This study is entitled ‘investigating the challenges in enforcing international human rights law in Africa: Towards an effective regional system’. It centres around a critical research problem namely: what challenges beset regional enforcement of human rights law in Africa and how can they be addressed to ensure the effective promotion and protection of human rights in the continent? It critically reviews and revisits the discourses and scholarly arguments on the crucial issue of regional enforcement of human rights law in Africa. It traverses through historical epochs in order to explain the origins, scope and evolution of human rights law in Africa. This is done in the quest for answers to questions such as: When and how did Africa’s regional human rights system originate? What factors led to its emergence? Was the concept of human rights recognised in Africa prior to European colonial rule? What is the present status of international human rights in Africa? It therefore lays the foundations for a better understanding of the historical and philosophical origins and evolution of Africa’s regional human rights system. The study then proceeds to review the normative and institutional mechanisms established in Africa to enforce human rights at the regional level. Particularly, it highlights the roles of the African Commission and Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights in the light of their contribution to, and challenges in, the enforcement of human rights in the region. The study concludes with recommendations on the possible ways to invigorate the African human rights system. One of the key findings is that, with appropriate reforms, the system can be more effective. / Constitutional, International & Indigenous Law / LL.D. (Public, Constitutional and International Law)

For many sets of reasons, including the unequal power relationship between them and most underdeveloped states, and probably more in Africa than anywhere else in the world, non-state actors (NSAs) like states are involved in the violation of human rights. With the phenomenon of globalization, their role has become even more pronounced with some of the traditional functions of the state being performed by them, with implications for human rights, especially socioeconomic rights. Unfortunately, state-centred traditional international law has proved to be ill-equipped to hold NSAs directly accountable and liable for their violations of human rights. NSAs are only expected to adhere to non-binding voluntary standards, such as codes of conduct. Yet, if properly interpreted and enforced, the African Charter for Human and People’s Rights (ACHPR) can be relied upon to hold them accountable. Against this backdrop, the study interrogates the existing universal and regional human rights laws and systems with the view to identifying any rules, principles, case law or literature that can help hold NSAs directly accountable for human rights violations. For better advocacy and protection of human rights on the African continent, it makes a case for a paradigm shift away from a state centred to a holistic approach that would include NSAs and ensure that they are also bound to protect human rights and become accountable for their violations. / Private Law / LL.M.

The world has seen gradual evolution of regional human rights arrangements. The adoption by the UN General Assembly of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on December 10, 1948, was followed by the creation of numerous regional instruments that address concerns of particular importance in the regional context. Three world regions, Africa, the Americas and Europe, have established their respective regional instruments together with the supervisory mechanism, such as commissions and courts. The African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, with its emphasis on group rights and individual duties challenges the Western liberal account of rights, as expressed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The cultural differences brought to the fore not only the tension between individual and group rights but also the question as to whether of the universalism of human rights is possible. The study advocates for a moderate universalism of human rights, which can only be achieved through a dialogue among different cultural approaches to the notion of human rights. This study examines the content and substance of human rights norms of the African system with a view to recommending the possible strategies for their reform. Its central thesis is, the system is rather weak and therefore needs to be reformed. Toward this end, the study analyses the provisions of the African Charter. Thereafter, it explores its weaknesses and proposes strategies for their reform. The African human rights mechanisms face a number of common and particular challenges. Prospectively, Africa is going through a tremendous and interesting phase. These challenges are not insurmountable. / Constitutional, International and Indigenous Law / LL.D.

For many sets of reasons, including the unequal power relationship between them and most underdeveloped states, and probably more in Africa than anywhere else in the world, non-state actors (NSAs) like states are involved in the violation of human rights. With the phenomenon of globalization, their role has become even more pronounced with some of the traditional functions of the state being performed by them, with implications for human rights, especially socioeconomic rights. Unfortunately, state-centred traditional international law has proved to be ill-equipped to hold NSAs directly accountable and liable for their violations of human rights. NSAs are only expected to adhere to non-binding voluntary standards, such as codes of conduct. Yet, if properly interpreted and enforced, the African Charter for Human and People’s Rights (ACHPR) can be relied upon to hold them accountable. Against this backdrop, the study interrogates the existing universal and regional human rights laws and systems with the view to identifying any rules, principles, case law or literature that can help hold NSAs directly accountable for human rights violations. For better advocacy and protection of human rights on the African continent, it makes a case for a paradigm shift away from a state centred to a holistic approach that would include NSAs and ensure that they are also bound to protect human rights and become accountable for their violations. / Private Law / LL.M.

