SEXUAL VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN: A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE LAW RELATING TO A RAPE VICTIM’S RIGHT TO COMPENSATION.THE CASE OF LINDI, TANZANIA
In the Lindi Region of Tanzania (and possibly throughout the whole of Tanzania), victims of rape, the general public and the majority of legal service providers are almost completely unaware of the provision of section 131(1) of the Penal Code which imposes a duty on presiding judicial officers to order convicted rapists to pay their […]
‘RIGHT OR PRIVILEGE’: AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE PROVISION OF POST EXPOSURE PROPHYLAXIS (PEP) TO SURVIVORS OF SEXUAL ASSAULT TO REDUCE THE CHANCES OF CONTRACTING HIV/AIDS. A CASE STUDY OF 7 CLINICS AND 1 HOSPITAL IN LUSAKA, ZAMBIA
This dissertation, written by a former policeman who headed Zambia’s VSU (Victim Support Unit), investigates the plight of female (i.e., women and girls) sexual assault survivors who risk contracting the deadly HIV/AIDS virus, largely because the State, through its silence (i.e., lack of policy, legislation or administrative measures), fails to inform them of potentially life-saving […]
TOWARDS CURBING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IN ZIMBABWE: A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE SENTENCING PATTERNS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE OFFENDERS IN HARARE, MBARE AND CHITUNGWIZA MAGISTRATES’ COURTS
This research seeks to reduce the incidence of the serious gender-based crime of domestic violence (DV), perpetrated most commonly by men against women, by proposing various recommendations in order to effect improvements to the current unsatisfactory sentencing trends of judicial officers (particularly magistrates, the majority of whom are male) under the Domestic Violence Act which, […]
RETHINKING THE GENERAL LAW OF GUARDIANSHIP AND ADOPTION IN LINE WITH THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC REALITIES OF DOUBLE ORPHANS IN ZIMBABWE
This dissertation investigates what political, legal, cultural and economic factors have caused the growing number of double orphans in Zimbabwe (the most vulnerable victims of the HIV/AIDS pandemic) to remain outside the protection of the general law of adoption and guardianship. Before Zimbabwe’s Independence from Britain in 1980, Rhodesian colonial legislation generally provided that the […]
‘REMEMBER POTIPHER’S WIFE’: THE ‘RULE’ ON CORROBORATION IN RAPE AND DEFILEMENT OFFENCES. A SYSTEMATIC VIOLATION OF THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN AND GIRLS IN MALAWI
The writer of this dissertation, a Magistrate, reveals that the failure of victims of rape and defilement (mainly women and girl children) to satisfy the requirements of the purported ‘rule’ (or practice or modus operandi) on corroboration is a significant common reason why so many sexual assailants (mainly men) escape legal punishment. Tracing the […]
RECONCEPTUALIZING SWAHILI TRADITIONAL SOCIAL SECURITY SYSTEM UNDER UTU AND UBINADAMU VALUES FOR THE BENEFIT OF WOMEN: A CASE STUDY OF THE SWAHILI COMMUNITY IN DAR-ES-SALAM CITY, TANZANIA
In terms of various binding and/or persuasive local, regional and international Human Rights instruments, it is the dream and the task of the Tanzanian government to provide social security to all its citizens, particularly to the majority of its citizens who are women, many of whom work in the informal sector. They are a particularly […]
REALISING THE RIGHT TO REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH: AN ANALYSIS OF MATERNAL HEALTH CARE CHALLENGES IN INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS (IDP) CAMPS IN NAKURU COUNTY, KENYA
The internally displaced persons (IDPs) phenomenon has been of increasing concern not only in Kenya but also to the international community due to their growing numbers and an increasing awareness of their vulnerability. The pernicious effects on those displaced are wide ranging and include impoverishment and exclusion from basic and social amenities like water, food, […]
SEXUAL AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH RIGHTS EDUCATION AND SERVICES FOR ADOLESCENT GIRLS IN LESOTHO: A FEMINIST CRITIQUE
Adolescence is a phase of human development that leads to adulthood. Among other things, a person’s body undergoes several changes which may be difficult for him or her to understand without proper guidance. Since most of the changes are related to sexual maturity, adolescents are unlikely to obtain accurate information, whether from their teachers and […]