This limited scope dissertation deals with the protection against torture in international law. The mechanisms which have been established over the years to protect individuals against torture are analysed. The principles of international customary law dealing with torture and the United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (UNCAT) have been examined against the failure by States to honour their obligations under the Treaty and other legal normative rules. This required deep exploration of the definition of torture and how States can compromise the rule of law by manipulating the definition of torture as contemplated by the Treaty or other instruments. Examples from the former US government highlight the ways in which domestic laws can be used and are continued to be used to allow the use of torture. Measures by South Africa in joining the international community in the fight against torture are also discussed as a case study. While all efforts have been made by the South African system to adopt desirable frame works on the protection of individuals against torture, the lack of education on torture remains the down fall of the system. The dissertation clearly explains that universal jurisdiction applies in respect of torture and this is recognised by both treaty law and customary law. Indeed despite all the current measures in place the use of torture persists. The research clearly reveals that countries hide behind their own laws to perpetrate acts of torture. It is then recommended that proper implementation of the legal structures, informed of the objectives of the structures, is essential in completely eradicating torture. / Public, Constitutional, and International Law / LLM

Les savoirs traditionnels médicinaux c’est-à-dire l’aspect de la médecine traditionnelle portant sur des connaissances relatives au médicament traditionnel à base de plantes, qui part de la collecte des végétaux jusqu’au produit final, constituent un élément important dans la réalisation de la couverture des besoins de santé publique. En Afrique, les savoirs traditionnels médicinaux contribuent selon l’Organisation mondiale de la santé (OMS) à hauteur de 80% des besoins de santé des populations. Les savoirs traditionnels médicinaux représentent une source d’informations notamment dans la perspective d’une éradication des maladies endémiques du continent africain. L’OMS, et l’Union africaine (UA) voient dans les savoirs traditionnels médicinaux une piste de recherche en vue du développement de nouveaux médicaments à des prix abordables. Leur importance est aussi constatée au niveau de l’industrie du médicament où ils représentent 30% de la recherche dans l’industrie pharmaceutique et l’essentiel des informations dans le secteur des phytomédicaments. Cette appétence pour les savoirs traditionnels médicinaux ainsi que la médiatisation des actes de biopiraterie, ont contribué à renforcer leur valeur (sur les plans scientifique, économique, social et politique) et à justifier la nécessité de les protéger. Cependant, contrairement à la tendance actuelle des pays africains, l’Organisation africaine de la propriété intellectuelle (OAPI), à travers son Accord de Bangui révisé, ne dispose pas de mécanismes de propriété intellectuelle permettant une protection satisfaisante des droits des détenteurs de savoirs traditionnels médicinaux (tradipraticiens, familles, communautés autochtones et locales). Face à ce qui s’apparente à un vide juridique, il convient de s’interroger sur le régime juridique à mettre en place. Autrement dit, quel système sui generis de protection des savoirs traditionnels médicinaux faut-il envisager pour les pays membres de l’OAPI? C’est à cette interrogation que la présente étude se propose d’apporter des éléments de réponses. L’objectif visé sera de démontrer, dans le cadre d’une démarche prospective prenant appui notamment sur les droits de l’homme, le droit international de la propriété intellectuelle, le droit civil, le droit de la biodiversité, et les lois nationales, en particulier, celles de la République du Congo (Brazzaville), qu’il est possible d’établir au sein de l’OAPI un régime juridique cohérent et adapté à même de répondre aux besoins et attentes des différents acteurs intervenant dans l’exploitation de ces créations intellectuelles. / Traditional medical knowledge, which is the aspect of traditional medicine relating to the knowledge of plant-based therapy and which goes from collecting plants to issuing a finished product, is a key component for providing health care coverage for all. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), traditional medical knowledge contributes about 80% of primary health care in Africa. Traditional medical knowledge is perceived as a valuable source of information useful to eradicate African endemic diseases. The WHO and the African Union (AU) consider that traditional medical knowledge is a serious way for researchers to develop new and affordable drugs. Traditional medicinal knowledge is also important for the drug industry where it represents 30% of the researches made in the pharmaceutical sector and constitutes the main source of information in the herbal medicine sector. The drug industry’s increasing interest for traditional medical and the huge media coverage for biopiracy cases strengthened the (scientific, economic, social and politic) value of traditional medicinal knowledge and contribute to justify their protection. However contrary to the current trend in many African countries, it appears that the African Intellectual Property Organization (OAPI) and the Bangui Agreement, does not provide any suitable legal protective mechanism for the intellectual property rights of the holders of traditional medical knowledge (traditional healers, families, indigenous and local communities).In view of the limits and weaknesses of the intellectual property mechanisms to provide an effective protection to traditional medicinal knowledge’s holders, it is quite legitimate to question the legal mechanism or system to implement. In other words, what type of sui generis protection OAPI members can enact to protect traditional medicinal knowledge? This is the question that the present study intends to answer. The aim is to demonstrate from a prospective approach with regards to human rights, international intellectual property law, civil law, biodiversity law, and national laws, in particular the ones of the Republic of Congo (Brazzaville), that it is possible to build a coherent and adapted legal regime.

