Investigating the impact of Sexual Assault Evidence Collection Kits (SAECKs) as evidence in rape cases prosecuted in the Western Cape High Court between 2012 and 2016

Background: The Republic of South Africa (RSA) is facing a rape crisis, with women and children being the most vulnerable. DNA evidence is used to aid in suspect identification and to confirm sexual contact. The collection of biological forensic evidence after a rape incident is routine in RSA, however, its contribution to the outcome of rape cases is still unclear. This study aimed to investigate the use of Sexual Assault Evidence Collection Kits (SAECKs) and their impact on the outcome of rape cases. Methods: Data for this study was collected by conducting a retrospective review of rape cases (n=98) prosecuted and finalised at the Western Cape High Court between 1st January 2012 and 31st December 2016. Court dockets were examined, and data was collected using a set of predefined variables. Backward logistic regression was used to analyse whether there is an association between the accused being found guilty and the use of SAECKs and the presentation of DNA evidence. Main findings: In 61% (n=60/98) of the cases a SAECK was used during the medical examination and a DNA report was generated and available for use in 77% (n=46/60) of these cases. There was a higher conviction rate when a SAECK was used (88%, n=53/60) in comparison to when it was not used (53%, n=8/15). Contrary to our expectation, the use of SAECKs was not found to be positively associated with the conviction when using backward logistic regression. This means the use of a SAECK decreased the odds of finding the defendant guilty of rape, albeit by a small degree (OR=0.196, p-value=0.040). DNA was not associated with the case outcome. The majority of cases were stranger rapes (64%,n=63/98), that occurred outdoors (64%,n=61/95)and mostly in the township locations such as Khayelitsha, Philippi, Nyanga, areas located on the Cape Flats, with only a single perpetrator. Injuries were documented in 50% of the cases (n=49)and almost 48% (n=46/95) of the victims were coerced and threatened with a weapon. Our binary model found only the location of incidence (p-value= 0.006) to be significantly associated with case outcome with an odds ratio of 19.827. Conclusions: The findings from this study are significant as they point out that health care practitioners are adequately trained and equipped to provide quality health care responses and to work effectively with police officers. SAECKs are utilised routinely during rape investigations. However, there are various factors relating to the victim, perpetrator and assault characteristics that influence the judge's verdict. This study raised questions relating to how those factors are measured or weighed and are predictive of case outcome. Although we found no positive associations between the variables investigated (except the location of the incident) and court outcome, future research, including larger sample size, should investigate these variables in order to obtain true significance, especially concerning the use of SAECKs and its impact on the court outcome

Children’s right to education: a case of school fee policies in South Africa.

Masters Degree. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban.After 1994, the apartheid education system transformed into democratic system aimed at achieving equity, redress and access to education for all. However, after 20 years of democracy and the introduction of policies and legislation that aim to redress the previous educational injustices, gaps are still evident. The introduced policies include the South African School Act (SASA) (Act No. 84 of 1996), the National Norms Standards for School Funding (NNSSF), the School Fee Exemption Policy (SFEP), and the No Fee School Policy (NFSP). Following the implementation of the policies, quintile ranking of schools was introduced for the government funding purposes, based on the poverty levels of the community. Despite these reforms and implementation, many authors are convinced that these policies have not produced the desired outcomes, and this requires further reflection and research. The study aimed to explore the impact and effectiveness of the NFSP and SFEP over a 10-year period from 2006–2016, in some of the schools in KwaZulu-Natal and Pinetown districts. This was achieved through the critical analysis of learner enrolment and school dropout data. Furthermore, the study critically analyses factors that influence learner dropout and non-matriculation. According to collected data and available research, enrolment rates at primary school level and high school level has increased. However, it is observed from the data that high school dropout is rife particularly from grade 10 to 11. Learners tend to leave school between grade 10 and 11, based on their socio-economic status, mainly the lack of money to pay school fees. Hence school learner dropout is a concern particularly at an advanced stage of schooling, and it has been an on-going problem for over 10 years. The study is based on secondary data and statistical data obtained from the Department of Education in KwaZulu-Natal province

The evolution of GIS ICT applications for sustainable utilisation and management of natural resources in agriculture and rural development of Gauteng

Thesis (M.M. (ICT Policy and Regulation))--University of the Witwatersrand, Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, Graduate School of Public and Development Management, 2014.The evolution of GIS applications in Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (GDARD) was addressed in the study about Rationalisation and Optimisation of Spatial Information Exploration (ROSIE) report which reflects the GIS history in GDARD before 2003. That report revealed that there was a “large degree of duplication, unconsolidated information resources within the department, and non-provision for wider access to spatial information”. This study focuses on the complexity of introducing centralised GIS decision-support ICT applications in GDARD after 2003, with focus on a particular GIS ICT application for GDARD known as the Gauteng Integrated Decision Support (GIDS) system. The purpose of conducting this study was to determine to what extent the adopted strategies, methods and processes are contributing to the attainment of the policy mission for “sustainable utilisation and management of natural resources” in Gauteng. The methodology used reviews GIS usage, skills and access to spatial information i.e. e-service delivery. The data was collected from individuals from GDARD, other Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) departments, GPG agencies and GDARD stakeholders. The data was analysed using an interpretive qualitative method of research in the context of policy, strategy and operations and their influence on the effectiveness and efficiency of integrated GIS systems. The findings of this study indicate that the stakeholders needs for e-service delivery have not been not fully met. It recommends that the Chief Executive Officers (CEO), Chief Information Officers (CIO) and Chief Financial Officers (CFO) should jointly evaluate, direct and monitor ICT projects to ensure that the major business drivers and benefits like e-services are effectively and efficiently delivered.provision for wider access to spatial information”. This study focuses on the complexity of introducing centralised GIS decision-support ICT applications in GDARD after 2003, with focus on a particular GIS ICT application for GDARD known as the Gauteng Integrated Decision Support (GIDS) system. The purpose of conducting this study was to determine to what extent the adopted strategies, methods and processes are contributing to the attainment of the policy mission for “sustainable utilisation and management of natural resources” in Gauteng. The methodology used reviews GIS usage, skills and access to spatial information i.e. e-service delivery. The data was collected from individuals from GDARD, other Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) departments, GPG agencies and GDARD stakeholders. The data was analysed using an interpretive qualitative method of research in the context of policy, strategy and operations and their influence on the effectiveness and efficiency of integrated GIS systems. The findings of this study indicate that the stakeholders needs for e-service delivery have not been not fully met. It recommends that the Chief Executive Officers (CEO), Chief Information Officers (CIO) and Chief Financial Officers (CFO) should jointly evaluate, direct and monitor ICT projects to ensure that the major business drivers and benefits like e-services are effectively and efficiently delivered

