Law Focus

Tonight’s show is on progressive legislation and processes around name and gender marker changes, for members of the LGBTQIA Plus community. The Department of Home Affairs have recently gazetted its Draft Identity Management Policy, partly in a bid to make South Africa’s identification system more inclusive. The document states that gender and sexual identity minorities are excluded, because the current laws and policies do not cater for changes in the gender/sex attribute of the gender identity system. We’ll be in conversation with Tish Lumos White and Sibusiso Kheswa who’re both very passionate in advocating for the rights of LGBTQIA Plus persons. wits.journalism.co.za

What happens if your employer forces you to vaccinate for COVID-19 and you’re not comfortable based on various issues such as, medical, religious or cultural? What are the rights of a worker and an employer, respectively, in terms of COVID-19 vaccination? There is still not an established law that requires all workers to be vaccinated and employers will need to tread carefully when considering mandatory vaccination policies. However, we should also consider where the employer is coming from…a safe working environment for anyone accessing their premises is definitely crucial. Join us as we dissect this topic with Cosatu’s Gauteng Chairperson, Amos Monyela as well Owethu Mbambo, a Senior Associate at Fasken law firm. wits.journalism.co.za

Do you know how to terminate a customary marriage? Perhaps you have a family member who’s married in terms of customary law and believes they’re divorced…now the question is are they indeed? One should consider that the ramifications of not terminating a customary marriage legally, can have adverse consequences. Various developments and amendments were made on customary marriage, on November 15, the year 2000 and not many us have the knowledge of those developments. wits.journalism.co.za

We'll be in conversation with 28-year-old Nkopane Mokwena, a young, vibrant admitted attorney of the High Court of South Africa, who is also a founder and director of Mokwena Nkopane Incorporated, a law firm based in Johannesburg. He acquired his LLB degree at University of the Free State in 2016 and commenced his career as a forensic investigator. Born and bred in QwaQwa, growing up, he always wanted to be a lawyer. We'll discover, among others, what keeps Nkopane on his toes, the passion behind his work, his view on various cases he has tackled as well as challenges he has faced. wits.journalism.co.za

What happens when you finally break the silence and reveal an old rape case? Tonight we’re tackling the trauma that comes with being physically and emotionally violated and how most people take time before they’re able talk about their trauma. We will also focus on the legal implications of reporting an old rape incident. This as the country wraps up its 16 Days of Activism for No Violence against Women and Children Campaign. Tumelo Ramalekana, a registered Psychologist and Elizabeth Nieuwoudt, a Legal Practitioner from Legal Aid will help us dissect this topic. wits.journalism.co.za

Tonight, we’re in conversation with Hlengiwe Skosana, a senior associate at Garlicke & Bousfield’s law firm’s employment law department. She holds an LLB and an LLM in Labour Law from the Nelson Mandela University, and a Postgraduate Certificate in Labour Dispute Resolution Practice from the University of Witwatersrand. Hlengiwe serves as a regional committee member for the South African Society for Labour Law (SASLAW), and as a governor on the interim board of governors for the Anton Lembede Maths, Science and Technology Academy: School of Innovation. wits.journalism.co.za

Do you know your rights as a tenant and what legal steps to take if or when you experience problems? Tonight we’re tackling lease agreements and what you need to know. This as there has been some uncertainty with some students, in terms rental issues especially as South Africa is still under level 1 lockdown regulations due to the novel coronavirus. We will be taking a closer look at some terms and conditions at certain residential complexes and what rights do tenants have once they have entered into agreements with their respective landlords/agencies. We speak to Basil Mugwena a Director at Wits Campus Housing and Residence Life and Boitumelo Ndlhovu a Civil Legal Practitioner from Legal Aid. wits.journalism.co.za

We discuss the decriminalization of sex work. Selling sex in South Africa has been illegal since at least the early 1900s and buying sex was criminalized in 2007. The country’s laws also prohibit other aspects of sex work, including running or owning a brothel, living off the earnings of “prostitution,” and enticing a woman into “prostitution.” The criminalization of sex work has not deterred people from selling sex to make a living, it has, however, made sex work less safe. We speak to Katlego Rasibetse from Sisonke National Sex Workers Movement and Motebang Mokoena from Legal Aid. wits.journalism.co.za

Tonight we’re discussing law, order and vigilantism. This is whereby a person or group of people take the law into their own hands, in an attempt to serve justice. In recent weeks we have witnessed various events, on our news platforms where certain organizations, individuals or political parties took the law into their own hands. We’ll speak to Gauteng police spokesperson Captain Kay Makhubela as well as Elizabeth Niewoudt from Legal Aid. wits.journalism.co.za

This week an opportunity has been granted to members of the public to draft a basic Will by an attorney free of charge. Legal Aid South Africa (Legal Aid SA) has partnered with the Law Society of South Africa and the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development and they will be drafting basic Wills throughout this week, as well as providing legal advice on Wills, at no cost. One of the greatest risks of not having a legitimate Will in place is when a family is faced with the sudden death of a family member, which is a very real possibility during the COVID-19 pandemic. Tonight we’ll be in conversation with Luna Lingani from Legal Aid SA. wits.journalism.co.za

