scholarly journals Mothers and others: Transgender birth, birth registration and the rights of the child, with a focus on the United Kingdom and South Africa

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 203-223
Author(s):  
Julia SlothNielsen ◽  
Rachel SlothNielsen
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
United Kingdom ◽  
Gender Identity ◽  
Birth Certificate ◽  
Best Interests ◽  
Birth Registration ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
Legal Situation ◽  
The Right

The review concerns the position of the identification as ‘mother’ or ‘father’ of trans persons who give birth. This matter has occupied courts in the United Kingdom, Germany, Brazil and Sweden recently, and could well arise in South Africa, our country of origin. The first part of the discussion relates to a claim of a trans man who gave birth to be registered as the father of the child. The legal situation in South Africa and the United Kingdom is compared, and particular focus is placed on the meaning of ‘mother’. A second issue for discussion relates to the right of the child born to a trans person to birth registration, notably, what the child’s interests are in relation to his or her parent’s identification details on his or her birth certificate. We conclude that the gender identity of the trans parent must be the primary factor determining his or her registration as a parent on the birth certificate, and that this solution also better serves the child’s best interests.

scholarly journals Lessons on Parental Leave: A Comparative Analysis of Parental Leave in South Africa and the United Kingdom

Obiter ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 41 (4) ◽  
pp. 787-805
Author(s):  
Asheelia Behari
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
United Kingdom ◽  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Maternity Leave ◽  
Parental Leave ◽  
Primary Role ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Participation Of Women ◽  
Labour Participation ◽  
The Right

Recent amendments to the Basic Conditions of Employment Act 75 of 1997 have resulted in the introduction of parental leave. This provides employees with 10 consecutive days of time off from work to care for their newborn babies and may commence from the day of the birth. The right to parental leave has the additional benefit of impacting gendered social assumptions that place women in the primary role of caregiver and a secondary role as worker. With the rise in the labour participation of women, there has been an increase in the need for the involvement of men in the caregiving and upbringing of children in the home. Although parental leave applies to men and women, it has been enacted with the objective of encouraging working fathers to participate as caregivers and to share in the burden of care placed on new mothers to care for themselves and their newborn babies during maternity leave. This article considers the effects of parental leave as a recent addition to South African law by conducting a comparative analysis with the long-established parental leave models of the United Kingdom. These include the right to parental leave that is applicable to a parent who has parental responsibility for a child, and a right to shared parental leave, which allows the mother of the child to share her maternity leave with the other parent of the child. The parental leave rights of the United Kingdom have been developed to provide employees with choice and flexibility to accommodate their caregiving responsibilities, and may indicate a trajectory for the progression of the newly enacted right to parental leave in South Africa.

scholarly journals The CRC in South Africa 15 years on: does the new Child Justice Act 75 of 2008 comply with international children’s rights instruments?

2020 ◽  
Vol 62 (2) ◽  
pp. 167-182
Author(s):  
Lorenzo Wakefield
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Children's Rights ◽  
International Standards ◽  
Children’S Rights ◽  
Best Interests ◽  
Rights Of The Child ◽  
International Obligations ◽  
The United Nations ◽  
The Right

Article 40 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child requires states parties to take appropriate measures to ensure that children accused of committing offences are treated in a manner that would ensure that their best interests are upheld. South Africa ratified the CRC in 1995, the provisions of which have influenced the children’s rights clause in its 1996 Constitution. Section 28(1)(g) of the Constitution stipulates that children may not be detained, except as a measure of last resort and, should they be detained, it should be for the shortest appropriate period of time. Section 28(1)(g) goes further to give domestic effect to the following guarantees stipulated in Article 40 of the CRC: (1) the right to be treated in a manner, and kept in conditions, that take account of the child’s age; and (2) to have a legal practitioner assigned to the child. Recently, SA has enacted its Child Justice Act 75 of 2008, which came into operation on 1 April 2010. The question to be covered in this article is whether this Act truly complies with the international standards set by the CRC (15 years after SA ratified it); the general comments by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child and other non-binding, yet persuasive instruments like the Standard Minimum Rules on the Administration of Juvenile Justice and the United Nations Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty. This article only examines four aspects of the Child Justice Act, being: criminal capacity; pretrial release and detention; diversion; and sentencing. It concludes that, but for a few technical aspects of the Child Justice Act, SA took significant steps to comply with its international obligations when it domesticated the CRC in relation to children who commit offences.