Le régime juridique de l'Enfant Associé aux Forces et Groupes Armés âgé de plus de quinze ans auteurs d'infractions graves est incohérent. En effet, il permet à son titulaire d'obtenir le statut de combattant, sans que pour autant sa responsabilité ne soit automatiquement engagée en cas de commission d'infractions graves. Cette situation s'explique par le fait que la communauté internationale est divisée sur sa nature juridique: il est perçu en tant que victime ou criminel. Cette incertitude a pour conséquence de créer de l'insécurité juridique car il ne sais pas au préalable quel sort lui sera réservé par la Justice. Cette réalité profite au recruteur qui le pousse à commettre les crimes les plus graves. L'enfant se sent ainsi tout-puissant. Toutefois, à l'issue du conflit, il risque d'être rejeté par sa communauté l'identifiant en tant que bourreau. Sa réinsertion est donc compromise. Afin de pallier cette situation, une harmonisation de l'âge du combattant devrait être envisagée afin de clarifier son régime de responsabilité. En attendant, le stand minimal est de quinze ans. S'il n'est pas considéré comme étant trop jeune pour prendre les armes, il doit être aussi en capacité de rendre des comptes. Mais comment ? À travers la Justice Transitionnelle de manière générale et plus précisément par la création d'un Tribunal Spécial pour Enfants Auteurs d'Infractions Graves qui a pour fonction de juger ceux qui ont le plus au degré de responsabilité dans la commission des crimes. Pour les autres, il est envisagé la valorisation de mécanismes de Justice Restauratrice qui répondent à leurs besoins, à celles de leurs victimes et de leur communauté tout entière. / The legal justice mechanism of the Child Associated with Armed Forces and Groups of more than fifteen years old of serious offenders is inconsistent. In fact, this kid's allowed to obtain the combatant status even if he never assumes automatically his responsibilities when he commits serious offences. It's because the international community is divided and considers him as a victim or a criminal. This uncertainty creates the effect of legal insecurity since he doesn't know how he'll be treated by Justice. This situation benefits to his recruiter who encourages him to commit the most serous crimes. The child feels almighty. But at the end of the conflict, he may probably rejected by this community who considers him as an executioner. So, his reintegration is compromise. To rectify this situation, harmonizing the age of the fighter should be a solution to clarity his accountability status. For the moment, fifteen years old appears as minimum standard. If the child isn't so youth to take arms, he can bear his accountability. But how? Whith Transitional Justice in general and more specifically the creation of a Special Court for Serious Violations which judge those who have the highest level of responsibility in the commission of the crime. For the others, we propose Restorative Justice that meet their needs, those of their victims and their entire community.

