Magister Legum - LLM / This mini-thesis examines the issue of the implementation of the socio-economic rights provisions of the African Charter on Human and Peoples‘ Rights (ACHPR) at the national level, in a case study of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). These rights which comprise the right to property, the right to work, the right to health, the right to education and the protection of the family and cultural rights in Articles 14 to 18 of the ACHPR are provided for and guaranteed in the DRC Constitution of 18 February 2006 in Articles 34 to 48 and, accordingly, are legally enforceable under the Constitution. This study was motivated by the fact that despite the enforceability of these rights under the DRC Constitution, the real situation in the DRC remains worrying in that the economic, social and cultural rights (ESCR) of the ACHPR are violated from day to day by the government. The majority of Congolese live in poverty, disease and ignorance; they lack jobs, food and other basic necessities, such as, water and electricity, in spite of DRC‘s abundant natural resources (such as, oil and gas); minerals (such as cobalt, vanadium, manganese, phosphate, and bauxite); iron ore; and precious tropical rain forests. This situation is due to certain reasons, including: bad governance; mismanagement of public finances by political authorities at the expense of the majority; lack or weakness of the institutions or organs of implementation; and the ignorance of the Congolese people about their socio-economic rights even if they are massively violated by their government. Consequently, the marginalisation of socio-economic rights which results in their non-protection and non-realisation in DRC leads to a low expectation of the State and Government by the people, corruption, exclusion, racism, xenophobia, inequality, diseases, poverty, a feeling of betrayal of the people, a crisis of state and governmental legitimacy, popular insurrections and civil war in the country. To prevent the above consequences requires the DRC State to comply with Article 1 of the ACHPR which declares that the Member States of the Organization of African Unity that are parties to the ACHPR shall recognise the rights, duties and freedoms enshrined in it and shall undertake to adopt legislative or other measures to give effect to them. In addition, as the ACHPR complements human rights protection at the domestic level where the rights protected in the Charter should be realised, it is important for DRC to ensure that the ESCR of the ACHPR protected in its Constitution are given full legal effect under domestic law, such that the Charter‘s rights are made justiciable.

Magister Philosophiae - MPhil / This study investigates how female migrants negotiate the tension that arises from being entrepreneurs, being mothers, and having families. It shows how entrepreneurship offers them self-emancipation but limits the time they spend raising their children and time they spend with their families, but puts them in a position to provide financially for themselves, their children, and families. The focus of the study is on Congolese female migrant and also females from few African countries. It is hypothesized that female migration and entrepreneurship negatively impacts the relationships of these females with their children and families. Data was obtained through a survey of fifty-three respondents who were conveniently selected. This took place in the Western Cape Province, taking Cape Town, Bellville, and Parow as the cities to be observed. The statistical package for social sciences was used to analyze data. The results showed that female entrepreneurship has a negative impact on their relationships with their children but to an extent improves their relationships with their families and/or partners.

Dissertation (LLM)--University of Pretoria, 2013 / gm2015 / Centre for Human Rights / LLM / Unrestricted

Magister Legum - LLM

During the last decade reports of international personnel perpetrating acts of sexual exploitation and abuse against the very population in which they are mandated to protect are a disturbing outcome of some peace operations provided by the United Nations. Sexual exploitation and abuse have been a problem since the first peacekeeping operations in the beginning of 1990’s, however it was not until 2004 when the media reported disturbing acts of sexual abuse of children by French peacekeepers that the whole worlds eyes turned to these claims. This thesis will deal with a sensitive and relevant topic, sexual exploitation and abuse by United Nations peacekeepers. The purpose of this research is to understand and explain why United Nations peacekeepers are involved in the horrors which they seek to address.

Magister Legum - LLM / This study investigates the the impact of armed conflict on child education in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Naturally, armed conflict affects negatively on people‟s life. In particular, armed conflict affects the education of children as military groups attack schools, schools children and teachers. Ultimately, armed conflicts also affect the quality of education children receive during hostilities. In light of this, the study assesses how the Congolese government, in line with international and regional human rights obligations, responds to the educational needs of children affected by armed conflict.

In considering how women navigate the complexity and gendered aspects of the artisanal mining industry, this study seeks to unpack women's labour at step one of the global supply chain of coltan, in the post-conflict context of eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Female miners are largely excluded from mine work by blurry regulatory frameworks, gendered social norms and financial disparities, however they manage to remain active labourers in the artisanal mining industry. Within a broader socio-political context of poverty, political instability and rural livelihoods, women maintain access to mine work through strategies, often premised on a gendered solidarity, such as organizing into collectives, engaging in small group collaborations and employing creative ruses to maintain the secrecy of their labour. This thesis seeks to analyze women's exclusions from mine work and the subsequent strategies they employ to circumvent those exclusions and maintain work in the mines. Based on three months of ethnographic fieldwork at artisanal coltan mine sites in Masisi Territory in the province of North Kivu, this study employs ethnographic observations, focus group and interview methodologies.

MAAS / Department of Development Studies / See the attached abstract below

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / Many refugees and asylum seekers have emigrated from The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), which has a long history of unrest and instability. Besides its own citizens, South Africa is a refugee receiving country. Its obligations to people seeking refuge within its borders are outlined in both, international and domestic law.

Instability and political repression are two reasons why many states in Africa are unable to develop. African regional organizations have the potential to encourage democracy, stability and development within their regions if they have the right tools. Using case studies of two major interventions by African regional organizations this thesis will determine what those tools may be. Both the intervention of ECOWAS into Liberia and the SADC into the DRC were rife with problems but they were able to bring some stability and even democracy to states in crisis. This thesis finds that African regional organizations can promote democracy and stability, but the focus is always on stability for the region. With strong institutions and mandates, policy agreement and strong leadership, African regional organizations can bring stability, development and even democracy to their regions.