From Black Pride to Political Consciousness to Social Change

African Americans have been marginalised, discriminated against, and excluded from American society for centuries. First as slaves, but later when they gained emancipation, they remained relegated, differentiated, and discounted, in a range of areas, including in the political and economic spheres. Music has been a means to promote their greater inclusion in American society, drawing together and uniting all Americans through its power. While there have been links drawn between music and the African American struggle for equality, there has not been sufficient focus on the pivotal role that specifically jazz music has played in this regard. Jazz particularly has been a vehicle for promoting Black pride, political consciousness, and social change. This article argues that jazz has had a major effect on African American culture, society, and experience. Analysing the works of legendary jazz musicians James Brown, John Coltrane, Billie Holiday, and The Temptations, this article shows that jazz is not only as a catalyst for, but a driving force in, the fight for political freedom, as well as for economic empowerment, which is arguably still ongoing today.publishersversionpublishe

THE ROLE OF MUSLIM SCHOLARS IN MINIFYING RELIGIOUS EXTREMISM FOR PEACE BUILDING AND EDUCATIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA

Insurgency, religious extremism and other related religious crises become hydra-headed in Nigeria, which cause destruction of human lives and properties worth billions of naira, millions people were displaced and many school-going age are out of school. The Boko Haram terrorism is one of insecurity challenges in Northern Nigeria, which has negative impact on Nigerian education seriously and forced many children to abandoned schools in an already ill-educated region. The wrong teachings and misinterpretations of Islam by some Muslims fuel the spread of extremist ideologies and emergence of extremist groups. A multi-religious country like Nigeria to realise its development in all human aspects there must be unity and religious tolerance. Many agreed that changing the ideologies of insurgents and religious extremism will require intellectual role. Muslim scholars can play a vital role in promoting social reform and peace co-existence. This paper discusses the importance of unity among Muslims and non-Muslims community. The paper also reviews the relationship among Muslims and non-Muslims during the time of the Prophet (S.A.W.). The consequences of religious extremism, terrorism, sectarians and intolerance on education are examined. To minify religious intolerance and extremism the paper identifies the roles to be played by Muslim scholars. The paper concludes that to realise Nigerian educational goals and objectives and to ensure education for all Muslim should shun away from any religious crises and embrace unity and religious tolerance. Finally, the paper recommends among others that only pious and learned scholars should be allowed to preach, Muslim should be patient, tolerance in dealing with Muslims and non-Muslims. National and international organisations should cooperate in reconstruction and maintenance of schools in recovered affected areas from Boko haram insurgency

Progress, Perils and Pitfalls Post the ICC Review

The International Criminal Court is a very controversial institution. It is extensively criticised by both its critics and its supporters. This article examines what steps have been taken to reform the Court. It considers issues such as the need for bet-ter communications and messaging by the Court. The paper takes up how and why the Court needs to engage better and in more far-reaching ways with a host of role players that affect the terrain in which the Court operates. It is argued that more reform is needed in how the Court is lead, how it operates, and who the judges and staff are. It is argued that greater diversity is needed at the Court. Also taken up are how the reach of the Court can be increased beyond only prosecutions, how the Court can assist states to prosecute more cases themselves, and how the Court can become more victim centred. A core theme is how state cooperation can be enhanced. A range of suggestions are made so as to enhance the role of the Court in the years to come.publishersversionpublishe

Fighting crime while promoting human rights in the police, the court and the prisons in South Africa

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The need for a human rights approach to save lives and find missing persons

The world is in a migration crisis. Thousands of people are dying annually trying to get across the Mediterranean. However, this is not a problem unique to Europe. It has remained a hidden global problem for a long time. What is specifically unknown are the numbers of people who have gone missing while migrating. This article therefore focuses on such missing people. It examines the numbers of people that are known to have died, and argues that there is a general dearth of information about both people who have died, as well as those who have gone missing. The article reviews who missing people are and argues that the term missing is only found to any large measure in the laws of armed conflict, and most other situations that cause people to go missing, those who are subject to enforced disappearances, are not covered. The article argues that more research ought to be done on these issues and more data ought to be collected and analysed. It argues that people on migration routes are vulnerable and further argues that more needs to be done to provide them with protection and assistance. The laws dealing with the missing are analysed. The article argues that a human rights approach is needed to deal with the problem and that states need to play much more of a compassionate and humane role concerning migration matters and missing people generally and specifically. The article also argues for partnerships and coordination, that the families need to be given more support, and that more public education is needed to deal with the negative perceptions and misconceptions that exist in many societies to which those migrating seek to move to, as this will give greater positive impetus to states to deal more appropriately with those who migrate for whatever reason.publishersversionpublishe

