Decolonising “African values”: The future of LGBTQ+ pride and rights
Posted: 31 October, 2024 Filed under: Lesego Sekhu, Namatirayi Ngwasha | Tags: ACHPR, African Commission of Human and Peoples’ Rights, African countries, African values, anti-rights groups, discrimination, homophobia, homosexuality, human rights violations, LGBTQ+, political persecution, Pride Month, sexual orientation, social exclusion, South Africa Leave a comment
Author: Lesego Sekhu
Research Assistant, Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation
October marks Pride Month in South Africa. Historically, Pride in this country and, more broadly, the rest of the continent has been used for political advocacy, protesting against discrimination and political persecution, and reaffirming LGBTQ+ people’s rights. In the spirit of “leaving no one behind”, this year, our Pride agenda should include radical solidarity with LGBTQ+ people in other African countries who face a growing anti-rights movement specifically targeting LGBTQ+ and other sexually diverse and gender-diverse people.
The impact of climate policies on Kenya’s development: Analysing the trade-offs
Posted: 14 October, 2024 Filed under: Uday Makokha Keya | Tags: African countries, carbon dioxide emissions, carbon tax., climate crisis, climate policies, developed countries, developing countries, eco levy, environment, global warming, Kenya, Loss and Damage Fund, monetary funds, plant trees, underdevelopment Leave a comment
Author: Uday Makokha Keya
Third-year law student, Kabarak University
“African countries are bearing the brunt of the climate crisis and for this reason, we believe it is time we have a conversation on carbon tax.[1]”
This echo’s president William Ruto’s speech on climate change sometime last year. Following this speech Kenya introduced tax on machines and motor vehicles based on the engine capacity of the vehicle,[2] and additional charges commodities that have a negative impact on the environment.[3]
The imposition of the eco levy has the potential to result in a low rate of development in the country as it will decrease the rate of industrialisation, since many industries use heavy machinery. This is also evident by the increased tread towards automation and robotics even by service industries.[4] Consequently, enacting these laws, could limit the use of machines that have a negative impact on the environment and may lead to underdevelopment as most investors may be discouraged from investing in industries in the country.
Integrating gender-inclusive approaches in transitional justice processes in Africa
Posted: 26 February, 2024 Filed under: Mary Izobo | Tags: African countries, conflict-related sexual violence, displacement, diverse sexual orientations, empowerment, enforced disappearances, femicide, forced marriages, gender identities, gender norms, gender perspectives, gender-inclusive approaches, human rights violations, patriarchal systems, rights of women and girls, societal transformation, socio-economic discrimination, Transitional Justice, unconstitutional changes Leave a comment
Author: Mary Izobo
International Human Rights Lawyer, Gender Equality Advocate and Governance Expert
During conflict, gender perspectives reveal the divergent impacts felt by all individuals –women, men, vulnerable and marginalised people, and those with diverse sexual orientations and gender identities. As a result, transitional justice in African countries must not only acknowledge but also actively engage with these gendered realities, particularly focusing on the experiences of women and girls. In the pursuit of reconciliation and healing, it is crucial to recognize the unique impact of conflicts on women and girls, exacerbated by patriarchal systems. By embracing gender-inclusive approaches within transitional justice, we pave the path towards a fairer, more inclusive society for all.
ICTs and Access to judicial remedies during the COVID-19 era
Posted: 6 July, 2023 Filed under: Namatirayi Ngwasha | Tags: African countries, CaseLines, COVID-19, e-filing systems, Electronic Case Management System, ICT functions, ICT technologies, IECMS, lack of consistency, legislation, lockdown measures, National Judicial Council Guidelines, teleconferencing, videoconferencing Leave a comment
Author: Namatirayi Ngwasha
Lawyer
COVID-19 and access to the courts
The increase in the number of COVID-19 cases in 2020 forced many countries in Africa to resort to the adoption of lockdown measures. Operational changes that were made included amending court rules and operating procedures. Technological methods used include video conferencing and live broadcast to ensure public access to hearings. In some instances, the number of staff coming to work was cut or staff had to work on rotational bases at the courts to enable social distancing. As a result, some of the cases fell off the court system and there was lack of consistency of handling cases due to the rotation of court staff.
The paper seeks to investigate how access to the courts was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and how the different courts adapted.
Transitional Justice and Women in Africa: How the Material Turn is still difficult to be seen?
Posted: 28 November, 2022 Filed under: Cristiano d'Orsi | Tags: Africa, African countries, community courts, compensatory assistance, crime against humanity, customary law, domestic instruments, domestic level, gender-based violence, Maputo Protocol, military tribunals, popular culture, rape culture, sexual violence, traditional justice systems, Transitional Justice, violations, violence, violent crime, women, women’s rights Leave a comment
Author: Cristiano d’Orsi
Research Fellow and Lecturer at the South African Research Chair in International Law (SARCIL), University of Johannesburg
As envisaged in the 2003 Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (Maputo Protocol), transitional processes should recognize the gendered nature of conflicts in which women are affected disproportionately, both directly and indirectly, by violence (see, for example, Article 10 –Right to Peace- and Article 11 –Protection of Women in Armed Conflicts-).[1] However, gender concerns in Africa have been rarely incorporated into Transnational Justice (TJ) through mainstreaming gender as a crosscutting issue. The nature of the violations to which women are usually subjected on the continent, and the impact of such violations on them, means that the issue of women and TJ should be treated on its own. Nevertheless, there is still a long way to go to comply with this measure. Normally, states emerging from conflicts or authoritarian repression should ensure women’s representation and participation at all stages of TJ processes by writing women’s participation into peace agreements and TJ laws and policies. Nevertheless, seldom has this been the case in Africa.
The future of technology: a human rights perspective
Posted: 2 December, 2020 Filed under: Tatiana Makunike | Tags: African countries, Artificial intelligence, ‘citizen journalism’, human rights agenda, Human rights issues, human rights violations, inaccessible areas, internet, public data, technology 1 Comment
Author: Tatiana Makunike
Freelance writer
From a constructive perspective, technology has the potential to significantly contribute to the progress of the human rights agenda, especially in Africa. Healthcare, education, emerging laws that restrict freedom of speech, and abuses by armed groups are some of the Human rights issues that technology could positively impact. Technology is increasingly becoming the backbone of most infrastructures and playing an important role in modern humanity; so automatically, its necessity as a tool for human rights has also increased.
The need for digital structures that improve the predictions of pressing human rights situations is evident. Fortunately, the tools for analysing the situations and strategising ideal responses exist and continue to improve. For instance, remote sensing and satellite data analysis systems now identify patterns indicating humanitarian disasters and displaced groups which may be useful when monitoring inaccessible areas or countries such as Uganda, Sudan, and Ethiopia which are currently home to over 3 million refugees. Decentralised technologies like BlockChain are also proving valuable when it comes to eliminating labor exploitation issues in certain supply chains and forensic technology can reconstruct crime scenes.
AfricLaw 