The unresolved search for the proper standard of review of affirmative action: Solidarity obo Barnard v SAPS

From text: In Solidarity obo Barnard v SAPS, the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) set aside the order of the Labour Appeal Court (LAC), which upheld the decision of the National Commissioner of Police not to appoint a white female (Barnard) to the position of superintendent in the National Evaluation Services Division of the South African Police Service (SAPS). The most important issue raised by the judgments is the proper standard of review of affirmative action measures in terms of section 9(2) of the Constitution and section 6(2)(a) of the Employment Equity Act (EEA). The Labour Court (LC), the LAC and the SCA all subscribed to different versions of what the standard of review ought to be. In so doing, they also applied different interpretations of the leading judgment of the Constitutional Court on affirmative action, Minister of Finance v Van Heerden. In this note, the different interpretations will be identified and analysed

Aligning school discipline with the best interests of the child: Some deficits in the legislative framework

The best-interest-of-the-child concept should guide the legislative framework with regard to the approach followed as well as the disciplinary processes used in schools. Currently schools revert mostly to a retributive and adversarial approach to discipline that is not compatible with the best-interests-of-the-child standard. In this article, the provisions of section 8 of the Schools Act are scrutinised and it is concluded that these provisions are supporting an adversarial and punitive approach to school discipline. This is evident from the lack of prescriptions ensuring that sanctions serve the best interest of children, the insufficient provision for support measures and structures for counselling, the undue focus on the best interests of the transgressor and the lack of guidance concerning the appointment of an intermediary. The introduction of restorative discipline as an alternative approach to discipline is recommended. The latter approach is recommended, because it is submitted that amendments to the existing legislative provisions would not address the key objection to the legislative framework namely its retributive and adversarial character

Die effek van die regulering van maksimum werkure op werknemers se grondwetlike reg op gelykheid

The paper examines the effect of the provisons regulating maximum working hours, with reference to the principle of equality entrenched in section 9 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996. Section 9(1) read with section 10(1) of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act 75/1997 has the effect that, subject to certain exceptions, employees are not allowed to work for the same employer for more than 55 hours per week. This does not prevent employees from working longer hours in total for different employers, an option that entails clear disadvantages. As a result of the adverse effect of past discrimination, black people, women and people on low socio-economic levels are disproportionately more unfavourably positioned in respect of levels of income, occupational status, financial ability and, consequentially, opportunities for promotion and improvement. This disadvantage often creates a need to work longer hours, specifically for the same employer. An application of the test developed in Harksen v Lane NO leads to a conclusion that the provisions referred to constitute unfair discrimination in terms of section 9 of the Constitution. The provisions also fail the proportionality test of section 36 of the Constitution

Prosecuting the main perpetrators of international crimes in Eritrea: Possibilities under international law

A growing international consensus has emerged in the last few decades on the need to prosecute egregious violations of international law. In this regard, the establishment of the International Criminal Court (ICC) is seen as a landmark development in the global protection of international human rights and humanitarian law standards. Since its independence in 1991, Eritrea has experienced heinous violations of international law. The violations amount to international core crimes, as defined by the ICC Statute and customary international law. These include crimes against humanity, war crimes and the crime of aggression. There are consistent reports, as well as documentary and testimonial evidence from reliable sources on this. Accordingly, a number of high-ranking government officials may be reasonably suspected of involvement in the perpetration of international crimes in Eritrea. However, Eritrea is not a state party to the ICC Statute and this means that many of the international crimes perpetrated in the country may not fall under the jurisdiction of the ICC. On the other hand, violations are continuing with impunity, as there are no effective domestic remedies to rectify the problem, giving rise to the need for immediate intervention by the international community. The article discusses the legal implications of the ICC Statute with regard to international crimes committed in Eritrea before and after the coming into effect of the Statute. Drawing on the latest developments of international criminal law, it explores possible options for the prosecution of the main perpetrators of international crimes pursuant to Security Council referral as stipulated under article 13(b) of the ICC Statute

Ninja data analysis with a detection pipeline based on the Hilbert-Huang Transform

The Ninja data analysis challenge allowed the study of the sensitivity of data analysis pipelines to binary black hole numerical relativity waveforms in simulated Gaussian noise at the design level of the LIGO observatory and the VIRGO observatory. We analyzed NINJA data with a pipeline based on the Hilbert Huang Transform, utilizing a detection stage and a characterization stage: detection is performed by triggering on excess instantaneous power, characterization is performed by displaying the kernel density enhanced (KD) time-frequency trace of the signal. Using the simulated data based on the two LIGO detectors, we were able to detect 77 signals out of 126 above SNR 5 in coincidence, with 43 missed events characterized by signal to noise ratio SNR less than 10. Characterization of the detected signals revealed the merger part of the waveform in high time and frequency resolution, free from time-frequency uncertainty. We estimated the timelag of the signals between the detectors based on the optimal overlap of the individual KD time-frequency maps, yielding estimates accurate within a fraction of a millisecond for half of the events. A coherent addition of the data sets according to the estimated timelag eventually was used in a characterization of the event.Comment: Accepted for publication in CQG, special issue NRDA proceedings 200