Survival of adults with HIV-1 infection or Type 2 diabetes in the South African private sector

Background: The scale-up of combination antiretroviral therapy (ART), one of the greatest pharmacological interventions in human history, has reduced adult HIV-related deaths in South Africa by around 70% between the peak in 2005 and 2019, but it is unclear from published studies in South Africa and globally which subgroups of HIV-infected adults, defined by both baseline and current (time-updated) characteristics, may achieve HIV-uninfected levels of mortality and which subgroups have relative mortality that is within the insurance industry’s threshold for insurability. Relative mortality estimates are important in insurance since insurability is measured by relative mortality, not absolute mortality or other measures such as life expectancy. As HIV-infected people survive to increasingly longer durations of ART, there is a need for patients, healthcare practitioners, ART programmes, other modellers, insurers and policymakers to understand the prognosis when measured from later durations on ART based on current characteristics. However, most South African studies are based on baseline characteristics, short follow-up times, and low patient volumes, and they lack an HIVuninfected control selected from the same subpopulation for estimating relative mortality. At the time of initiating this research in 2013/2014, some insurers were declining HIV-infected South Africans applying for higher cover amounts spanning the whole of life. Further, other chronic conditions such as Type 2 Diabetes (DM2) had already been insurable for many years in South Africa. At the same time, the ART Cohort Collaboration (ART-CC) assessed the insurability of HIV-infected people starting ART in Europe and issued an urgent call for a corresponding study in South Africa. This study responds to this call and, to the author’s knowledge, is the first study outside of Europe to assess the insurability of HIV-infected adults starting ART by assessing the relative mortality of South African HIV-infected adults initiating ART using an HIV-uninfected control (comparator) chosen from the same subpopulation, measured from multiple time points on ART using both baseline and current characteristics, long follow-up times, significant patient volumes and accurate mortality ascertainment. The study identifies patient subgroups with insurable levels of relative risk as well as subgroups that attain HIV-uninfected levels of all-cause mortality and is fundamental for evaluating ART programmes and for informing evidence-based insurance decisions that are actuarially sound and treat insurance customers fairly. Methods: A retrospective cohort study is performed using patient data from a large medical scheme population and Aid for AIDS (AfA), a private sector HIV managed care programme in South Africa. Three cohorts are extracted from the same medical scheme population: HIV infected adults starting ART, patients with DM2 starting hypoglycaemic therapy, and an HIV-uninfected and DM2-negative control (comparator). Mortality is ascertained via linkage with the national death registry. Relative all-cause mortality risk (relative risk) is estimated using a generalized linear model (GLM) assuming a Poisson error distribution and with expected numbers of deaths based on the control cohort mortality according to age, gender and population group specified as an offset. To meet insurers’ needs for estimates of future relative risk that remain constant across the policy lifetime and incorporate current characteristics nearest to the time of applying for insurance, relative risk is estimated from each 6-month time point on ART over the remaining follow-up according to the patient’s length of time on ART at the time of applying for insurance, current CD4 count and viral load and baseline CD4 count. Results: In the HIV cohort, 8,920 deaths were observed recorded in 77,325 patients starting ART between 2000 and 2013 followed for 315,341 person years of observation (PYO) (median follow-up of 3.23 years [IQR 2.04;5.30]). In the DM2 cohort, 7,970 deaths were recorded in 67,705 patients starting antihyperglycaemic therapy between 2000 and 2013 followed for 365,547 PYO (median follow-up of 6.20 years [IQR 3.85;9.53]). In the control, 24,838 deaths were recorded in 512,940 patients followed for 3,276,501 PYO. The median CD4 count in the overall HIV cohort reached the lower limit of CD4 count in HIV uninfected people (500 cells/µl) after 5 years on ART and, after 12 months on ART, 77% of patients were virologically suppressed (viral load ≤ 400 copies/ml), increasing to 80% after 10 years on ART. Within the first 6 months on ART, 21% of patients attained both a CD4 count above 200 cells/µl and a suppressed viral load, increasing to 49% in months 6-12, 68% in years 1-2 and 80% after 10 years on ART. In the overall HIV cohort, 90% of patients at risk from all time points 6 months or later since ART initiation were estimated to have relative risk within the insurance industry threshold (<5). Within patients attaining current CD4 counts of 200+ cells/µl and suppressed viral loads (≤400 copies/ml) at 6 months on ART or later, 100% of patients at risk corresponded to relative risk levels well below the insurance industry threshold (<5). 90% of patients at risk from 1 year of ART onwards had a lower or comparable relative risk to the DM2 cohort, implying that the majority of patients on ART had comparable relative risk to those with a chronic condition that is already insurable. Baseline CD4 count was only prognostic for relative risk within the first three years of ART after adjusting for the immunological and virological response to ART. Patients attaining a current CD4 count of 200+ cells/µl and a suppressed viral load (≤400 copies/ml) had the lowest relative risk, reducing with time on ART and approaching 1 after 3 years on ART in the black population group indicating attainment of HIV uninfected mortality levels. However, in the non-black population group, relative risk was 1.59 [95% CI 1.30;1.88] times higher than in the black population group which, while still within the insurance industry threshold, is higher than HIV uninfected levels of mortality. A further sub-analysis showed that while the immunological and virological response to ART was similar to that reported by the ART-CC in Europe, the level of relative risk was similar only in the nonblack population group and the effect of current age on relative risk was strongly modified by population group. Conclusions: The vast majority of this cohort of South African HIV-infected adults starting ART have both insurable levels of relative risk and comparable relative risk to DM2 when measured from multiple time points on ART by baseline and current characteristics. The only subgroup with relative risk exceeding the insurance industry threshold were patients with current CD4 counts ˂200 cells/µl and unsuppressed viral loads (˃400 copies/ml). Mortality in the vast majority of this cohort attained CD4 counts ≥200 cells/µl and suppressed viral loads (≤400 copies/ml) and approached HIV-uninfected levels after 3 years on ART. A novel analytics method is presented for modelling relative risk that better meets insurers’ needs than existing studies reporting relative risk in defined intervals of ART using dated patient characteristics

