Browsing by Author "Mbazira, Christopher"

Now showing 1 - 12 of 12
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    The Draft Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
    (Economic and Social Rights in South Africa, 2006) Chenwi, Lilian; Mbazira, Christopher
    Historically, economic, social and cultural rights (ESC rights) have received less protection through enforcement mechanisms than civil and political rights. Victims of ESC rights violations do not have the opportunity of submitting formal complaints to the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR), the supervisory body of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). Conversely, the 1976 Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights allows victims to lodge complaints with the Human Rights Committee (HRC), the supervisory body of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
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    Dream deferred? Democracy and Good Governance: An Assessment of the Findings of Uganda’s Country Self?Assessment Report under the African Peer Review Mechanism
    (Human Rights and Peace Centre, Makerere University., 2012) Mbazira, Christopher
    The New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) heralds dawn of a new African continent with a commitment to redeem the continent in economic, social and political terms. One of the features of NEPAD is the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM), based on the belief that no redemption can occur unless African countries engage in some form of self-assessment, critiqued through a peer review mechanism. The countries that have acceded to the APRM are expected to be objective and to carry out their self-assessment in all areas including good political governance, in good faith and in a transparent manner. Uganda has completed its Country Self Assessment Report (Self-Assessment Report) November 2007. It should be noted, however, that the credibility of a self-assessment report and its findings depends on how objective the process was and whether it was independent of political forces. The process in Uganda shows that the APRM process is to a certain extent state-centric, with a largely executive controlled body, the National Planning Authority (NPA), designated as the National Focal Point. In spite of this, the process of the actual preparation of the Report by the APRM Commission enjoyed relative independence from the government. The Commission was constituted, on the face of it, by a relatively politically independent team representing a wide array of stakeholders from both the public and private sector.
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    Enforcement of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in Uganda A brief overview
    (Economic and Social Rights in South Africa, 2009) Mbazira, Christopher
    Uganda has ratified almost all the major regional and international instruments that protect economic, social and cultural rights (ESCRs). However, a reading of the Constitution of Uganda, 1995, and other laws shows that the rights have not been domesticated fully.
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    Enforcing Socio-Economic Rights as Individual Rights the Role of Corrective and Distributive Forms of Justice in Determining “Appropriate Relief
    (Economic and Social Rights in South Africa, 2008) Mbazira, Christopher
    Different notions of justice influence the remedies that courts grant in socio-economic rights litigation. The two theories of justice discussed here derive from the philosophies of corrective and distributive forms of justice.
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    The New Partnership for Africa's Development: implications for the realisation of socio-economic rights in Africa
    (Economic and Social Rights in South Africa, 2004) Mbazira, Christopher
    The New Partnership for Africa's Development : Implications for the realisation of socio-economic rights in Africa Christopher Mbazira The realisation of socio-economic rights in Africa remains a distant goal. The majority of Africans live in poverty. Chronic hunger, malnutrition, HIV/Aids, ignorance and illiteracy continue to plague the continent. Military dictatorships, poor leadership, corruption, political conflicts, globalisation and structural adjustment programmes (SAPs) have all contributed to this situation. The debt burden exceeds manageable levels. States have increasingly withdrawn from providing such essential services as education, electricity and health.
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    Non-Implementation of Court Orders in Socio-Economic Rights Litigation in South Africa Is the Cancer here to Stay?
    (Economic and Social Rights in South Africa, 2008) Mbazira, Christopher
    Over 12 years have elapsed since the South African Constitution was adopted, and the jurisprudence on socio-economic rights has increased considerably. Yet a majority of the population remain entrapped in poverty.
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    An overview of the Constitutional Court hearing of the inner-city evictions case
    (Economic and Social Rights in South Afric, 2007) Mbazira, Christopher
    On 28 August 2007, the Constitutional Court heard an appeal against the decision of the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) in the Rand Properties case. This case concerns the eviction of poor people from dilapidated buildings in the inner city of Johannesburg. Acting in terms of section 12 of the National Building Regulations and Building Standards Act of 1977 (NBRA), the City of Johannesburg (the City) had issued eviction notices on the basis that these buildings were hazardous and not suitable for human habitation. It therefore brought an application to the High Court to enforce these notices.
