aumenta proporcionalmente a importância do conhecimento das características dessas demandas, no intuito de estabelecer uma orientação fundamentada para que o profissional possa se resguardar e, na ocorrência de lides, encontrar-se municiado para produzir sua competente defesa. Ante tal fato, torna-se fundamental a verificação dos entendimentos dos Tribunais sobre a responsabilidade civil dos cirurgiões-dentistas, sendo que não existem pesquisas que se preocupam em analisar o tema em âmbito nacional. O objetivo deste trabalho foi realizar o levantamento das jurisprudências a respeito das ações de responsabilidade civil promovidas contra o cirurgião-dentista, utilizando a Internet, bem como apresentar o panorama e o entendimento dos principais temas perante os Tribunais do Brasil. Foram obtidos, quando possível, dados relativos à origem, à obrigação assumida, ao seu fundamento, ao agente, à inversão do ônus da prova e às especialidades mais demandadas. Para facilitar a comparação entre os vários entes da Federação, foi proposto um coeficiente de experiência processual que relaciona o número de processos e a quantidade de cirurgiões-dentistas. Foram levantadas 482 jurisprudências, sendo 1 no Supremo Tribunal Federal, 3 no Superior Tribunal de Justiça e 478 nos Tribunais Estaduais e Distrito Federal. Dessas 478, foi possível verificar uma tendência de aumento no número e na quantidade de Estados que tiveram experiências com processos judiciais. Em relação à origem, 18,6% foram consideradas como Contratual, enquanto 6% relacionavam-na como Extracontratual. Foram encontradas 10,6% como obrigação de resultado e, 4,1% como obrigação de meio. Como fundamento, 58,15% tiveram a Teoria Subjetiva, enquanto que 8,15% a Teoria Objetiva. A responsabilidade do agente foi observada como direta em 99,3% e, em 0,6%, como indireta. Houve o deferimento da inversão do ônus da prova em 2,7% dos casos. Em 48,3%, foi possível identificar as especialidades odontológicas, das quais as mais citadas foram: cirurgia (32,9%); prótese (26,4%); ortodontia (15,6%); implantodontia (13%); endodontia (6,5%), periodontia (2,6%); pediatria (1,7%); patologia (0,9%) e, por último, disfunção têmporo-mandibular e dor oro-facial (0,4%). Os Estados que apresentaram maior quantidade de processos foram: Rio de Janeiro, com 107; Minas Gerais, com 101; São Paulo, com 94; Rio Grande do Sul, com 75; o Distrito Federal, com 32. Quanto ao coeficiente de experiência processual, a cada 1.000 profissionais, no Brasil, 2,23 já tiveram experiência com processos. A Região mais exposta a processos foi a Região Sul, seguida das Regiões Centro-Oeste, Sudeste, Norte e Nordeste. Em relação aos Estados e Distrito Federal, verificou-se que o Distrito Federal apresenta 6,22 profissionais processados civilmente a cada 1.000. No Rio Grande do Sul são 5,95; no Rio de Janeiro, 4,22; Minas Gerais, 3,82; Rondônia, 2,15; Paraná, 1,91; Mato Grosso do Sul, 1,81; Espírito Santo, 1,75; Santa Catarina, 1,36; São Paulo, 1,31; Bahia, 1,13; Goiás, 1,06; Tocantins, 0,89; Alagoas, 0,54; Rio Grande do Norte, 0,43; e, por último, no Estado de Pernambuco, 0,18. / The civil liability act is one of the resources provided by law, which can be used by any patient in order to bring a legal action for damages against dentists. With the increase in the number of cases, the necessity of a sound knowledge on the features of these lawsuits has proportionally augmented, so that the professionals may have a solid orientation to protect themselves, and in case of a legal process, be able to produce their competent defense. In view of this fact, the checking of the jurisprudences concerning dentists\' civil liability becomes of paramount importance, since in Brazil there are no studies analyzing this matter. The objective of this study has been to survey the jurisprudences of civil liability lawsuits against dentists, by using the Internet, as well as to present an outlook on jurisprudences related to the main topics in Brazilian Courts. When possible, data have been obtained regarding the origin, professional obligation, legal basis, defendant, inversion of the burden of proof, and more demanded dental specialties. In order to facilitate the comparison between the Brazilian states, a coefficient of procedural experience has been proposed. This coefficient correlates the number of legal processes and the quantity of dentists. 