Bolstering the Right to the Truth

This article argues that while the right to the truth has come to the fore over the last few decades, victims around the world have not really felt its practical effect. It is argued that for the right to have real impact, human rights violations need to be documented and investigated, and the victims identified. This has, however, been limited in the past for a variety of reasons, including the inability to document violations to the extent needed. The article therefore considers how scientific and technological tools can help with this. It is argued that while the right to the truth has been assisted by the advent of DNA analysis, this tool is often not available in large parts of the world because of a lack of resources. Thus, it is argued that other types of techniques can, and must, be used to identify victims of human rights abuses. The article considers how ordinary people and NGOs can use a range of other tools, including a variety of apps and social media, to collect evidence of human rights violations, find people and fight impunity. The article also discusses why there ought therefore to be a greater reliance on open-source information and how it can be used to improve documentation and investigations of human rights violations. Examples that best embody the advantages and disadvantages of these scientific and technological tools are provided, as well as ideas on how to overcome the challenges they present.publishersversionpublishe

The Common Law in South Africa: Pro Apartheid or Pro Democracy

The role of the common law in South Africa has been controversial. Some argue that South Africa\u27s common law, inherited from Roman-Dutch and English law, has a problematic colonial tradition that has done little to protect justice and equality. Others argue that if not for parliamentary security legislation, South Africa\u27s common law could have protected rights and freedoms. This article examines several apartheid-era cases in which the common law protection of individual rights was at stake to determine whether the common law was human rights friendly, or if it was compatible with the constitutional dispensation of human rights abuses. It then examines what effect the new constitution and bill of rights have had on the common law, and considers which areas of the law outside of the constitution and bill of rights will be affected

Civil Society Has a Vital Role to Play in Building a National Preventive Mechanism to Help Combat Torture

Torture and other forms of cruel, inhuman, degrading treatment and punishment were routinely and widely practised during the apartheid era in South Africa. However, these human rights abuses are still rife in the country.publishe