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    Prisoners’ Right of Access to Anti-Retroviral Treatment
    (ESR, 2006) Muntingh, Lukas; Mbazira, Christopher
    Prisoners are susceptible to a number of illness and diseases. This may relate to the conditions of prisons themselves (e.g. poor ventilation is associated with TB), life style (e.g. poor nutrition and substance abuse), and sexual violence (e.g. male rape in prison). From a healthcare perspective, prisons present a particular challenge. From 1996 to 2005, the number of prisoners dying from natural causes per year increased from 211 to 1507. HIV/Aids has contributed to this increase. The rate of HIV infection amongst prisoners is unknown and the Department of Correctional Services (the Department) has commissioned a research project to establish this. In the absence of accurate and publicly accessible data, it is difficult to make any accurate assessment of the size and scope of HIV infection and persons living with AIDS in our prisons. What we do know is that prisoners’ access to anti-retroviral treatment (ARV) is extremely limited. To date only one accredited ARV treatment centre has been established by the Department at Grootvlei Correctional Centre in the Free State. In September 2005, the Department briefed the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Correctional Services regarding prisoners’ access to ARV with reference to the “HIV/Aids Policy for Offenders”. It reported that the Department was not accredited to provide ARV to prisoners. It also noted that the ARV roll-out centres were located off-site at the Department of Health facilities, which created security concerns as a result of lack of staff and logistics (e.g. transport). In essence, the Department's position was that, while it would like to provide access to ARV, it lacked the resources (staff and infrastructure) to do so. The applicants in the present case sought to remove all obstacles preventing the prisoners from accessing ARV.
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    Reading the Right to Food into the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights
    (Economic and Social Rights in South Africa, 2004) Mbazira, Christopher
    Reading the right to food into the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights Christopher Mbazira The African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights (the Charter) of 1981 is the principal regional instrument protecting human and peoples' rights in Africa. It incorporates a wide range of socio-economic rights, including the rights to property, to work under favourable conditions and equal pay for equal work, to health, to education, family rights and the right to self-determination. However, the Charter does not expressly recognise the right to food.
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    The Right of Access to Sufficient Water
    (Economic and Social Rights in South Africa, 2007) Mbazira, Christopher
    While the report provides valuable information on a number of positive developments in the provision of water services, it is deficient in a number of respects. The most visible deficiency is its lack of comprehensiveness and its failure to verify most of the information it relies on both to credit and discredit the government. It is argued that these deficiencies can be attributed to the sixth protocol on the right to water (the water protocol), which fails in some important respects to elicit information in ways that would allow a deeper analysis of the state’s performance.
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    The Right to Health and the Nature of The Right to Health and the Nature of Socio-Economic Rights Obligations under the African Charter
    (Economic and Social Rights in South Africa, 2005) Mbazira, Christopher
    The African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (the African Charter) guarantees a broad range of economic, social and cultural rights (socio-economic rights) as well as civil and political rights.
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    Service Delivery Protests, Struggle for Rights and the Failure of Local Democracy in South Africa and Uganda: Parallels and Divergences
    (South African Journal on Human Rights, 2013) Mbazira, Christopher
    Although the two countries are thousands of miles apart, Uganda and South Africa have both experienced service delivery protests in recent years. The protests have been directed mainly at local governments, although in Uganda some are directed at private service providers such as the electricity distributor, Umeme. There are a number of parallels and divergences between the two countries, particularly in relation to the causes and the nature that the protests have taken. Both countries are experiencing challenges in implementing decentralisation, which has mainly been characterised by a failure to effectively involve local communities in decision-making as a way of effecting local democracy. Mismanagement, corruption, and incapacity to deliver at the local levels are common to both countries. The divergences relate mainly to the level of organization, frequency and magnitude of the protests. The local government legal framework of Uganda does not emphasize service delivery as much as the South African legal framework does. There is an urgent need for both countries to make local democracy work by building civic competence and creating operational and effective structures for civic participation in local affairs.