The right to work in public spaces has recently become a highly contested issue; and the reality in most African countries is that those working in public depend on it for survival. Women make up the majority of workers in the informal economy in Africa and include market and street traders selling small items, food and fresh produce, hawkers, reclaimers and those operating small businesses, such as barbershops and hair salons. This fact sheet highlights the challenges of women working in public spaces in South Africa. The focus is five-fold, namely; (1) general observations on their working conditions, (2) knowledge of the law and policy-making process, (3) engagements between public space workers and sub-national authorities, (4) law enforcement and sanctions, (5) recommendations for reform
The socio-economic and political landscape in many African countries is characterised with inequality, poverty and high unemployment rates, forcing populations to turn to the informal economy for survival. The informal economy has since become the main economic driver in many countries, and is described as all economic activities conducted in public spaces by workers and economic units that are (in law or in practice) not covered or insufficiently covered by formal arrangements. The reality in several African countries is that those working in public spaces are generally vulnerable people, including women traders, migrants, reclaimers, as well as poor and homeless persons. Some of the challenges faced by these groups include onerous bureaucratic requirements for operation, restrictive municipal by-laws and regulations, harsh treatment by law enforcement officials, minimal sanitary services offered by local authorities and climate and environmental changes. The plight of these vulnerable groups is often overlooked by decision makers in policy-making processes. Yet, their activities significantly contribute to socio-economic development by alleviating poverty, creating informal employment, providing food security and offering recycling and sanitation services for municipalities and cities.
Sub-national law enforcement (when properly organised) supplements the work of national police at a local level by strengthening community-police relations and allowing for the swift response to emergency situations. However, this is only possible if each local law enforcement agency has, amongst others, formal standardised training, independent budgets, and existing effective mechanisms for public complaints, oversight and monitoring. This Fact Sheet provides a situational analysis of sub-national law enforcement in two west African countries, one east African and one southern African country; namely, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, and Zambia and highlights some of the challenges present in each context, particularly with regards to enforcement targeted at those working within public spaces.
Public space forms the setting for a number of activities, including the setting for community life and livelihoods of the urban poor, such as street vendors or waste-pickers. There is growing evidence pointing to the problematic way in which public space is governed. In many developing countries, laws and policies, particularly at a local government level, tend to restrict the ability of people to earn a livelihood or perform life-sustaining activities in public spaces. Contravention of local ordinances or by-laws is frequently treated as a criminal offence, compromising informal dwellers and workers’ livelihoods, denying due process protections and often violating their human rights. In this factsheet, we contextualise how laws and policies result in the criminalisation of the poor and consider principles that are fundamental to good policy-making.
Recent media reports showed again how police officials grossly misused their power and, against departmental prescripts, used a 'sjambok' to assault a man for apparently not wearing a mask. Such reports are not isolated and have a very direct impact on trust in the police and thus the legitimacy of the police. The core of the problem seems to be twofold (1) that SAPS managers are not enforcing the internal disciplinary code, and (2) the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) very rarely prosecutes police officials, especially for human rights violations. We have updated ACJR Fact sheet 9 (originally published in February 2019) with statistics for the past two financial years and it appears that the situation has worsened. This does not bode well for general trust in the state and specifically in the police. There is little sense in tough talk about law enforcement when the police themselves are not being held accountable and increasingly regarded as hostile to the general public.
Esta folha informativa discute o policiamento democrático como significando: (1) a obediência da Polícia ao Estado de Direito, (2) a responsabilização da Polícia, e (3) a justiça processual por parte da Polícia ao serviço do público. Nove dimensões necessárias ao policiamento democrático são identificadas, sendo que o resultado final pretendido é a confiança pública na Polícia, algo que resulta da sua legitimidade. O quadro conceptual apresentado não se destina apenas a descrever o policiamento democrático, mas também a orientar o planeamento estratégico nas organizações policiais, incluindo a Polícia da República de Moçambique (PRM).
This fact-sheet provides a brief update on the right of prisoners to vote in Africa. There have been substantive advances and breakthroughs in the promotion of this right as courts in Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Zambia and most recently in Uganda have granted prisoners the right to vote. In Mozambique, the Ombudsman has made a recommendation that measures be put in place to allow prisoners to vote in future elections. The enfranchisement of prisoners is a positive step in the promotion of their basic human rights, it is therefore important that countries on the continent that are still lagging behind consider the above examples and follow suit.
Updated Infosheet 1 on the criminal justice system following recent regulations issued.
This Infosheet deals with the deployment of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) to assist in the implementation of the COVID-19 lockdown.
This fact sheet deals with arrest without a warrant in Malawi. Currently in Malawi there remain laws on the statutes that have not been tested against constitutional requirements resulting in all likelihood in arrests that are not compliant with the Constitution.
This factsheet focuses on arrest without a warrant in Malawi. Currently in Malawi there remain laws on the statutes that have not been tested against constitutional requirements resulting in all likelihood in arrests that are not compliant with the Constitution.
This fact sheet focuses on arrest without a warrant in Kenya. Currently in Kenya the situation has been complicated by the legislative powers granted to the counties and some have used this opportunity to expand policing powers.
Fact sheet 29: Sub-national governance and the plight of women working in public spaces in South Africa | by Janelle Mangwanda