Thèse réalisée en cotutelle entre l'Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne et l'Université de Montréal. / Au-delà des conceptions étatiques de la représentation politique, liées à l’expression parlementaire de la volonté générale ou à l’élection, la présente étude envisage d’autres mécanismes de représentation, à travers l’analyse du statut coutumier particulier des populations autochtones. La conception coutumière de la représentation peut se traduire par la désignation non électorale des représentants et par une délibération consensuelle dont les décisions sont imputables à la communauté qui y prend part. Dès lors, comment la représentation coutumière peut-elle coexister avec les conceptions étatiques de la représentation politique, telles qu’elles sont définies en droit, avec une certaine ambivalence, par l’expression de la volonté générale ou par l’expression des urnes ? L’analyse historique et comparative permet d’apporter une réponse éclairée par les expériences juridiques canadiennes et françaises. L’étude porte d’abord sur les tensions persistantes au sein des systèmes de représentation, oscillant entre l’uniformisation des conceptions et la survivance des coutumes. Elle s’intéresse, ensuite, aux récentes solutions d’harmonisation, permises par l’adaptation des droits positifs canadien et français : les éléments communs de la représentation tendent à s’organiser au sein d’institutions partagées et les dissemblances, par des institutions représentatives autonomes. Il en ressort que, loin d’être toujours conflictuelle, la coexistence des systèmes de représentation et des conceptions qui en résultent pourrait être vectrice d’un équilibre et d’un enrichissement certain pour la représentation politique dans son ensemble. / Beyond state conceptions of political representation related to the parliamentary expression of the general will or to elections, the present study considers other mechanisms of representation, through the analysis of the particular customary status of indigenous communities. The customary conception of representation can take the form of the non-electoral designation of representatives and consensual deliberation whose decisions are accountable to the community that takes part in it. Hence, how can customary representation coexist with state conceptions of political representation, as defined in law, with some ambivalence, as the expression of the general will or the expression of the ballot ? A historical and comparative analysis of the Canadian and French legal provide insights pertinent to that question. The study begins with the persistent tensions within the systems of representation, oscillating between the unification of concepts and the survival of customs. Then, the study highlights recent harmonization efforts, made possible by the adaptation of Canadian and French positive law : the common elements of representation tend to be organized within shared institutions and the dissimilarities, by autonomous representative institutions. It concludes that, far from being always conflicting, the coexistence of representation systems and the resulting conceptions could be a carrier of balance and enrichment for political representation as a whole.

No description available.

Water has been used for military purposes in the past and still continues today, i.e. poisoning of enemy water, attacking enemy water installations, etc. This conduct denies access to water, affects the supply of water, health, supply of electricity, etc. Public international law, such as treaties (e.g. The 1949 Geneva Conventions), customary international law, etc, regulate the protection of water during armed conflict. Chapter I of the dissertation analizes the public international law ire the abovementioned. The application of public inteniational law, depends on the municipal law of the state concerned. This municipal law is, in the case of South Africa, found in the 1996 Constitution. The 1996 Constitution contains specific provisions regarding inter alia the legal obligations of the South African security services, the legal status of international agreements, as well as the application of customary international law and international law. Chapter II of the dissertation analizes the abovementioned wrt the legal obligations of the SA National Defence Force ire the subject matter. / Constitutional, International & Indigenous Law / LL.M. (Public International Law)