This study is entitled ‘investigating the challenges in enforcing international human rights law in Africa: Towards an effective regional system’. It centres around a critical research problem namely: what challenges beset regional enforcement of human rights law in Africa and how can they be addressed to ensure the effective promotion and protection of human rights in the continent? It critically reviews and revisits the discourses and scholarly arguments on the crucial issue of regional enforcement of human rights law in Africa. It traverses through historical epochs in order to explain the origins, scope and evolution of human rights law in Africa. This is done in the quest for answers to questions such as: When and how did Africa’s regional human rights system originate? What factors led to its emergence? Was the concept of human rights recognised in Africa prior to European colonial rule? What is the present status of international human rights in Africa? It therefore lays the foundations for a better understanding of the historical and philosophical origins and evolution of Africa’s regional human rights system. The study then proceeds to review the normative and institutional mechanisms established in Africa to enforce human rights at the regional level. Particularly, it highlights the roles of the African Commission and Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights in the light of their contribution to, and challenges in, the enforcement of human rights in the region. The study concludes with recommendations on the possible ways to invigorate the African human rights system. One of the key findings is that, with appropriate reforms, the system can be more effective. / Constitutional, International and Indigenous Law / LL.D. (Public, Constitutional and International Law)

The world has seen gradual evolution of regional human rights arrangements. The adoption by the UN General Assembly of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on December 10, 1948, was followed by the creation of numerous regional instruments that address concerns of particular importance in the regional context. Three world regions, Africa, the Americas and Europe, have established their respective regional instruments together with the supervisory mechanism, such as commissions and courts. The African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, with its emphasis on group rights and individual duties challenges the Western liberal account of rights, as expressed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The cultural differences brought to the fore not only the tension between individual and group rights but also the question as to whether of the universalism of human rights is possible. The study advocates for a moderate universalism of human rights, which can only be achieved through a dialogue among different cultural approaches to the notion of human rights. This study examines the content and substance of human rights norms of the African system with a view to recommending the possible strategies for their reform. Its central thesis is, the system is rather weak and therefore needs to be reformed. Toward this end, the study analyses the provisions of the African Charter. Thereafter, it explores its weaknesses and proposes strategies for their reform. The African human rights mechanisms face a number of common and particular challenges. Prospectively, Africa is going through a tremendous and interesting phase. These challenges are not insurmountable. / Constitutional, International and Indigenous Law / LL.D.

"Zimbabwe and South Africa are facing an HIV/AIDS epidemic of such proportions that the populations of these countries will markedly decline in the next ten years despite the existence of effective drugs to treat the symptoms of AIDS and dramatically lower the communicability of the virus. These drugs are under patent protection by companies in the developed world and the patents raise the prices above the level of affordability for HIV infected persons in South Africa and Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe has declared a national emergency on HIV/AIDS, apparently in conformance with TRIPS and has issued compulsory licenses to a local company that has started to manufacture and sell cheap anti-retroviral drugs. South Africa has not declared a national emergency and has not invoked the TRIPS flexibilities or utilized flexibilities inherent in its own legislation. However, while thousands of people die every week in the two countries, neither government has yet provided an effective HIV/AIDS policy. Extensive litigation and public pressure in South Africa has led the government to announce a policy of supplying free HIV drugs in public hospitals while the Zimbabwean government has announced the provision of the same drugs, also in public hospitals, apparently utilising the state of emergency. The TRIPS agreement under which the two governments undertook to protect international patents allows compulsory licensing under certain circumstances (not limited to a national emergency) and the Doha Declaration on TRIPS and Public Health, and subsequent agreements by the Ministerial Council of the WTO allow the manufacture and, in limited circumstances, the parallel importation of generic drugs. These provisions provide a theoretical mechanism for poor countries to ensure their citizens' rights of access to health (care). The research is aimed at identifying the extent of the effectiveness of the legal norms created by Articles 20 and 31 of TRIPS, the Doha Declaration and subsequent Council of Ministers' decisions, which together ostensibly provide a framework to allow provision of generic drugs. It is further aimed at investigating how the state of emergency in Zimbabwe has been utilised to provide cheap generic drugs to Zimbabweans and whether this would be an option for South Africa. A comparison of the legal provisions governing the provision of drugs in the two countries will also be undertaken to examine the extent to which international and national constitutional and legal provisions may be utilised to give effect to the right to health." -- Introduction. / Thesis (LLM (Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa)) -- University of Pretoria, 2004. / Prepared under the supervision of Dr. Enid Hill at the American University in Cairo. / http://www.chr.up.ac.za/academic_pro/llm1/dissertations.html / Centre for Human Rights / LLM