482 jurisprudences have been studied: 01, in the Federal Supreme Court; 03, in the Supreme Court of Justice, and 478, in the State Courts and the Federal District. From these 478, it has been possible to verify an increasing trend in the number and quantity of the states which have experienced lawsuits. As to the origin, 18.6% have been considered contractual, while 6%, extracontractual. 10.6% have been regarded as obligation de résultat (obligation of result), and 4.1%, as obligation de moyens (obligation of means). 58.15% have been legally based on the Subjective Theory, whereas 8.15%, on the Objective Theory. The liability of the defendant has been evaluated as direct in 99.3%, and indirect in 0.6%. The granting of the inversion of the burden of proof has occurred in 2.7% of the cases. It has been possible to identify the dental specialties in 48.3%, from which the most cited ones have been: dental surgery (32.9%), prosthodontics (26.4%), orthodontics (15.6%), implantology (13%), endodontics (6.5%), periodontics (2.6%), pediatrics (1.7%), pathology (0.9%), and finally, temporomandibular joint dysfunction and orofacial pain (0.4%). The states presenting the largest quantity of legal processes have been: Rio de Janeiro, with 107, Minas Gerais with 101, São Paulo with 94, Rio Grande do Sul with 75, the Federal District with 32. Concerning the coefficient of procedural experience, in Brazil, 2.23 professionals have already experienced lawsuits out of 1,000. The Southern Region has had more lawsuits, followed by the Central-Western, Southeastern, Northern, and Northeastern ones. In relation to the states and the Federal District, it has been noted that the Federal District have presented 6.22 professionals who have faced civil lawsuit out of 1,000; Rio Grande do Sul, 5.95; Rio de Janeiro, 4.22; Minas Gerais, 3.82; Rondônia, 2.15; Paraná, 1.91; Mato Gosso do Sul, 1.81; Espírito Santo, 1.75; Santa Catarina, 1.36; São Paulo, 1.31; Bahia, 1.13; Goiás, 1.06; Tocantins, 0.89; Alagoas, 0.54; Rio Grande do Norte, 0.43; and Pernambuco, 0,18.

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / This study entails an historical investigation of how the All Africa Conference of Churches (AACC) has addressed the ecumenical tension between ecclesiology and ethics in its history between 1963 and 2013. The study is arguably the first comprehensive analysis of the history of the AACC focussing on ecclesiology and ethics and will therefore make an original contribution to ecumenical theology in Africa in this regard. The study argues that the tension between what the church is (read: ecclesiology) and what it does (read: ethics) has undeniably been present in the ecumenical movement in Africa. The study is situated within two concentric contexts. Firstly, it is located within the context of the WCC study project on ecclesiology and ethics that was conducted during the period 1992 to 1996 and will contribute to wider discourse in this regard. The WCC project was an attempt to bridge a deep divide in the ecumenical movement between those who emphasise that the way to unity is through doctrinal agreement and those who believe that “doctrine divides” while a common moral cause (service) may unite. Secondly, this study is aimed at discerning how the AACC has addressed the relationship between the theological quest for unity (read: ecclesiology) and the social responsibility of the church (read: ethics). The study examines how the AACC assisted its member churches to respond to contemporary challenges in three distinct periods in recent African history, namely the periods of decolonisation (1963-1974), development (1975-1992) and neo-liberal globalisation (1993-2013). The hypothesis of this study is that these periods correlate with the AACC’s ways of negotiating the tension between ecclesiology and ethics. The study argues that although the AACC has privileged the social agenda of the church in society (read: ethics), the ecumenical quest for ecclesial unity (read: ecclesiology) has not been completely absent. While the study acknowledges that the tension between ecclesiology and ethics is not easily resolved, it affirms that these two ecumenical concerns are inseparable. The study therefore suggests an appropriation of the African notion of ubuntu as a horizon for ecclesiology and ethics. The