The study sought to determine, first, what the rules of the Hananwa family law were and, second, whether those rules were compatible with the Constitution. First, it documented the rules of the official family law. The problem that the study countenanced is that customary law is "corrupted, inauthentic and lacking authority".1 Second, it established and documented the rules of the Hananwa family law. The problem that the study countenanced in respect of Hananwa law was that it was difficult to ascertain the content of the rules of the "living" Hananwa law in order to determine their compatibility with the provisions of the Bill of Rights. Moreover, the traditional Hananwa community is inegalitarian and patriarchal. Section 9 of the Constitution provides that everyone is equal before the law and enjoys equal and full protection and benefit of the law. The study found that the Hananwas still observe their system of customary law. However, there are visible changes. For instance, nowadays the spousal consent is a validity requirement for all customary marriages. A parent or legal guardian must consent to a customary marriage of a minor. The individual spouses, not their families, are parties to their own customary marriages. African women enjoy equal status. This development is consistent with section 9 of the Constitution read with section 6 of the Recognition of Customary Marriages Act 120 of 1998. According to the Constitutional Court, in MM v MN and Another 2013 4 SA 415 (CC), the first wife must consent to her husband's customary marriage to another woman in addition to her customary marriage to him. However, some rules of the Hananwa law do not comply with the provisions of the Bill of Rights. For instance, according to the Hananwa law, extramarital children do not enjoy equal inheritance rights and maintenance rights yet. This discrimination is inconsistent with the constitutional right to equality and the provisions of the Reform of Customary Laws of Succession and Regulations of Related Matters Act 11 of 2009.The Constitution puts common law and customary law on a par. However, the courts have often replaced customary law dispute resolution rules with the common law rules. For instance, the Constitutional Court in Bhe and Others v Magistrate, Khayelitsha and Others; Shibi v Sithole and South African Human Rights Commission and Another v President of the Republic of South Africa and Another 2005 1 SA 580 (CC) and the High Court in Maluleke v Minister of Home Affairs 2008 JDR 0426 (W) substituted the rules of common law for those of customary law in order to resolve customary law disputes. The legislature could not be outdone. A meticulous study of the Recognition of Customary Marriages Act 120 of 1998 and the Reform of Customary Laws of Succession and Regulations of Related Matters Act 11 of 2009 reveals that their provisions almost appropriately reflect the common law marriage and intestate succession rules respectively. The Recognition of Customary Marriages Act has, furthermore, adopted the provisions of the Divorce Act of 1979. Section 28 of the Constitution read with the Children's Act 38 of 2005 has generally substituted the fundamental human rights for the unequal rights provided by the customary law of parent and child. The Maintenance Act 99 of 1998 has substituted the communal form of maintenance under customary law. / Public, Constitutional, & International Law / LLD (International and Constitutional Law)

In Venda with English abstract / Hei thyisisi i vhambedza thandululo ya thaidzo dza mafhungo a ṱhalano khoroni dza musanda na khothe dza muvhuso. Saizwi Ndayotewa ya Riphabuḽiki ya Afrika Tshipembe, mulayo 108 wa 1996, i tshi ṋea muṅwe na muṅwe pfanelo dza u shumisa luambo lune a lu takalela, nyambo dzoṱhe dza tshiofisi dzi tea u shumiswa u lingana kha thandululo ya thaidzo dza ṱhalano khoroni na khothe. Hei thyisisi i sumbedza nyambo dza English na Afrikaans dzi dzone dzi re na mutsindo musi hu tshi itwa thandulululo ya thaidzo dza ṱhalano ngeno luambo lwa Tshivenḓa na lwa vhaholefhali vha u pfa lu sa pfali. Nga nnḓa ha u ḓiphina nga mbofholowo ya u shumisa Tshivenḓa sa luambo lwa tshiofisi kha u amba, lu shumiswa zwenezwo fhedzi huna muṱalutshedzi wa khothe. Ngauralo, hei thyisisi i khou ita khuwelelo ya uri tshifhinga tsho swika tsha uri muvhuso u ṋee luambo lwa Tshivenḓa vhuiimo vhu eḓanaho na nyambo dza English na Afrikaans na uri ulu luambo lu shumiswevho kha thandululo ya thaidzo dza mafhungo a ṱhalano khothe dza muvhuso. / This thesis compares the conflict resolution in divorce discourse between traditional and government courts. It argues that since the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa Act no 108 of 1996 has given everyone the right to use the language of his or her choice, all official languages must be used equitably in conflict resolutions in divorce discourse in both traditional and government courts. Most of the Vhavenḓa, especially the elderly, cannot speak more than one official language and this is relevant in conflict resolution. This thesis contends that conflict resolution in divorce discourse is mainly dominated by English and Afrikaans while Tshivenḓa as well as sign language is not used. Instead of enjoying the freedom of utilizing Tshivenḓa as a spoken official language as used by the court interpreter. Therefore, this thesis argues that time has come that government courts accord equal status to all official languages and that Tshivenḓa language should be utilized as English and Afrikaans in conflict resolution in divorce discourse. / African languages / D. Litt. et Phil. (African Languages)