"Although the United Nations (UN) has often been pivotal in forging the international response to serious human rights crimes in such settings, the justice gap in countries such as the Democratic Republic [of] Congo (DRC) (the focus of this study) underscores the need for more systematic UN efforts. The war in the DRC has resulted in one of the world's worst humanitarian crisis with over 3.4 million displaced persons scattered throughout the country. An estimated 3.5 million people have died as a result of the war. The armed conflict has been characterised by appalling widespread and systematic human rights violations, including mass killings, ethnic cleansing, rape and the destruction of property. The most pressing need to be addressed is the question of justice and accountability for these human rights atrocities in order to achieve a durable peace in the country and also in the Great Lakes region (Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda, Angola and the DRC, to name just a few). In this respect, this study will address the grave human rights violations committed in the DRC and the mechanisms for dealing with them. It is particularly true in post-conflict situations where justice systems have been either partially or completely destroyed, that national courts are not capapble of arriving at a uniform stance, or willing to provide justice for atrocities in the immediate future. As a result, international justice seems to be a crucial and last resort that must continue to be fortified against efforts to undermine it. ... Chapter one will set out the content of the research, identify the problem and outline the methodology. Chapter two will discuss the state obligations in international law to prosecute gross violations of human rights and gives a summary of the human rights violations situation during the Congolese war. Chapter three will discuss the available naitonal mechanisms for accountaiblity in the DRC. It will discuss if national courts and TRC are able to deal with these atrocities committed in the DRC. Chapter four will analyse the extent to which the ICC could deal with the Congolese case and challenges. Chapter five will discuss the trends towards accountability in the DRC and the way forward. Chapter six will draw a conclusion on how to break the cycle of impunity in the DRC." -- Introduction. / Thesis (LLM (Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa)) -- University of Pretoria, 2004. / Prepared under the supervision of Prof. Boukongou Jean Didier and Dr. Atangcho Akonumbo at the Catholic University of Central Africa, Yaounde, Cameroon / http://www.chr.up.ac.za/academic_pro/llm1/dissertations.html / Centre for Human Rights / LLM

"It is the responsibility of every government to protect the fundamental rights and freedoms of its citizenry and to ensure that the rule of law and justice prevails at all times. Hovewer, children accused of committing crimes are more susceptible to human rights abuses and violations of their legal rights while in detention, either in police cells, prisons or authorised detention centres. They mostly suffer from both the agents of the state as well as from inmates. These violations often take place [behind] closed doors, and society being primarily concerned with keeping offenders locked up rather than about their conditions and human rights being respected, the cries of these children to be treated with dignity and worth go unnoticed despite the constitutional and international guarantee of their rights. The problem therefore is first to examine what rights do children in trouble with the law have under international law in general and specifically within the African human rights sytem with special emphasiis on the rights of children deprived of their liberty. Secondly, to examine how these international instruments are given effect domestically and whether there are challenges encountered in realising these rights. These are the main issues that this research intends to grapple with using South Africa and the Gambia as case studies with a view to making recommendations for better protection of the rights of this category of children. ... This research consist of four chapters. The first chapter is the introduction. It will give the basis and structure of the research which will include a general overview of the problem in the two countries under study. In the second chapter, it will explore the relevant international and African normative framework that protects the rights of children in trouble with the law and the obligations of states towards these children. However, the main focus will be the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC), because they are the two main human rights instruments providing specific protection for children's rights in all spheres. The third chapter will be a comparative analysis of the rights of children deprived of their liberty as provided in the municipal laws of South African and the Gambia vis a vis the minimum standards set [out] in the CRC and ACRWC. It will discuss the following issues, namely: defintion of a child, age of criminal responsibility, the best interest, detention as a last resort and for the shortest possible time, separation from adult detainees, role of parents, establishment of separate criminal procedures, right to legal respresentation and assistance, and sentencing options. It will also examine the problems and challenges for implementation. The fourth chapter will conclude and make recommendations on how best to implement the laws and who should be the role players in ensuring that the rights of these children are well protected." -- Introduction. / Thesis (LLM (Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa)) -- University of Pretoria, 2005. / Prepared under the supervision of Professor Gilles Cistac at the Faculty of Law, Universidade Eduardo Mondlane, Maputo, Mocambique / http://www.chr.up.ac.za/academic_pro/llm1/dissertations.html / Centre for Human Rights / LLM

"Whereas victims of ordinary crimes such as theft, robbery, assault or murder find it easier to obtain redress, victims of the most serious violatons such as war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity receive less attention insofar as their redress is concerned. Apart from some exceptional cases where victims of serious human rights abuses had their right to redress vindicated, there has not been an effective and comprehensive way of redressing victims of gross human rights violations. In Africa for instance, victims' redress in post-Apartheid South Africa and post-genocide Rwanda have been problematic. Thus, it is meaningful investigating how effectively the victims' right to reparation can be implemented in case of gross and systematic human rights violations. Preliminary to the above interrogation are questions such as: what are gross and systematic human rights violations? What are international standards regarding redress for the victims of such abuses? The case studies of Sierra Leone and the DRC will be closely analysed as an empirical foundation for these questions. ... This study consists of five chapters. Chapter one draws the context in which the study emerges. It provides the foundation and the structure of the dissertation. Chapter two outlines the legal framework that is relevant for answering the questions raised by this study. It explores international human rights standards regarding reparation of vicitms of gross and systematic violations. Chapter three analyses the implementation of victims' reparation in the context of Sierra Leone. It confronts Sierra Leonean responses to war victims with international standards on victims' reparation. Chapter four analyses victims' situation in the post-conflict Democratic Republic of Congo and draws lessons from the Sierra Leonean experience. Chapter five sums up findings of the study." -- Introduction. / Prepared under the supervision of Professor Alejandro Lorite Escorihuela at the Department of Law, American University in Cairo, Egypt / Thesis (LLM (Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa)) -- University of Pretoria, 2006. / http://www.chr.up.ac.za/academic_pro/llm1/dissertations.html / Centre for Human Rights / LLM