On 31 May 2023, 28 men were arrested in Harare CBD under the country’s vagrancy laws. These arrests raise the question of why vagrancy laws still exist and are still…
Background Petty offences are minor offences for which the punishment is prescribed by law to carry a warning, community service, a low-value fine or short term of imprisonment, often for…
PUBLISHED IN THE UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI LAW REVIEW CAVEAT Anneke Meerkotter 74 U. Miami L. Rev. Caveat 1 (2020). Abstract For centuries, and across the world, penal laws have been…
The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Commission) has recognised that the declassification and decriminalisation of petty offences is an important human rights issue. A Side Event on the…
The Nation Victor Mhango and Anneke Meerkotter In January 2017, the Malawi High Court, in the case of Mayeso Gwanda, made a finding that would have reverberations throughout Africa. It…