Law Focus

Law Focus - The Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases

The Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases is one of the facets of Labour law that we do not often delve into. Following the court decision for the amendment of the inclusion of domestic workers in particular in the COIDA Act, we discuss with Kelebogile Khonou from the Socio-Economic Research…

23 Jul 2019 53 min

Law Focus - How Much Violence Can Police Extert

Philisiwe Hadebe and Nirmala Gopal (2019). Police Brutality in South Africa. University of Kwa-Zulu Natal. Safer spaces Safer Spaces released an article in 2019 titled ‘Police Brutality in South Africa’; which contains startling statistics ranging from 2014 – 2018 about violent force used by police in the country. Although the…

19 Jun 2019 57 min

Law Focus - Unfair Dismissal

Being employed is never a guarantee of financial stability and security throughout your life; work ends for different reasons; at times, an employee is prepared for it, but at other times not. Unfair and constructive dismissals are the termination of employment when you certainly do not expect it. We pose…

13 Jun 2019 49 min

Law Focus - Bail

Bail is an important judiciary practice in democratic South Africa; it is premised on the basis that there is a presumption of innocence. To understand bail holistically, we consider its legal application and interpretation as well as other intriguing aspects including what happens with bail money, your options if your…

12 Jun 2019 53 min

Law Focus - Child Protection Week

The National Child Protection Week is an initiative which aims to raise awareness on the rights of children; the 2019 theme was “Let Us Protect All Children to Move South Africa Forward”. Safety for children in South Africa; at home, in schools, on the streets or at church - is…

12 Jun 2019 52 min

Law Focus - Religion

Following a prayer made at the first sitting of the sixth parliament by the Constitutional Court Chief Justice as well as his gift of a Bible to President Cyril Ramaphosa at the inauguration – acts both carried out during the course of his oath of office; and considering that South…

12 Jun 2019 55 min

Law Focus - Law of Evidence

The criminal justice system is quite complex, both theoretically and procedurally. We delve into the law of evidence as an aspect of the legal system; it is an immensely packed concept and practice, but we are guided in conversation by the expertise of Dr. Florencia Belvedere from the Public Affairs…

12 Jun 2019 54 min

Law Focus - The Electoral System

With the different electoral systems in the world, none of which is without faults; compounded by the changing narratives and debates about the appropriateness and functionality of Proportional Representation as a system for our national elections 25 years into our constitutional democracy; South African youth in particular need to engage…

12 Jun 2019 49 min

Law Focus - Xenophobic Violence in South Africa

Xenophobia continues to be a contentious issue in the South African society. Foreign nationals are often blamed for the country’s high crime rate, unemployment, and overcrowding of health facilities. However, it is hard to imagine that people will just up and leave the comfort of their countries to be a…

11 Jun 2019 59 min

Law Focus - Should Sex Work be legalized?

Sex work in South is still illegal. A study conducted in 2013 revealed that there were between 132 000 - 182 000 sex workers, female, male, intersex and transgender. The majority are either internal or cross-border migrants with multiple dependants. There have been growing calls over the years to decriminalize…

11 Jun 2019 47 min

Law Focus - Human Rights

Human Rights are essentially a set of agreed principles, which affirm and uphold the dignity of the person. There are concerned with fairness, respect and independence and recognize our freedom to make certain life choices and realize our potential as human beings but also understanding that there come with responsibility…

20 Mar 2019 41 min

Law Focus - Criminal Charges Involving Minors

In light of the recent public outcry for #JusticeForThoriso which involves the violent murder of 28 year old Thoriso Themane who died at the alleged hands of seven teenagers aged between 13 and 16 from Capricorn High School in Polokwane, Law Focus decided to examine what the South African criminal…

19 Mar 2019 51 min

Law Focus - The Violation of Human Rights In Sports

Sports has a unique ability to unite people of different backgrounds, races, genders and nationalities, in more ways than one sports has directly affected and influenced society by breaking down preconceptions and challenging the status quo. One athlete who has exhibited this is 'Golden Girl' Mokgadi Caster Semenya a South…

11 Mar 2019 53 min

Law Focus - The Criminalization of HIV

In 2013 the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria sentenced Lovers Phiri, a former Department of Health HIV counselor to six years in jail after he had unprotected sex with his then girlfriend and never disclosed his status to her, he was subsequently convicted of attempted murder. A similar case…

5 Mar 2019 43 min

Law Focus - The Right To Assemble

As the 2019 academic year begins Universities across the country have been in disarray and turmoil as students have rallied together to protest various issues at their institutions. These protests have obtained nationwide attention for various reasons but more prominently the death of a Durban University of Technology student, Mlungisi…

25 Feb 2019 40 min

Law Focus - Termination of Pregnancy

There is an increasing number of illegal backstreet abortion, despite the termination of pregnancy being legal in South Africa. Dr. Malusi Dlamini and Zwanaka Netshifulani (Wits Gender Equity Office) discuss the concerns surrounding reproduction and women having the right to freedom to have control over their bodies. Brenda Bamuza and…

8 Feb 2019 56 min

Law Focus - Commission of Inquiry

President Cyril Ramaphosa has appointed four commissions of inquiry in the first nine months of his presidency, its no wonder why commissions of inquiry seems to be all we are talking about these days but do we really understand the fundamentals, structures and purpose of a commission of inquiry. Law…

8 Feb 2019 47 min

Law Focus - Legal Concerns of Banking

On backdrop of the VBS scandal where over 2 billion rand was unlawfully extorted from the bank, we interrogate what happens to the poor people that trust banks with their last penny? Joining the discussion is National Secretary of the South African Society of Bank Officials (SASBO) Lebogang Selepe as…

5 Dec 2018 52 min

Law Focus - Mental Health

The stigma around mental health is still rife. In attempting to understand the reasons behind the widespread stigma, we speak to psychiatrist, Dr Steve Molefe who explains the importance of mental health awareness and the role played by medical-care. Nicole Breen from the South African Federation for Mental Health and…

5 Dec 2018 1 hr 02 min

Law Focus - Rental Rights

Wits University students are increasingly frustrated with rent increase and tenant rights being exploited. This stirred the ‘Accommodation is land” march that led to City of Johannesburg buildings to hand over a memorandum of demands to mayor Herman Mashaba for affordable student accommodation. To discuss rental rights, we are joined…

5 Dec 2018 39 min