There is a common misperception that rape can only be committed if a man uses physical violence to overpower anon-consenting woman and that the woman has physical injuries to prove that she resisted. As will be seen ...

This case note examines the reasoning of the Supreme Court leading to its conclusion that s 31(a)(iii) of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act [Chapter 9:23] (the “Criminal Law Code”) is unconstitutional and ...

The heading for this offence is “Deliberate transmission of HIV”. This is somewhat misleading. Although the offence can be committed if the accused actually infects the complainant,it can also be committed without proof ...

All legal systems have had to address the difficult problem of deciding how to deal with the defence of provocation in the context of criminal cases. This defence is very frequently pleaded in relation to crimes of violence ...

The role of human rights organizations has tended to be primarily reactive. Where human rights violations have occurred human rights organizations have responded by documenting and publicising the abuses, seeking redress ...

In all democratic societies individual people are afforded protection against unlawful interference with their personal liberty and freedom, and in Zimbabwe there are extensive safeguards against unlawful encroachment on ...

This paper examines the complex issue of sentencing of sexual offenders against the backdrop of the recent calls for mandatory minimum sentences in cases of sexual crimes. Some countries have introduced mandatory minimum ...

One of the most fundamental principles of our common law in criminal matters is that a person can only be found criminally liable if his conduct was accompanied by some blameworthy mental state. For a very long time in our ...

The death penalty debate generates a lot of emotional heat. Many people ardently support the retention of the death. sentence for murder. The main basis for supporting the use of the death penalty is probably not so much ...

After consulting with the various security authorities, the Government decided in the middle of 1990 that in the light of the improved security situation, the state of emergency which had been continuously in effect since ...