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Law society meets with Chief Justice over torture, crackdown in Zimbabwe
Law society meets with Chief Justice over torture, crackdown in Zimbabwe

Security forces in Zimbabwe are continuing to use torture and deadly force against people protesting against government restrictions and fuel hikes that have made petrol in that country the highest-priced in the world. Alarming pictures of security forces beating protesters shown round the world forced President Emmerson Mnangagwa, on an international visit to drum up foreign investment, to return before his original date, and take control of the situation. But little has changed since he arrived home earlier this week and the violent crackdown is continuing. In a rare move, the Law Society of Zimbabwe has met with the Chief Justice, Luke Malaba, to raise concerns about the way that judicial officers are handling cases relating to the crackdown. They told him it appeared the courts were biased and that justice was not being meted out.

Death penalty overturned for woman who murdered, dismembered husband
Death penalty overturned for woman who murdered, dismembered husband

The appropriateness of the death penalty as a punishment for even extremely violent murder has been raised at the Supreme Court in Kampala. Members of Uganda’s apex court were considering the case of a 63-year-old woman who murdered and dismembered her husband. Though she was originally condemned to death, the five Supreme Court justices have replaced that sentence with a 30-year jail term. The case illustrates the close attention a trial court needs to pay to the balance between mitigating and aggravating circumstances to get the sentence right, as per the sentencing guidelines. It also illustrates that Uganda's apex court is reluctant to approve the death penalty.

Villagers' water pollution case should be heard in UK not Zambia, court hears
Villagers' water pollution case should be heard in UK not Zambia, court hears

A major case on the environmental and human rights of villagers in Zambia was heard in the English courts over two days this week. The appeal concerns the question of where villagers, suing over the pollution of their water via mining action, may bring their dispute. They want the case heard in the UK while Vedanta, the parent company they are targeting, says the “natural forum” for the matter would be Zambia. If the English Supreme Court gives the go-ahead for the case to be heard in the UK, it will have a major impact on many other environmental cases and be a significant step in the development of environmental law, making it easier to hold international parent companies responsible for the actions of their subsidiaries.

Why the long wait for Zambia's supreme court death penalty decision?

After a cattle-rustling raid into Zambia by uniformed Angolan soldiers armed with assault rifles, a local man has been convicted and sentenced to death. It is an unusual case for several reasons: armed border raids seldom result in a conviction, for example. But it is also significant because it shows the Supreme Court, Zambia's highest legal forum, taking more than four years to deliver judgment. Given that the case did not appear to involve particularly complex legal issues, questions have to be asked about why the judges took so long - especially in a case that concerns the death penalty - and why they felt no need to explain the delay.

Copyright & A2K Issues - 16 January 2019

This is a free online international Information Service covering various topics, including copyright, plagiarism and other IP matters, Open Access, open publishing, open learning resources, institutional repositories, scholarly communication, digitization and library matters, mobile technologies, issues affecting access to knowledge (A2K), particularly in developing countries; WTO and WIPO treaties and matters; Free Trade Agreements and TRIPS Plus; useful websites, conference alerts, etc.  Archives are available at:  http://www.africanlii.org/content/copyright-a2k-information .  If you would like to subscribe to, or unsubscribe from, this newsletter, please do so at:  http://lists.wits.ac.za/mailman/listinfo/copyrightanda2kinfo    or email  Denise.Nicholson@wits.ac.za  only (N.B. PLEASE DO NOT SEND TO WHOLE MAILING LIST)