The study sought to determine, first, what the rules of the Hananwa family law were and, second, whether those rules were compatible with the Constitution. First, it documented the rules of the official family law. The problem that the study countenanced is that customary law is "corrupted, inauthentic and lacking authority".1 Second, it established and documented the rules of the Hananwa family law. The problem that the study countenanced in respect of Hananwa law was that it was difficult to ascertain the content of the rules of the "living" Hananwa law in order to determine their compatibility with the provisions of the Bill of Rights. Moreover, the traditional Hananwa community is inegalitarian and patriarchal. Section 9 of the Constitution provides that everyone is equal before the law and enjoys equal and full protection and benefit of the law. The study found that the Hananwas still observe their system of customary law. However, there are visible changes. For instance, nowadays the spousal consent is a validity requirement for all customary marriages. A parent or legal guardian must consent to a customary marriage of a minor. The individual spouses, not their families, are parties to their own customary marriages. African women enjoy equal status. This development is consistent with section 9 of the Constitution read with section 6 of the Recognition of Customary Marriages Act 120 of 1998. According to the Constitutional Court, in MM v MN and Another 2013 4 SA 415 (CC), the first wife must consent to her husband's customary marriage to another woman in addition to her customary marriage to him. However, some rules of the Hananwa law do not comply with the provisions of the Bill of Rights. For instance, according to the Hananwa law, extramarital children do not enjoy equal inheritance rights and maintenance rights yet. This discrimination is inconsistent with the constitutional right to equality and the provisions of the Reform of Customary Laws of Succession and Regulations of Related Matters Act 11 of 2009.The Constitution puts common law and customary law on a par. However, the courts have often replaced customary law dispute resolution rules with the common law rules. For instance, the Constitutional Court in Bhe and Others v Magistrate, Khayelitsha and Others; Shibi v Sithole and South African Human Rights Commission and Another v President of the Republic of South Africa and Another 2005 1 SA 580 (CC) and the High Court in Maluleke v Minister of Home Affairs 2008 JDR 0426 (W) substituted the rules of common law for those of customary law in order to resolve customary law disputes. The legislature could not be outdone. A meticulous study of the Recognition of Customary Marriages Act 120 of 1998 and the Reform of Customary Laws of Succession and Regulations of Related Matters Act 11 of 2009 reveals that their provisions almost appropriately reflect the common law marriage and intestate succession rules respectively. The Recognition of Customary Marriages Act has, furthermore, adopted the provisions of the Divorce Act of 1979. Section 28 of the Constitution read with the Children's Act 38 of 2005 has generally substituted the fundamental human rights for the unequal rights provided by the customary law of parent and child. The Maintenance Act 99 of 1998 has substituted the communal form of maintenance under customary law. / Public, Constitutional, and International Law / LLD (International and Constitutional Law)

Water has been used for military purposes in the past and still continues today, i.e. poisoning of enemy water, attacking enemy water installations, etc. This conduct denies access to water, affects the supply of water, health, supply of electricity, etc. Public international law, such as treaties (e.g. The 1949 Geneva Conventions), customary international law, etc, regulate the protection of water during armed conflict. Chapter I of the dissertation analizes the public international law ire the abovementioned. The application of public inteniational law, depends on the municipal law of the state concerned. This municipal law is, in the case of South Africa, found in the 1996 Constitution. The 1996 Constitution contains specific provisions regarding inter alia the legal obligations of the South African security services, the legal status of international agreements, as well as the application of customary international law and international law. Chapter II of the dissertation analizes the abovementioned wrt the legal obligations of the SA National Defence Force ire the subject matter. / Constitutional, International and Indigenous Law / LL.M. (Public International Law)