Rwanda, since the genocide of 1994, has had immense difficulty in dealing with the past. It has pursued the model of prosecutions without being able to bring many of the alleged perpetrators before the courts. The article examines why this is so, as well as the political situation in Rwanda in the context of the country's human rights record, to determine whether sufficient weight is being given to truth, reconciliation, peace and stability. The proposed new gacaca community courts are examined to determine whether the stated government intention of using these structures to deal with genocide cases outweighs the potential problems they may cause. The article suggests that as so many years have elapsed since the genocide of 1994 that the authorities cannot, and should not, seek to prosecute all those accused of participating in the slaughter because attempting to prosecute all those in detention may cause more harm than good.

This article is in two parts. The first part analyses, and largely applauds, the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000, the latest in a series of enactments designed to curb corruption in Nigeria over the last thirty years. The second part looks at the social environment within which corruption operates. It points out that in the past the environment was such that anti-corruption measures were bound to fail, but it concludes, in optimistic vein, that the recent return to civilian rule has created a climate in which the new Act is likely to have an effect in the fight against corruption.

The Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act in South Africa seeks to make the constitutional prohibition of discrimination as effective as possible. The achievement of this aim is, however, likely to be frustrated by several factors, including the legacy of apartheid, deficiencies in the formal statutory guarantees and the judicial interpretation of these, and the lack of effective enforcement mechanisms. As a result, the attempt to clamp down on racial discrimination has removed from the constitutional guarantee much of its potential force.

The former (and late lamented) Chief Justice of South Africa, Justice IsmailMohammed, once observed that:

“The constitution of a nation is not simply a statute which mechanically definesthe structures of government and the relations between the government and thegoverned, it is a ‘mirror of the national soul’, the identification of the ideals andaspirations of a nation, the articulation of the values binding its people anddisciplining its government.”

Further, as van der Vyer has warned, “. . . a superimposed constitutionalformulae or constitutional arrangements that . . . do not address the real causesof discontent, are sure to generate their own legitimacy crisis.” It follows thatthe development of an appropriate procedure for constitution-making is of thegreatest practical importance. This short comment seeks to examine criticallythe much-publicized efforts in Zimbabwe to develop a new autochthonousconstitution and to draw some lessons therefrom.

DEFINING THE LIMITS OF PERMISSIBLE EMPLOYMENT DISCRIMINATION AGAINST PERSONS LIVING WITH HIV/AIDS IN SOUTH AFRICA: HOFFMAN V. SOUTH AFRICAN AIRWAYS [2000] 12 BLLR 1365.

Perhaps the most positive and exciting aftermath of the apartheid era is theconstruction of the new South Africa upon the foundation of a Constitutionand other legal instruments that are unanimous and unambiguous in tworespects. The first is in their proscription of unfair discrimination and the secondis in their permission of statutory and other measures aimed at eliminating theeffects of past discrimination on those groups of persons who were at the receivingend of same. The provisions of these instruments as well as their tenor andspirit reveal an unmistakable national resolve to break from a culture of racialdiscrimination to a constitutionally protected culture of human rights for SouthAfricans of all ages, classes and colours. Without doubt, the most important ofthose provisions is the equality clause of the Bill of Rights contained in thesecond chapter of the Constitution. This probably follows from a realization ofthe fact that equality is fundamental to “the maintenance and propagation ofhuman rights in a democratic body politic, particularly in an acutely dividedsociety” such as South Africa.

LAND ACQUISITION AMENDMENT ACT, 2000 (ZIMBABWE)

Since Zimbabwe became independent in 1980 the issue of land reform and,in particular, the issue of land acquisition and redistribution has seldom beenoff the political agenda. For the first ten years of independence there wereconstitutional constraints on the acquisition of land for resettlement purposes,but the National Land Policy of 1990 set out plans for an accelerated programmeof resettlement. In order to achieve its ambitious targets the government ofZimbabwe saw the need to strengthen its powers of compulsory acquisition bothby amending section 16 of the Constitution (which provided strong protectionagainst the compulsory acquisition of property) and by enacting the LandAcquisition Act to provide a statutory basis for the new policy. These reformswere extremely controversial both inside and outside the country and a clauseexcluding the right to fair compensation for expropriated land was droppedpartly in response to international pressure.

CHALLENGING RESTRICTIONS ON THE RIGHT TO PROTECTION OF THE LAW IN ZIMBABWE.

In June 2000, a general election was held in Zimbabwe. Of the 120 commonroll constituencies, 62 were won by the ruling party, ZANU(PF) and 57 by theMovement for Democratic Change (MDC). The MDC alleged that the generalelection campaign was marred by widespread violence, intimidation and illegalpractices. As a result proceedings were instituted in the High Court challengingthe outcome of the electoral process in 37 constituencies. The hearings weredue to commence in January 2001. On 8 December the President issued theElectoral Act (Modification) (No. 3) Notice, 2000 (SI 318/2000), which purportedto justify the validation of the election results by reference to a series of assertions.