Copyright & A2K Issues - 11 December 2018

This is a free online international Information Service covering various topics, including copyright, plagiarism and other IP matters, Open Access, open publishing, open learning resources, institutional repositories, scholarly communication, digitization and library matters, mobile technologies, issues affecting access to knowledge (A2K), particularly in developing countries; WTO and WIPO treaties and matters; Free Trade Agreements and TRIPS Plus; useful websites, conference alerts, etc.  Archives are available at:  http://www.africanlii.org/content/copyright-a2k-information .  If you would like to subscribe to, or unsubscribe from, this newsletter, please do so at:  http://lists.wits.ac.za/mailman/listinfo/copyrightanda2kinfo    or email  Denise.Nicholson@wits.ac.za  only (N.B. PLEASE DO NOT SEND TO WHOLE MAILING LIST)      N.B. THIS NEWSLETTER WILL NOT BE DISTRIBUTED FROM 12 JANUARY 2018 UNTIL MID-JANUARY 2019.  WISHING YOU A VERY HAPPY AND BLESSED CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR.  FOR THOSE WHO CELEBRATE OTHER FESTIVALS OR HOLY DAYS, ALL THE BEST TO YOU TOO.

Copyright & A2K Issues - 7 December 2018

This is a free online international Information Service covering various topics, including copyright, plagiarism and other IP matters, Open Access, open publishing, open learning resources, institutional repositories, scholarly communication, digitization and library matters, mobile technologies, issues affecting access to knowledge (A2K), particularly in developing countries; WTO and WIPO treaties and matters; Free Trade Agreements and TRIPS Plus; useful websites, conference alerts, etc.  Archives are available at:  http://www.africanlii.org/content/copyright-a2k-information .  If you would like to subscribe to, or unsubscribe from, this newsletter, please do so at:  http://lists.wits.ac.za/mailman/listinfo/copyrightanda2kinfo    or email  Denise.Nicholson@wits.ac.za  only (N.B. PLEASE DO NOT SEND TO WHOLE MAILING LIST)

Judges draw the line in witchcraft case

WITCHCRAFT is a hot topic in Zambia where the courts seem to deal with such matters more often than in many other countries. In this case the two accused were convicted of murdering an elderly woman, but pleaded their belief in witchcraft as an extenuating circumstance. Though found guilty of murder, their alleged beliefs helped reduce their punishment to a life sentence instead of the death penalty that would otherwise have been mandatory. The two then appealed against sentence only, on the basis that it was “manifestly excessive” to imprison them to life since they were first offenders. Hearing this case, Zambia’s supreme court took the opportunity to restate its views on when a belief in witchcraft would amount to extenuating circumstances. Given the number of such cases, this is a timely reminder – though the results of their deliberation would have come as a shock to the two accused.

Copyright & A2K Issues - 27 November 2018

This is a free online international Information Service covering various topics, including copyright, plagiarism and other IP matters, Open Access, open publishing, open learning resources, institutional repositories, scholarly communication, digitization and library matters, mobile technologies, issues affecting access to knowledge (A2K), particularly in developing countries; WTO and WIPO treaties and matters; Free Trade Agreements and TRIPS Plus; useful websites, conference alerts, etc.  Archives are available at:  http://www.africanlii.org/content/copyright-a2k-information .  If you would like to subscribe to, or unsubscribe from, this newsletter, please do so at:  http://lists.wits.ac.za/mailman/listinfo/copyrightanda2kinfo    or email  Denise.Nicholson@wits.ac.za  only ( N.B. PLEASE DO NOT SEND TO WHOLE MAILING LIST)

Copyright & A2K Issues - 23 November 2018

This is a free online international Information Service covering various topics, including copyright, plagiarism and other IP matters, Open Access, open publishing, open learning resources, institutional repositories, scholarly communication, digitization and library matters, mobile technologies, issues affecting access to knowledge (A2K), particularly in developing countries; WTO and WIPO treaties and matters; Free Trade Agreements and TRIPS Plus; useful websites, conference alerts, etc.  Archives are available at:  http://www.africanlii.org/content/copyright-a2k-information .  If you would like to subscribe to, or unsubscribe from, this newsletter, please do so at:  http://lists.wits.ac.za/mailman/listinfo/copyrightanda2kinfo    or email  Denise.Nicholson@wits.ac.za  only (N.B. PLEASE DO NOT SEND TO WHOLE MAILING LIST)