Dismissal during Probationary Period of Employment in South Africa: An International Perspective

2021 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. 479-498
Author(s):  
Paul Smit ◽  
Joaquin Grobler
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
United Kingdom ◽  
The Netherlands ◽  
International Perspective ◽  
International Standards ◽  
International Labour Organisation ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
General Terms ◽  
The Right ◽  
Probationary Period

It is a universally acceptable practice to employ newly hired employees on a probationary period. In general terms the purpose of probation is to give the employer an opportunity to evaluate the employee's performance before confirming the appointment. This in itself seems to be an uncomplicated process; however, the scenario, especially in South Africa, becomes more complicated if an employer wants to terminate an employee's service during the probationary period of employment or terminate the services of an employee at the end of the probationary period. The right to a fair dismissal is well recognised in South African labour law; this right also extends to employees during their probationary period of employment. Convention 158 of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) provides guidelines in respect of the termination of employment, also during the probation period. In this article the ILO's standards with regard to the termination of employment during probation are considered. South Africa was a former colony of the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, in light of this the respective positions on dismissal during the probation period of employment in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom are also analysed. This provided the researcher with an opportunity to determine if South Africa's dismissal regime during the probationary period of employment is in line with some international perspectives and it appears that dismissal during the probationary period of employment in South Africa is out of step with international standards and developments.

Strike Ballots, Democracy, and Law

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Breen Creighton ◽  
Catrina Denvir ◽  
Richard Johnstone ◽  
Shae McCrystal ◽  
Alice Orchiston
Keyword(s):  
United Kingdom ◽  
The United States ◽  
International Labour Organisation ◽  
Human Right ◽  
Strike Activity ◽  
Legal Rules ◽  
Worked Example ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Democratic Rights ◽  
The Right

The purpose of the research upon which this book is based was empirically to investigate whether the ballot requirements in the Fair Work Act do indeed impose a significant obstacle to the taking of industrial action, and whether those provisions are indeed impelled by a legitimate ‘democratic imperative’. The book starts from the proposition that virtually all national legal systems, and international law, recognise the right to strike as a fundamental human right. It acknowledges, however, that in no case is this recognition without qualification. Amongst the most common qualifications is a requirement that to be lawful strike action must first be approved by a ballot of workers concerned. Often, these requirements are said to be necessary to protect the democratic rights of the workers concerned: this is the so-called ‘democratic imperative’. In order to evaluate the true purpose and effect of ballot requirements the book draws upon the detailed empirical study of the operation of the Australian legislative provisions noted above; a comparative analysis of law and practice in a broad range of countries, with special reference to Canada, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States; and the jurisprudence of the supervisory bodies of the International Labour Organisation. It finds that in many instances ballot requirements – especially those relating to quorum – are more concerned with curtailing strike activity than with constructively responding to the democratic imperative. Frequently, they also proceed from a distorted perception of what ‘democracy’ could and should entail in an industrial context. Paradoxically, the study also finds that in some contexts ballot requirements can provide additional bargaining leverage for unions. Overall, however, the study confirms our hypothesis that the principal purpose of ballot requirements – especially in Australia and the United Kingdom – is to curtail strike activity rather than to vindicate the democratic imperative, other than on the basis of a highly attenuated reading of that term. We believe that the end-result constitutes an important study of the practical operation of a complex set of legal rules, and one which exposes the dichotomy between the ostensible and real objectives underpinning the adoption of those rules. It also furnishes a worked example of multi-methods empirical, comparative and doctrinal legal research in law, which we hope will inspire similar approaches to other areas of labour law.

