News

Battlegrounds: Between the land and the law Battlegrounds: Between the land and the law

The plight of a farm-dweller family evicted from their home on a prominent wine farm in Paarl this week put the spotlight back on the growing tension between the legality and morality question relating to farm evictions. This eviction followed days after President Cyril Ramaphosa assured farmworkers in Citrusdal that his party would support farmworkers in their fight against evictions and oppression.

Seminar unpacks human rights in South Africa and Argentina Seminar unpacks  human rights in South Africa and Argentina

On 29 March 2019, the Dullah Omar Institute in collaboration with the Embassy of Argentina and the Department of Arts and Culture of South Africa hosted a seminar on Seminar human rights in South Africa and Argentina focusing on the experiences of the Robben island Prison and the ESMA Memory Site. This seminar was part of a wider cooperation agenda between memory sites which were established in countries in which widespread human rights violations were experienced, such as Robben Island Museum and ESMA Memory Site (Escuela de Mecánica de la Armada).

Poverty has a Female Face - Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma Poverty has a Female Face - Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma

The Minister in the Presidency, Hon Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma said the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) cannot be attained without paying attention to women’s rights because women are the hardest hit by poverty. She said this when giving the keynote address to participants at the at a regional workshop to develop strategies to ensuring the visibility and active participation of civil society groups from Africa during the High Level Political Forum (HLPF) in New York, in July 2019.

South Africa makes great strides towards meeting SDG16 South Africa makes great strides towards meeting SDG16

Before 1994, South African institutions met none of the criteria for SDG 16. However, since the dawn of democracy, various institutions have been reconstituted to ensure they function in line with the constitution. This is according to the Deputy Minister of Justice and Correctional Services in South Africa, Hon John Jeffery, when giving a keynote address at a regional workshop to develop strategies to ensuring the visibility and active participation of civil society groups from Africa during the High Level Political Forum (HLPF) in New York, in July 2019. The workshop is currently holding at the Protea Hotel, Parktonian, Johannesburg until the 29th of March 2019.

Workshop to focus on access to Justice in Africa and Asia Workshop to focus on access to Justice in Africa and Asia

The Socio-Economic Rights Project at the Dullah Omar Institute, University of the Western Cape in conjunction in partnership with the African Centre of Excellence for Access to Justice is convening a three-day workshop on Africa and Asia Civil society on Access to Justice. The workshop, which will take place from 27-29 March 2019, at the Protea Hotel Parktonian-Johannesburg, will focus on the role of civil society groups from Africa and Asia in effectively participating in the process leading to the High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Developments Goals (SDGs), which will take place in July in New York.

Workshop to focus on access to justice in Africa and Asia Workshop to focus on access to justice in Africa and Asia

The Socio-Economic Rights Project at the Dullah Omar Institute, University of the Western Cape in conjunction in partnership with the African Centre of Excellence for Access to Justice is convening a three-day workshop on Africa and Asia Civil society on Access to Justice. The workshop, which will take place from 27-29 March 2019, at the Protea Hotel Parktonian - Johannesburg, will focus on the role of civil society groups from Africa and Asia in effectively participating in the process leading to the High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Developments Goals (SDGs), which will take place in July in New York.

Quo Vadis Law and Government in the Digital Society?

The 4th Industrial Revolution is transforming society at every level. Dullah Omar Institute's Applied Constitutional Studies Laboratory together with the Law Faculty at the University of the Western Cape held a seminar on the 15th of February to examine the impact on law and government in the digital age.

Kenya DPP issues directive on touting

The Director of Public Prosecutions(DPP) in Kenya on 12 March 2019 issued practice directions on how to handle the offence of touting. This offence was among the many offences identified as petty and was the subject of extensive stakeholder engagement to have it decriminalised. The Office of the DPP conducted a further research ,and paid visits to select remand facilities in Kenya in partnership with ICJ Kenya and other stakeholders. The findings of the research informed the decision by the DPP to issue practice directions on how to deal with the offence of touting.