Personality traits, brie' recurrent depression and attempted suicide

This study investigated the relationship between attempted suicide, personality factors and brief recurrent depression. Over a period of 1 year, the demographic and psychiatric factors of 307 patients who had attempted suicide and subsequently been hospitalised at H. F. Verwoerd Hospital and referred to its Department of Psychiatry were recorded. Their personality traits were evaluated clinically. After 5 years, 205 respondents were traced to complete a follow-up questionnaire and, where possible, a personality assessment was completed on clinical grounds. They were also evaluated for brief recurrent depression. Among the men, antisocial, dependent and histrionic personality traits, in that order, were most commonly noted and among the women, histrionic, dependent and antisocial traits. A clear relationship between suicidal behaviour and the syndrome of brief recurrent depression was established. The latter was also found to be related to histrionic personality traits in women. This underscores the relationship between suicide attempts and histrionic personality traits

Ecology and Management of \u3ci\u3ePemphigus betae\u3c/i\u3e (Hemiptera: Aphididae) in Sugar Beet

Pemphigus betae Doane (Hemiptera: Aphididae), is a sporadic pest of sugar beet (Beta vulgaris L. var. vulgaris) in all major sugar beet production regions of North America. These oval-shaped, pale-yellowish insects, with a body length ranging from 1.9–2.4mm, secrete a waxy material, giving their subterranean colonies a moldy appearance. Poplars in the genus Populus L. are the preferred primary hosts, while sugar beet and certain weed species, such as common lambsquarters (Chenopodium album L.) and kochia (Kochia scoparia (L.)), are among the secondary hosts. Pemphigus betae has a complex and varied life cycle and is usually heteroecious and holocyclic, although anholocyclic apterae are known to overwinter in the soil. Heavy infestations of this aphid can induce significant reductions in yield, sugar content, and recoverable sugar. Under conditions of extreme stress and heavy infestations, the alienicolae can induce stunting, chlorosis, wilting, and even death of sugar beet plants. Accurately establishing population densities for sugarbeet root aphids presents a challenge, because the economic important stage of this insect is subterranean. However, use of a fall root rating index aids in estimating relative population densities. Furthermore, root aphids are especially difficult to control by means of conventional insecticides. For this reason, integrated pest management tactics, including the use of host plant resistance, cultural control techniques, and the use of natural enemies, should take precedence

Comparisons of binary black hole merger waveforms

This a particularly exciting time for gravitational wave physics. Ground-based gravitational wave detectors are now operating at a sensitivity such that gravitational radiation may soon be directly detected, and recently several groups have independently made significant breakthroughs that have finally enabled numerical relativists to solve the Einstein field equations for coalescing black-hole binaries, a key source of gravitational radiation. The numerical relativity community is now in the position to begin providing simulated merger waveforms for use by the data analysis community, and it is therefore very important that we provide ways to validate the results produced by various numerical approaches. Here, we present a simple comparison of the waveforms produced by two very different, but equally successful approaches--the generalized harmonic gauge and the moving puncture methods. We compare waveforms of equal-mass black hole mergers with minimal or vanishing spins. The results show exceptional agreement for the final burst of radiation, with some differences attributable to small spins on the black holes in one case.Comment: Revtex 4, 5 pages. Published versio

Ecology and Management of Pemphigus betae (Hemiptera: Aphididae) in Sugar Beet

Published ArticlePemphigus betae Doane (Hemiptera: Aphididae), is a sporadic pest of sugar beet (Beta vulgaris L. var. vulgaris) in all major sugar beet production regions of North America. These oval-shaped, pale-yellowish insects, with a body length ranging from 1.9–2.4mm, secrete a waxy material, giving their subterranean colonies a moldy appearance. Poplars in the genus Populus L. are the preferred primary hosts, while sugar beet and certain weed species, such as common lambsquarters (Chenopodium album L.) and kochia (Kochia scoparia (L.)), are among the secondary hosts. Pemphigus betae has a complex and varied life cycle and is usually heteroecious and holocyclic, although anholocyclic apterae are known to overwinter in the soil. Heavy infestations of this aphid can induce significant reductions in yield, sugar content, and recoverable sugar. Under conditions of extreme stress and heavy infestations, the alienicolae can induce stunting, chlorosis, wilting, and even death of sugar beet plants. Accurately establishing population densities for sugarbeet root aphids presents a challenge, because the economic important stage of this insect is subterranean. However, use of a fall root rating index aids in estimating relative population densities. Furthermore, root aphids are especially difficult to control by means of conventional insecticides. For this reason, integrated pest management tactics, including the use of host plant resistance, cultural control techniques, and the use of natural enemies, should take precedence