scholarly journals RIC in COVID-19—a Clinical Trial to Investigate Whether Remote Ischemic Conditioning (RIC) Can Prevent Deterioration to Critical Care in Patients with COVID-19

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sean M. Davidson ◽  
Kishal Lukhna ◽  
Diana A. Gorog ◽  
Alan D. Salama ◽  
Alejandro Rosell Castillo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Clinical Trial ◽  
United Kingdom ◽  
Inflammatory Cytokines ◽  
In Vitro Cytotoxicity ◽  
Cytokine Storm ◽  
Remote Ischemic Conditioning ◽  
Ischemic Conditioning ◽  
The United Kingdom

Abstract Purpose Coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) has, to date, been diagnosed in over 130 million persons worldwide and is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Several variants of concern have emerged including those in the United Kingdom, South Africa, and Brazil. SARS-CoV-2 can cause a dysregulated inflammatory response known as a cytokine storm, which can progress rapidly to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), multi-organ failure, and death. Suppressing these cytokine elevations may be key to improving outcomes. Remote ischemic conditioning (RIC) is a simple, non-invasive procedure whereby a blood pressure cuff is inflated and deflated on the upper arm for several cycles. “RIC in COVID-19” is a pilot, multi-center, randomized clinical trial, designed to ascertain whether RIC suppresses inflammatory cytokine production. Methods A minimum of 55 adult patients with diagnosed COVID-19, but not of critical status, will be enrolled from centers in the United Kingdom, Brazil, and South Africa. RIC will be administered daily for up to 15 days. The primary outcome is the level of inflammatory cytokines that are involved in the cytokine storm that can occur following SARS-CoV-2 infection. The secondary endpoint is the time between admission and until intensive care admission or death. The in vitro cytotoxicity of patient blood will also be assessed using primary human cardiac endothelial cells. Conclusions The results of this pilot study will provide initial evidence on the ability of RIC to suppress the production of inflammatory cytokines in the setting of COVID-19. Trial Registration NCT04699227, registered January 7th, 2021.

scholarly journals A cross-sectional survey assessing the influence of theoretically informed behavioural factors on hand hygiene across seven countries during the COVID-19 pandemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
K. A. Schmidtke ◽  
K. G. Drinkwater
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
United Kingdom ◽  
Hand Hygiene ◽  
Behaviour Change ◽  
Surface Cleaning ◽  
Behaviour Change Techniques ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Surface Areas ◽  
The United Kingdom

Abstract Background Human hygiene behaviours influence the transmission of infectious diseases. Changing maladaptive hygiene habits has the potential to improve public health. Parents and teachers can play an important role in disinfecting surface areas and in helping children develop healthful handwashing habits. The current study aims to inform a future intervention that will help parents and teachers take up this role using a theoretically and empirically informed behaviour change model called the Capabilities-Opportunities-Motivations-Behaviour (COM-B) model. Methods A cross-sectional online survey was designed to measure participants’ capabilities, opportunities, and motivations to [1] increase their children’s handwashing with soap and [2] increase their cleaning of surface areas. Additional items captured how often participants believed their children washed their hands. The final survey was administered early in the coronavirus pandemic (May and June 2020) to 3975 participants from Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, and the United Kingdom. Participants self-identified as mums, dads, or teachers of children 5 to 10 years old. ANOVAs analyses were used to compare participant capabilities, opportunities, and motivations across countries for handwashing and surface disinfecting. Multiple regressions analyses were conducted for each country to assess the predictive relationship between the COM-B components and children’s handwashing. Results The ANOVA analyses revealed that India had the lowest levels of capability, opportunity, and motivation, for both hand hygiene and surface cleaning. The regression analyses revealed that for Australia, Indonesia, and South Africa, the capability component was the only significant predictor of children’s handwashing. For India, capability and opportunity were significant. For the United Kingdom, capability and motivation were significant. Lastly, for Saudi Arabia all components were significant. Conclusions The discussion explores how the Behaviour Change Wheel methodology could be used to guide further intervention development with community stakeholders in each country. Of the countries assessed, India offers the greatest room for improvement, and behaviour change techniques that influence people’s capability and opportunities should be prioritised there.

