November 09, 2023
Ghana: Ghanaians Don't Trust the Police. A Criminologist On What Needs to Be Done About It
The relationship between Ghanaian citizens and officers of its police service is a tenuous one. Recent reports by the research network Afrobarometer show a decline in trust between… Read more »
November 07, 2023
Uganda: World Bank Suspension of Uganda Funds Over Anti-Homosexuality Law
The World Bank issued a statement on 8 August 2023, announcing that it had effectively suspended all new public financing to Uganda over concerns with the country's… Read more »
October 31, 2023
Kenya: Kenya's Courts Were Under Political Pressure - How a Constitutional Reform Empowered Judges
Changes to Kenya's constitution in 2010 on the independence of the judiciary created room for judges to act as guardians of the electoral process. Read more »
October 17, 2023
Nigeria: Sexual Harassment Victims in Nigerian Universities Blamed, Study Finds
Sexual harassment encompasses a wide range of inappropriate behaviour, from ogling, touching and commenting about body parts, to sexual proposition, coercion, assault and rape. In… Read more »
October 12, 2023
Mauritius: Mauritius Is the Latest Nation to Decriminalise Same-Sex Relations in a Divided Continent
The Mauritius Supreme Court has declared unconstitutional a law that criminalises consensual same-sex acts between adult men. The decision boosts the trend in the Southern African… Read more »
October 11, 2023
Africa: New Treaty to Protect the World's Oceans May Hurt Vulnerable African Fisheries
Following two decades of fierce negotiations, over 60 countries recently signed a UN Ocean Treaty to conserve biodiversity on the high seas. Read more »
October 09, 2023
Ghana: Witchcraft in Ghana - Help Should Come Before Accusations Begin
Witchcraft is generally understood to refer to a supernatural power possessed by an individual. In Ghana, particularly in the northern parts of the country, the subject continues… Read more »
October 08, 2023
South Africa: Surveillance Law Changes but South Africans' Privacy Is Still At Risk
In a ringing judgment for the right to privacy, the South African Constitutional Court declared sections of the country's main communication surveillance law unconstitutional in… Read more »
October 04, 2023
South Africa: Lion Protection Fee Paid By Tourists Could Help Stop Trophy Hunting - South African Study
Trophy hunting is contentious. It typically involves paying for and pursuing a specific wild animal, often a large or iconic species, with the goal of killing it to obtain a… Read more »
September 27, 2023
Somalia: Somali Piracy, Once an Unsolvable Security Threat, Has Almost Completely Stopped. Here's Why
In 2011, pirates carried out 212 attacks in a vast area spanning Somali waters, the Indian Ocean, the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, actions that the World Bank said cost the world… Read more »
September 26, 2023
South Africa: Family Homes Clash With Laws in South African Townships
During apartheid, black South Africans could not own land - and therefore their homes - in what were classified as "white" cities. In racially segregated townships, living in… Read more »
September 24, 2023
Africa: Global Approach to Serious Crimes Is Shifting to Domestic Trials - Here's What I Found in Three African Countries
Domestic trials of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes are considered quicker, cheaper and more responsive to victims' needs than the International Criminal Court's… Read more »
September 20, 2023
Ghana: Suicide in Ghana - Society Expects Men to Be Providers - New Study Explores This Pressure
Suicide is a complex behaviour that is widely regarded as a significant public health issue across the globe. It is influenced by psychiatric, psychological, biological, social,… Read more »
September 18, 2023
South Africa: Corruption in South Africa - Would Paying Whistleblowers Help?
Whistleblowing is an important tool in fighting corruption. In South Africa, the commission of inquiry into state capture recommended that the government should provide financial… Read more »
September 14, 2023
South Africa: South Africa's Court System Has Been Abused By Powerful People - Five Ways to Stop It
After a battle of about four years to secure the removal of South Africa's public protector, Advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane, the country's parliament finally delivered the coup de… Read more »
September 13, 2023
Kenya: Kenyans Don't Trust the Courts - the Main Factors Behind This Trend
The international reputation of the Kenyan judiciary is running high following a raft of judicial reforms brought on by the 2010 constitution. The reforms, displays of judicial… Read more »
September 11, 2023
Nigeria: Nigeria's Elections Were Once Again Disputed in Court, a Stark Reminder of a Weak Electoral System
Nigeria's presidential election tribunal on 6 September affirmed President Bola Tinubu's victory in the disputed February 2023 polls, dismissing the petitions of three political… Read more »
September 06, 2023
Nigeria: Charms and Rituals Are Used By Criminals in Nigeria - Should Police Deploy Spiritual Security Too?
Crime is among the major challenges confronting Nigeria as a nation. The pervasiveness of crime has repeatedly called into question the effectiveness and efficiency of the Nigeria… Read more »
September 02, 2023
South Africa: Johannesburg Fire Disaster - Why Eradicating Hijacked Buildings Is Not the Answer
The fire that killed at least 76 people in a five storey building in Johannesburg on 31 August is not an isolated incident, and has elicited the usual unhelpful response from some… Read more »
August 31, 2023
South Africa: Suspension of Two South African Judges Has Opened Up Debates About Bad Working Conditions and Poor Delivery of Justice
The suspension of two judges in South Africa for tardiness - failing to process cases in a reasonable amount of time - has sparked fierce debates around the conditions under which… Read more »
August 15, 2023
Nigeria: Bandits in Nigeria - How Protection Payments to Militias Escalate Conflict in the North-West
North-western Nigeria has become increasingly violent. This is due to the activities of militias, known locally as "bandits". These are loosely organised armed groups, reportedly… Read more »
August 11, 2023
South Africa: Zuma Prison Case Casts Doubt On South Africa's Medical Parole Law
The Constitutional Court order relating to a case involving former President Jacob Zuma has illuminated some of the flaws in the law governing medical parole in South Africa. This… Read more »
August 10, 2023
South Africa: Lion Farming in South Africa - Fresh Evidence Adds Weight to Fears of Link With Illegal Bone Trade
In South Africa an estimated 8,000 lions are bred and kept in captivity for commercial purposes in more than 350 facilities. This is far more than the country's wild population,… Read more »
August 02, 2023
South Africa: South Africa's New Marriage Bill Raises Many Thorny Issues - a Balancing Act Is Needed
South Africa is changing its marriage law to recognise all types of intimate partnerships - irrespective of gender, sexual orientation, or religious, cultural and other beliefs. Read more »
July 30, 2023
Zimbabwe: 'Patriotic Act' Erodes Freedoms and May Be a Tool for Repression
The introduction of the controversial "Patriotic Act" in Zimbabwe will contribute to the erosion of political and civil liberties in a country that has been in the grip of one… Read more »