intuition behind the proposal is that ubuntu resonates with biblical notions of koinonia and diakonia and is thus an apt notion for an articulation of the interconnectedness between ecclesiology and ethics. The study is divided into two parts, comprising eight chapters. The first part covers four chapters in which I offer an historical background to the modern ecumenical movement, an analysis of the ecclesiology and ethics debate in the wider ecumenical context and a brief institutional history of the AACC. The second part of the study comprises three chapters. Therein, I present a critical analysis of the AACC’s handling of the tension between ecclesiology and ethics in the period 1963-2013. Each chapter describes and analyses the various ways in which the AACC addressed the tension between the theological quest for the visible unity of the church on the one hand (read: ecclesiology) and the social responsibility of the church (read: ethics) on the other in specific socio-historical contexts. The hypothesis of the study is confirmed on the basis of such analysis. This study contributes to discourse in African theology on authenticity (read: ecclesiology) as expressed in theologies of inculturation and indigenisation and on social relevance (read: ethics) as expressed in theologies of liberation and reconstruction. It further contributes to academic reflection on the history of the ecumenical movement in Africa and the quest for an appropriate ecumenical vision on the African continent amidst the tensions between mainline churches, independent churches (AICs) and a variety of Pentecostal churches and the many social challenges that churches have to address. / Sakupapa, T.C. (2017). Ecclesiology and ethics: An analysis of the history of the All Africa Conference of Churches (1963 - 2013). PhD thesis. University of the Western Cape. http://hdl.handle.net/11394/5534

Doctor Legum - LLD / This thesis concerns the tension that exists between the principles of certainty and freedom of contract (which includes the notion of contractual discretionary powers) and how this tension impacts on the requirement that agreement must be reached on the price and rental in contracts of sale and lease, respectively. The matter at issue is whether South African law should recognise the validity of contracts of sale at a reasonable price and lease and rental respectively, and/or at a unilaterally determined price or rental as suggested in an obiter dictum of the Supreme Court of Appeal in NBS Boland Bank v One Berg River Drive and Others; Deeb and Another v ABSA Bank Ltd; Friedman v Standard Bank of South Africa Ltd 1999 (4) SA 928 (SCA) and in an obiter dictum of the then Appellate Division in Genac Properties JHB (Pty) Ltd v NBC Administrators CC 1992 (1) SA 566 (AD). Currently, the law requires that the price (in the case of sale) or the rental (in the case of lease) must be certain, in the sense that it is either ascertained or objectively ascertainable. The price is ascertainable if there is agreement between the contractants on an external standard in light of which the price may be ascertained objectively without further reference to the contractants: Westinghouse Brake & Equipment (Pty) Ltd v Bilger Engineering (Pty) Ltd 1986 (2) SA 555 (A). The obiter dicta in the One Berg River and Genac cases suggest that an agreement to a reasonable price or rental or to unilaterally determined price or rental meets this requirement. The basis for both obiter dicta can be found in the principles of freedom and sanctity of contract that form the cornerstones of the South African law of contract. The conceptual framework of public policy forms the outer limits of both freedom and sanctity of contract. The thesis considers whether a development in South African law that recognises the validity of a contract of sale or lease at a price or rental determined unilaterally by a contractant or at a reasonable price or rental, respectively, is contrary to public policy as informed by the values embodied in the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa 1996 iv and whether it would promote consensus and certainty, which are foundational principles of South African law of contract. Consideration is also be given to the question whether such a development is defensible in law, and desirable as a matter of policy and practice.

