It is clear that South Africa needs to urgently ratify the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). The ratification would strengthen the domestic protection of economic, social and cultural rights in South Africa through policy, legislation (laws) and jurisprudence (decisions of court).
On 25 March 2014, the Community Law Centre hosted the 9th Dullah Omar Lecture which was delivered by former constitutional court judge Albie Sachs. The lecture was titled “Speaking to Oliver Tambo's Ghost: Twenty Years into Democracy".
On 25 February 2014, the socio-economic rights project (SERP) of the Community Law Centre in conjunction with the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) conducted a human rights workshop at Blikkiesdorp. Blikkiesdorp is a temporary relocation area in Delft, Cape Town.
The director of the Community Law Centre, Prof Jaap de Visser, was selected as one of the participants to unpack the laws, regulations, and the informal city where urban planning and design is concerned.
The Multilevel Government Initiative (MLGI) of the Community Law Centre at the University of the Western Cape launched its ‘Talking Good Governance’ (TGG) blog. TGG aims to deepen intellectual debate on good governance by making current research accessible to the public and policy makers.
On 3 March, Dr Aquinaldo Mandlate from the Children’s Rights Project of the Community Law Centre (University of the Western Cape) spoke on the system of protection of human rights in Africa, during a two day workshop on human rights which took place in Luanda, Angola.
On 28 February, Professor Jan Erk, a visiting professor at the Community Law Centre under the SARChi Chair for Multilevel Government, delivered a lecture for the LL.M/Mphil students in Law, State and Multilevel Government. The lecture was titled 'Two Divided Cities: Federalism, Nationalism and Urban Politics in Montreal and Brussels'.
GENEVA / BISSAU (21 February 2014) – United Nations Special Rapporteur Magdalena Sepúlveda will undertake an official visit to Guinea-Bissau from 24 February to 1 March 2014 to collect first-hand information on the situation of people living in extreme poverty and to assess the initiatives taken by the authorities to improve their situation.
Prof Jaap de Visser, the director of the Community Law Centre and senior fellow of the centre’s Multilevel Government Initiative addressed a group of officials from Kenya on the topic of Integrated Development Planning (IDP). He outlined the background to IDP, the legal framework and also discussed some of the challenges in implementing this progressive and ambitious system.
Dr. Jan Erk, who is currently a visiting research fellow at the Community Law Centre, has just completed teaching a short seminar on post-conflict settlements and federalism to Ethiopian doctoral candidates and lecturers at the Institute of Peace and Security of Addis Ababa University.
Albie Sachs is set to deliver the Community Law Centre’s 9th Dullah Omar Memorial Lecture on 25 March 2014. The Community Law Centre is pleased to announce the 9th Dullah Omar Memorial Lecture, which will be delivered by former Constitutional Court judge Albie Sachs.
Today, the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Women, Children and People with Disabilities will commence with public hearings on the Women’s Empowerment and Gender Equality bill.