Centros Ltd—A Complete U-Turn in the Right of Establishment for Companies?

2000 ◽  
Vol 49 (3) ◽  
pp. 621-642 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne Looijestijn-Clearie
Keyword(s):  
United Kingdom ◽  
Member State ◽  
European Court Of Justice ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Court Of Justice ◽  
European Court ◽  
Registered Office ◽  
Set Up ◽  
The Right ◽  
A Company

InCentros Ltd and Erhvers-og Selskabsstyrelesen (hereinafter Centros),1 the European Court of Justice ruled that it is contrary to Article 52 (now Article 432) and Article 58 (now Article 48) of the EC Treaty for the authorities of a member State (in casu Denmark) to refuse to register a branch of a company formed under the law of another member State (in casu the United Kingdom) in which it has its registered office, even if the company concerned has never conducted any business in the latter State and intends to carry out its entire business in the State in which the branch is to be set up. By avoiding the need to form a company there it would thus evade the application of the rules governing the provision for and the paying-up of a minimum share capital in force in that State. According to the Court, this does not, however, prevent the authorities of the member State in which the branch is to be set up from adopting appropriate measures for preventing or penalising fraud, either with regard to the company itself, if need be in co-operation with the member State in which it was formed, or with regard to its members, where it has been determined that they are in fact attempting, by means of the formation of a company, to evade their obligations towards creditors established in the territory of the member State of the branch.

The Right to Freedom of Thought in the United Kingdom

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-25
Author(s):  
Frank Cranmer
Keyword(s):  
United Kingdom ◽  
Political Debate ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Repeated Calls ◽  
Highly Sensitive ◽  
Domestic Legislation ◽  
International Obligations ◽  
Freedom Of Thought ◽  
The Right

Abstract The United Kingdom is bound by international obligations to uphold ‘the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion’ and domestic legislation reflects those obligations. The courts have held that to be protected, a belief must genuine, must not be a mere opinion, must attain a certain level of cogency, seriousness and importance and must be ‘worthy of respect in a democratic society’. How this plays out, however, in areas such as education, children’s rights and employment is highly sensitive to the specific facts of each case – which are often inconsistent, as the article explains. Much of the article examines the decisions of the courts in individual cases. It concludes with a discussion of the possible trajectory of domestic political debate at a time when there have been repeated calls for a ‘British Bill of Rights’ and the Westminster Government is questioning more generally the constitutional role of the judiciary.

The global effectiveness of fact-checking: Evidence from simultaneous experiments in Argentina, Nigeria, South Africa, and the United Kingdom

2021 ◽  
Vol 118 (37) ◽  
pp. e2104235118 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ethan Porter ◽  
Thomas J. Wood
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
United Kingdom ◽  
Health Outcomes ◽  
False Beliefs ◽  
Point Scale ◽  
Analytic Procedure ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Fact Checking ◽  
Checking Experiments

The spread of misinformation is a global phenomenon, with implications for elections, state-sanctioned violence, and health outcomes. Yet, even though scholars have investigated the capacity of fact-checking to reduce belief in misinformation, little evidence exists on the global effectiveness of this approach. We describe fact-checking experiments conducted simultaneously in Argentina, Nigeria, South Africa, and the United Kingdom, in which we studied whether fact-checking can durably reduce belief in misinformation. In total, we evaluated 22 fact-checks, including two that were tested in all four countries. Fact-checking reduced belief in misinformation, with most effects still apparent more than 2 wk later. A meta-analytic procedure indicates that fact-checks reduced belief in misinformation by at least 0.59 points on a 5-point scale. Exposure to misinformation, however, only increased false beliefs by less than 0.07 points on the same scale. Across continents, fact-checks reduce belief in misinformation, often durably so.

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