The title of this mini dissertation is: “The role of the church in respect of restorative justice in the South African criminal justice system: a theological ethical perspective”. The purpose of this study is to investigate the concept of restorative justice from a theological ethical perspective and to see how it is applied in the South African criminal justice system so that it can be determined what role the church can play in this regard. In the South African criminal justice system, the focus has been on the perpetrator and how she/he has come into conflict with the state. The fact that in most crimes, victims are affected by the crime, has traditionally not been taken seriously. In this regard the concept of restorative justice can play a vital role. In the second chapter the concept of restorative justice is explained and it is shown what its relationship to retribution is. Various definitions of restorative justice is then given and it is then shown how restorative justice and the concept of ubuntu are interlinked. In Chapter 3, the role of restorative justice in the South African criminal justice system, is discussed. It is shown that restorative justice is already being implemented at various stages of the criminal justice system and also how the Child Justice Act, Act 75 of 2008, has made restorative justice an essential aspect of the child justice system. It then sets out in Chapter 4 the Biblical basis for restorative justice in both the Old and New Testaments and argues that Biblical justice is essentially restorative in nature. It is pointed out that the foundations of Biblical justice are Shalom, Covenant and Torah. On this basis it is then indicated that Biblical justice is an attribute of God, an object of hope and a primary obligation. It leads to a commitment to action and is a relational reality. Because of this relational aspect, it is then indicated how justice is a restorative activity. The Lex Talionis is then discussed and it is shown how retribution and restoration can walk hand in hand as two sides of the same coin. Jesus and Paul’s understanding of Justice is then discussed. In Jesus’s attitude towards forgiveness and the Lex Talionis, it is shown how the restoration of relationships are of primary concern to him. Paul’s view of Justice is then discussed and it is shown that for him Christ’s death is an act of justice which is driven by his love and therefore also restorative in nature. In the last chapter, the role of the Church in Restorative Justice, is discussed. It is shown how churches can support the Restorative Justice movement and mobilize the community to assist in making restorative justice an integral part of the criminal justice system. Finally, suggestions are made as to how churches (and their members) can get involved with victims and perpetrators of crime. Copyright 2011, University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. Please cite as follows: Van Rooyen, GHG 2011, Die rol van die Kerk ten aansien van herstellende geregtigheid in die Suid-Afrikaanse strafregstelsel : 'n Teologies-etiese perspektief (Afrikaans), MA(Theol) dissertation, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, viewed yymmdd < http://upetd.up.ac.za/thesis/available/etd-03142012-200732 / > C12/4/811/gm / Dissertation (MA(Theol))--University of Pretoria, 2013. / Dogmatics and Christian Ethics / unrestricted

This dissertation is a qualitative interview study conducted with staff and residents at Sparrow Rainbow Village, an HIV/AIDS community. The purpose of this research was to explore the perception of the role of music held by members for their community, and specifically its role in creating a sense of community, as well as to investigate the implications these perceptions might have for setting up a community music therapy project. The interviews revealed a struggle with establishing a community identity that embraced health, as well as feeling isolated from the greater community. Music was seen as a means of bringing people together both within the community and serving to bridge the gap with the wider community and in so doing, empowering both communities simultaneously. / Dissertation (MMus (Music Therapy))--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Music / unrestricted

This study provides a critical interrogation of the perceptions held by the undergraduate Philosophy of Education students at an open and distance learning institution, towards African philosophy. The study is premised on famed Kenyan philosopher, Odera Henry Oruka‟s classification of African philosophy into four trends: ethno-philosophy, philosophic sagacity, nationalist-ideological philosophy and professional philosophy. These trends confirm that African philosophy is more than traditions, culture or ubuntu, and more complex than the students make it to be. The study makes a link between the students‟ flawed perceptions of African philosophy with their lack of critical thinking skills. The study has attempted to answer questions such as why students have flawed perceptions of African philosophy; how critical thinking assists in changing