Tweets and Facebook posts, the novelty techniques in the creation of origin-destination models

Abstract: Social media and big data have emerged to be a useful source of information that can be used for planning purposes, particularly transportation planning and trip-distribution studies. Cities in developing countries such as South Africa often struggle with out-dated, unreliable and cumbersome techniques such as traffic counts and household surveys to conduct origin and destination studies. The emergence of ubiquitous crowd sourced data, big data, social media and geolocation based services has shown huge potential in providing useful information for origin and destination studies. Perhaps such information can be utilised to determine the origin and destination of commuters using the Gautrain, a high-speed railway in Gauteng province South Africa. To date little is known about the origins and destinations of Gautrain commuters. Accordingly, this study assesses the viability of using geolocation-based services namely Facebook and Twitter in mapping out the network movements of Gautrain commuters. Explorative Spatial Data Analysis (ESDA), Echo-social and ArcGis software were used to extract social media data, i.e. tweets and Facebook posts as well as to visualize the concentration of Gautrain commuters. The results demonstrate that big data and geolocation based services have the significant potential to predict movement network patterns of commuters and this information can thus, be used to inform and improve transportation planning. Nevertheless use of crowd sourced data and big data has privacy concerns that still need to be addressed

An analysis of the South African general anti-avoidance rule : lessons from new Zealand case law

Tax is a major source of revenue for most countries worldwide and non-compliance by taxpayers in the form of tax avoidance causes a significant loss of tax revenue. South Africa has legislated a GAAR into its tax legislation in an attempt to combat tax avoidance. However, the effectiveness of the South African GAAR has been criticised since it was first introduced. This criticism continues even after its most recent amendment and is compounded by the fact that there is limited guidance on its interpretation and application, as there has only been one reported case in which the GAAR has been applied since its amendment in 2006. This study followed a qualitative research approach known as ‘structured pre-emptive analysis’ to use lessons from the New Zealand GAAR to propose reform to the South African GAAR to improve its efficacy. The structured pre-emptive approach combined both doctrinal and reform-oriented research and allowed for a triangulation of the findings to improve quality and rigour of the research. The findings of this study revealed the following notable areas of improvement for the South African GAAR. Firstly, a different interpretation is required when determining whether a taxpayer may be considered party to an arrangement where motive and volition should not inform whether or not a taxpayer is party to an arrangement. Secondly, the inquiry into the purpose of an arrangement should be amended from the current sole or main purpose requirement to requiring a purpose that is more than merely incidental to the arrangement. This requirement should be further improved by interpreting it as solely objective, thus disregarding the taxpayer’s stated intention. Thirdly, the current fourth requirement of the South African GAAR (the tainted elements) should inform the tax benefit requirement, which would result in the South African GAAR containing three instead of four requirements, making it less onerous to apply. Lastly, further guidance should be provided regarding the interpretation and application of the South African GAAR by defining undefined terms in areas where uncertainties could give rise to a level of subjectivity and inconsistent judicial interpretation.Mini Dissertation (MCom (Taxation))--University of Pretoria, 2021.TaxationMCom (Taxation)Unrestricte

Effect of a 12-week aerobic exercise programme on percentage body fat, fasting blood glucose and dyspnoea in insulin resistant, obese female university employees in the Western Cape

Magister Artium (Sport, Recreation and Exercise Science) - MA(SRES)Obesity is recognised as a risk factor for non-communicable diseases which has reached epidemic proportions globally. South Africa is one of the developing countries with significant statistical representation reported for these conditions. Obesity is associated with other conditions such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension and dyslipidaemia which are all part of what is called metabolic syndrome. As a strategy to reduce the levels of obesity, physical activity has been introduced to compliment clients who are on medication for diabetes

Risk factors associated with teenage pregnancy at Ga-Dikgale villages in the Northern Province of South Africa

Please read the abstract in the section 00front of this documentDissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2010.School of Health Systems and Public Health (SHSPH)Unrestricte

Application of anomaly detection techniques to astrophysical transients

>Magister Scientiae - MScWe are fast moving into an era where data will be the primary driving factor for discovering new unknown astronomical objects and also improving our understanding of the current rare astronomical objects. Wide field survey telescopes such as the Square Kilometer Array (SKA) and Vera C. Rubin observatory will be producing enormous amounts of data over short timescales. The Rubin observatory is expected to record ∼ 15 terabytes of data every night during its ten-year Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST), while the SKA will collect ∼100 petabytes of data per day. Fast, automated, and datadriven techniques, such as machine learning, are required to search for anomalies in these enormous datasets, as traditional techniques such as manual inspection will take months to fully exploit such datasets