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Swazi court refuses bail for suspected human trafficker
Swazi court refuses bail for suspected human trafficker

With the eyes of the world now more sharply focused on human trafficking, all attempts by African courts to help stamp it out are important and will be reflected in annual international surveys. Though cases of trafficking are still something of a rarity, a Swazi judge, Mzwandile Fakudze, recently heard a bail application by a suspected trafficker and turned him down.

A challenge for women in Kenya: get this law changed
A challenge for women in Kenya: get this law changed

Our Women’s Month judgment this week comes from Kenya’s Judge William Musyoka. What makes his decision stand out is that he has found and highlighted an anomaly in the law dealing with rape, a particularly traumatic crime that is all too prevalent. He explained that the same set of facts could be considered under either of two provisions, but one could attract a much lighter sentence than the other. He said he did not understand why there should be two provisions and why, as in this case, the state would choose to charge the accused under the section that would result in a lesser sentence. It is a welcome and important step when judgments pay such close attention to the laws that affect so many – most of them women and children; when they challenging anomalies that see perpetrators walking away with ‘a slap on the wrist’, as Judge Musyoka put it. His judgment is a challenge to the legislature to reconsider the law and close the escape route that could see a rapist spending very little time in prison despite the horrendous nature of the crime.

Judge slams domestic violence, femicide and urges tougher sentences

The first judgment chosen as part of Jifa’s Women’s Month focus is from Eswatini. It deals with the murder of a young woman who had a young child, now an orphan. What makes this judgment on sentence different from many others we read each week, is the comments by the presiding judge, Titus Mlangeni. Many judges handle cases of violence against women as though they were traffic offences, with no comment on the impact of such crimes on the whole of society. Judge Mlangeni, however, speaks about the prevalence of domestic violence and the need for men to learn that they should walk away from disappointments in love rather than physically acting out their anger. He also says the time has come to increase sentences in such cases because domestic violence has become such a problem. If you were a member of the girl’s family, or a woman or girl living in Eswatini, and you heard this judgment, you would feel the judge understood the constant pain and the fear you suffered. If you were a man, you would also feel the impact of his words.

Planned changes to Zambia’s constitution ‘infringe judicial independence’

Zambia’s ruling Patriotic Front government is in the process of piloting wide-ranging changes to the country’s constitution into law. The proposed amendments have drawn considerable criticism from political opponents of the PF on grounds of poor drafting, infringement of individual and community rights and of threatening judicial independence, among others. They are also under fire from local and international legal and human rights organisations.

RIP Seychelles Justice Prithviraj Fekna
RIP Seychelles Justice Prithviraj Fekna

Justice Prithviraj Fekna, who served on the Seychelles Court of Appeal, died unexpected this week. He had been sworn into office as a non-resident member of the appeal court on 27 June this year. Previously he had been a member of the Supreme Court of Mauritius.

Unilateral salary hike by Uganda's MPs ‘unconstitutional' - highest court
Unilateral salary hike by Uganda's MPs ‘unconstitutional' - highest court

Uganda’s highest court says MPs act unconstitutionally when they give themselves salary hikes. Instead, the government is supposed to introduce proposals for increases, as the costs of the increases are charges on the country's Consolidated Fund. The court’s seven judges said a section of the law that appears to let MPs decide these issues without government involvement, is unconstitutional. It had to be removed because, if left on the statute book, ‘it is bound to be used by Parliament to violate the constitution.’

Long delays in Ugandan justice system “no speculation” says Supreme Court judge – and grants bail
Long delays in Ugandan justice system “no speculation” says Supreme Court judge – and grants bail

Faced with an application for bail pending a last appeal, how should a senior court approach the reality of this situation: long delays will mean that the accused could well have served his entire sentence by the time the appeal is heard? Here is what Uganda’s highest court had to say on the subject.

Raped child not sworn in properly: life sentence, conviction set aside

The child in this case claimed she had been raped by a relative of her father’s, starting from when she was nine years old. The case against the accused seemed strong, and the regional (senior) magistrate convicted him and sentenced him to life imprisonment. But when he appealed, the high court found the child had not been properly sworn in: conviction was set aside, along with his life sentence, and the man walked free. This case, from the KwaZulu Natal province of South Africa, is replicated in many countries, every day, because legal technicalities related to fair trial are so often ignored. As SA observes Human Rights Day, 2019, here's a plea: could the courts at least pledge to ensure they get the technicalities right? It would make a great impact of the human rights of every person brave enough to go through the trauma of reporting rape and giving evidence in a trial.

Secularism in Ghana "obviously" encourages state accommodation of religion and religious identity - Supreme Court
Secularism in Ghana "obviously" encourages state accommodation of religion and religious identity - Supreme Court

A major challenge to Ghana’s planned national cathedral, brought on the basis of a challenge to alleged infringements of the country’s “secular” constitution, has just been dismissed by the supreme court. Ghana’s highest court found that secularism in Ghana “obviously” allowed and encouraged recognition and accommodation of religion and religious identity by the state. But this does not necessarily mean criticism is over – plenty of critics say it will be wasteful and an unjustified expense.

Against background of “judicial martyrs to the rule of law”, Ghana’s top court considers political interference in judicial independence

IN a sensational new case, Ghana’s highest judicial forum has been considering whether it was lawful for the country’s president to reverse contempt of court sentences. This, after three men were sent to prison for effectively inciting people listening to a radio show to kill judges if they did not like the outcome of a then-pending case. The whole matter, referred to as “Montie 3” after the radio station involved, has touched a raw nerve in Ghana: no one has forgotten the three high court judges who were executed in 1982 on orders of the then political establishment. A memorial to these judicial “martyrs to the rule of law” stands not far from where the panel of judges has been considering the crucial questions of judicial independence and presidential power under the constitution prompted by the Montie 3 case.