their perceptions of African philosophy, and what role can the education system play in equipping students with critical thinking skills. The study‟s findings show that undergraduate Philosophy of Education students conflate African philosophy with African people‟s traditions and cultures, and with ubuntu. Students perceive that African philosophy lacks reason and rationality - key elements of critical thinking. The study‟s findings show that students lack critical thinking skills. The study notes that the way students are taught makes a large contribution to their perceptions and lack of critical thinking skills. The study makes the following recommendations. Firstly, to deal with the problem of students‟ conflations, the study recommends the introduction of the principles of African philosophy, namely, ubuntu, communalism and indigenous knowledge systems (IKS) in the school curriculum, and to emphasise these principles in the curricula of higher education institutions. Secondly, the study recommends the introduction of philosophy for children (P4C) in schools. It is envisaged that P4C will assist learners to acquire critical thinking skills at an early stage of learning. Thirdly, the study recommends the teaching of critical thinking skills at universities. Finally, the study recommends that in- service training be made an integral part of teachers‟ and lecturers‟ professional training, to bring them up-to-date with new ideas and methods of teaching. / Educational Studies / D. Ed. (Philosophy of Education)

The master’s thesis deals with Domain Name System (DNS) and its practical use. It describes hierarchy of domain names, resource record types, protocol used, as well as DNSSEC extension. The most utilized implementations of authoritative and recursive DNS servers are presented. Virtualization, containers and other tools with potential use in labs are described. Two lab scenarios in virtualized environment with instructions for students were designed and developed in this thesis.

The work deals with the use of software-defined radio as a probe for monitoring the operation of wireless communication according to the IEEE 802.11a/g standard. In the theoretical introduction, the concept of software-defined radio as a hardware device with software programmable circuits enabling the transmission or reception of signals in theoretically any frequency band is introduced. The introduction also contains adescription of selected devices and the IEEE 802.11 protocol with its most used additionsand modulations. In the first part of the practical part of the work, wireless communication is capturedusing a wireless network card in monitoring mode. The intercepted communication was decrypted and this decrypted traffic was compared with the data captured by the probe within the network. These results then served as acomparative basis for software-defined radio capturing. The focus of this work is to verify the capabilities of software-defined radio and its use for sniffing wireless communicationin the frequency band 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz. The attempt to use a software-defined radio here results from the scalability and adaptability that a wireless card cannot offer due to fixed hardware parameters. LimeSDR mini, LimeSDR and bladeRF 2.0 devices were used for capture. First, the configuration of the operating system, the installation of drivers and programs for control and work with selected devices are described. After verifying the functionality of the software-defined radio, a model of a signal decoder with the parameters of the IEEE 802.11g standard captured from the radio spectrum was put into operation. Finally, the data streams captured by the software-defined radio and the wireless network card were compared side by side. The results showed that the software-defined radio in the used configuration captures only a part of the total volume of transmitted frames.

Skuld en vergifnis is komplekse konstrukte wat deur die eeue in verskillende religieuse, sosiologiese, psigologiese, wetlike en private sfere ontwikkel het en steeds ontwikkel. Hierdie konstrukte word gesien as deel van die menslike kondisie. Hierdie mini-verhandeling lewer ’n ondersoekende literêre oorsig na die ontwikkeling van die konstrukte skuld en vergifnis, met spesifieke verwysing na: • bestaande perspektiewe en post-strukturele teorieë aangaande skuld en vergifnis; • aspekte van skuld en vergifnis wat neerslag vind in die politieke, sielkundige, sosiale, filosofiese en religieuse domeine; • die metodiek en ritueel rondom die gee en ontvang van vergifnis. Die navorsing stel voor dat skuld en vergifnis as ideologiese raamwerke kan dien om die wêreld, samelewing en letterkunde te analiseer. In die ontleding van die roman 30 nagte in Amsterdam, deur Etienne van Heerden (2008), word aangetoon hoe aspekte van skuld en vergifnis verbeeld word deur die gebruik van die volgende narratiewe struktuurelemente: karakters en karakterisering, plot of intrige, verteller en perspektief, tyd en ruimte. / Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / gm2014 / Afrikaans / unrestricted