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1. The social and economic cost of Egypt's prison system

Author:
Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights Legal Researcher and Lawyer
Publication Date:
02-2022
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:
Legal scholars have long been concerned with how to deter crime and limit its spread. For a long time, imprisonment has been used as a tool to serve these two purposes. On one hand, prisons function as a means to deprive inmates of their liberty and deter public and private crime. On the other hand, they also seek to reform convicts in a way that facilitates their reintegration into society by adopting appropriate rehabilitation programs for each prisoner.1 Despite the general deterrent impact of imprisonment, overreliance on such penalties can also have negative consequences – particularly when prisons fail to fulfil the rehabilitation component of their role. Prisons then risk turning into a hotbed that enables even more dangerous criminal behavior. As such, some legal scholars believe that penalties that deprive individuals of their liberties are no longer considered the best or only means to create more stable and secure societies, nor to reduce crime rates.
Topic:
Crime, Law, Legal Theory, and Legal Sector
Political Geography:
Africa, Egypt, and MENA

2. Crime, inequality and subsidized housing: evidence from South Africa

Author:
Roxana Elena Manea, Patrizio Piraino, and Martina Viarengo
Publication Date:
04-2021
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Centre for International Environmental Studies, The Graduate Institute (IHEID)
Abstract:
We study the relationship between housing inequality and crime in South Africa. We create a novel panel dataset combining information on crimes at the police station level with census data. We find that housing inequality explains a significant share of the variation in both property and violent crimes, net of spillover effects, time and district fixed effects. An increase of one standard deviation in housing inequality explains between 9 and 13 percent of crime increases. Additionally, we suggest that a prominent post-apartheid housing program for low-income South Africans helped to reduce inequality and violent crimes. Together, these findings suggest the important role that equality in housing conditions can play in the reduction of crime in an emerging economy context.
Topic:
Apartheid, Crime, Economics, Law, Inequality, Violence, and Legal Sector
Political Geography:
Africa and South Africa

3. THE SPECIAL POLICE IN ETHIOPIA

Publication Date:
10-2021
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
European Institute of Peace (EIP)
Abstract:
Like many federal and devolved systems, Ethiopia has both federal and regional security forces. In the last fifteen years, however, Ethiopia’s regional states have established regional special police forces, in addition to the regular regional state police. Established first in Ethiopia’s Somali region in 2007 to conduct counter-insurgency operations and riot control, special police quickly spread to all other regions of Ethiopia. The role and status of special police forces in Ethiopia remain contested. Resembling paramilitary forces, the regional special police units are well armed and receive military training. They are rapidly growing in size and have successfully recruited senior (former) army officers into their ranks. Special police forces have become deeply involved in Ethiopia’s interregional conflicts and border disputes, most notably in the current conflict in Tigray. They have even been involved in international operations in Somalia and Sudan and internal coup attempts. They have also been linked to severe human rights abuses. While federal and regional governments are empowered to establish their respective police forces, no specific legal provision deals with the special police force. As trust in the federal government waned in many regional capitals, states have linked the mandate of their special police forces with self-government. Still, special police have overstepped that boundary and engaged in activities, such as international border security and settling interregional disputes, that fall within the exclusive mandate of the federal government and federal forces. This report explores the origins and growth of the special police and its roles in current Ethiopia. It investigates the force’s constitutional and legal ambiguity and places the special police within the broader debate over Ethiopian federalism. Finally, it suggests several models that Ethiopia could adopt to regulate its proliferating special police forces. A failure to do so may have dire consequences for the future of the country.
Topic:
Human Rights, Regional Cooperation, International Security, Police, Legal Sector, and Human Rights Violations
Political Geography:
Africa and Ethiopia

4. The web of legal pluralism and traditional authorities in Mozambique

Author:
Jorge João Muchacona
Publication Date:
12-2020
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Brazilian Journal of African Studies
Institution:
Brazilian Journal of African Studies
Abstract:
Legal pluralism is seen as a theory that supports the coexistence of several legal systems within the same society. This is due to the existence of efficient legal systems, simultaneously in the same environment and spacetime. This coexistence of several legal systems in the same space and time has gained historical relevance due to several factors, such as the rupture of the Roman Empire, which resulted in the forced cultural exchange resulting from the barbarian invasions. Colonization also caused a situation in which several rules and customs of different peoples had to coexist, namely between colonized and colonizers. With decolonization, legal systems were created based on the rules of the colonizers, but with specificities and differences of their own. Globalization has also influenced the diversification of legal pluralisms, weakening the role of the state as the sole holder and creator of legal systems.
Topic:
Globalization, Law, Legal Theory, Colonialism, Authority, Pluralism, and Legal Sector
Political Geography:
Africa and Mozambique

5. CITIZENSHIP ON HOLD IN LIBYA

Author:
Valerie Stocker
Publication Date:
07-2019
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
European Institute of Peace (EIP)
Abstract:
Amid Libya’s ongoing crisis, unresolved disputes over citizenship haunt society and the fragile state. A significant number of people in Libya – presumably several hundred thousand – are not formally recognized as citizens, despite considering themselves as such. Commonly referred to as “persons of undetermined legal status”, the majority are first- or second-generation immigrants whose naturalisation process is on hold. A smaller amount consists of native inhabitants who have not been recognised by the state, as well as a group of people whose citizenship was revoked. Although they are registered with the authorities, their status does not guarantee them civil rights, thus curtailing their access to essential paperwork, public services and employment. The issue is of national concern and there are people affected by it across the country; however, it is of particular magnitude in the South of Libya, where it feeds instability. After being on hold for decades, the citizenship file has recently been reopened through the draft constitution, and administrative authorities have taken a renewed interest. This provides a window of opportunity to revisit the causes of disputed citizenship and promote a problem-solving approach based on consultations and social dialogue, to mitigate the risk of further destabilisation. The European Institute of Peace partnered with researcher Valerie Stocker to produce a policy paper that provides an overview of citizenship-related grievances in Libya. The paper traces the history of undetermined legal status and how citizenship disputes relate to Libya’s troubled transition. The author also examines approaches to tackle undetermined legal status, including through the proposed constitution, and offers recommendations for the challenges that lie ahead.
Topic:
Civil War, Fragile/Failed State, Citizenship, Humanitarian Intervention, Civil Rights, Legal Sector, and Destabilization
Political Geography:
Africa and Libya

6. Gender Quota Legal Brief

Author:
The Carter Center
Publication Date:
03-2019
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Carter Center
Abstract:
This brief reviews the current legal posture of the two-thirds gender rule in the 2010 Kenyan Constitution, which mandates that no more than two-thirds of the members of any elected or appointed public body be of the same gender. It traces the developments of the two-thirds gender rule legislation from its beginning in the 2010 Kenyan Constitution until the most recent implementation attempt in early 2019.
Topic:
Gender Issues, Democracy, Constitution, Equality, and Legal Sector
Political Geography:
Kenya and Africa