Tonight’s topic we’re discussing whether you know what to do if it happens that you get into a road accident? With the lifting of lockdown restrictions last month, we have witnessed the carnage on our roads increasing. South Africa has an annual road death toll that is higher than the world average and it’s also higher than the African continent’s average. According to the Road Traffic Management Corporation’s most recent annual report, there are 12,921 deaths on South Africa’s roads in a single year. Over the holidays, in particular, serious road accidents are a daily occurrence. Audrey Malahlela, a Supervisory Legal Practitioner at Legal Aid and William Maphutha, Spokesperson for the Road Accident Fund will provide their insights on the topic. wits.journalism.co.za

Tonight’s show we once again tackle Gender Based Violence and how as a country, we should continue fighting this plague that is constantly hanging over us. We will be in discussion with Legal Aid South Africa. The law firm has now joined the rest of the country in fighting the scourge of GBV in the country. They recently embarked on a National Strategic Plan on Gender Based Violence which offers safety, justice and protection to all GBV victims. Legal Aid’s Stephen Mofokeng will dissect their campaign for us. wits.journalism.co.za

Tonight we’re profiling a young dynamic, passionate and resilient woman who’s a candidate attorney and also lives with a physical disability named Blount's Tibia Vira. Nonhlanhla Payne will be taking us through her journey in the legal fraternity and some of the challenges that she experienced. The 28-year-old was once part of SABC 1’s reality educational and leadership programme dubbed “One Day Leader” in 2017, a member of Anglo American Platinum’s Women In Mining Committee in 2018 to 2019 and a Tutor at the WITS University School of Law. We will hear how the feisty, opinionated Nonhlanhla is always ready to conquer whatever life throws at her. wits.journalism.co.za

As the country wraps up Heritage Month we thought what better way to end the month than to discuss various traditional practices that could be infringing some of our human rights. Tonight, we look at when one has to apply the law when it to comes to tradition, you may discover that it may clash between certain cultural practices and constitutional principles. Some of these customs are among others initiation, virginity testing and polygamy of which they’re still religiously practiced in some parts across the country. We will be joined by Chairperson of the National House of Traditional Leaders, Nkosi Sipho Mahlangu and Andrew Aphane from Legal Aid who will share their insights on the topic. [Photo by Tingey Injury Law Firm] wits.journalism.co.za · wits.journalism.co.za

What is a petition? What constitutes a valid petition? Tonight we’re speaking about petitions. According to Change.org…an organisation that does petitions…their Global Digital Civic Engagement Index ranked South Africa as the top country for digital activism in the first half of 2020. It was quoted saying South Africa saw a growth of 600 percent more users in 2020 and over 1000 percent growth in signatures on petitions. The topics for the petitions included issues such as COVID-19, police brutality and Gender-Based Violence. Tonight we’re joined by Clement Mabunda a candidate attorney from KW Attorneys and he will be sharing his insights on petitions [IMAGE: IIIerlok_xolms] wits.journalism.co.za · wits.journalism.co.za

Tonight we will be wrapping-up our two-series topic on Gender Based Violence. Last week we spoke to Francesca Fondse, a Gender Based Violence survivor and founder of the Women Integral Impact Network (WIIN), an organization that deals with GBV cases and femicide across the country. We will now be focusing on whether the justice system and the South African law in place is effective enough to punish the abusers and prevent GBV against women. Violence against women in our country remains rampant, many cases of rape and sexual violence are being reported on a daily basis but only a small fraction of those cases are being successfully prosecuted and convicted. We speak to Percy Bapela, from Legal Aid, who will provide his legal expertise on the matter. wits.journalism.co.za

What you can look forward to on Law Focus tonight, is a very sobering conversation on the plight of victims and survivors of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) in the country. Cases of GBV and rape keep escalating across the country and we have seen these topics also dominating news headlines and sparking debate on our social media spaces. We’ll be speaking to Francesca Fondse, a GBV survivor and Founder of the Women Integral Impact Network (WIIN), an organisation that addresses GBV and femicide. This is the first part of a two-series show, on the scourge of GBV in South Africa. Part two will continue next week, where we will be tackling the legal aspect on this matter. wits.journalism.co.za

Tonight, we're in conversation with Nokulunga Mgodlwa, a candidate attorney, young mother, strong-willed woman and a wife. Originally from Daveyton, in the East of Johannesburg, Nokulunga initially studied Human Resources Management before venturing into the legal fraternity. We'll be exploring the world of being a candidate attorney through Nokulunga's eyes. wits.journalism.co.za

Tonight's show is about the Fair-Trade Independent Tobacco Association's (Fita) persistence, in continuing with their legal battle against government, despite the tobacco ban being lifted by President Cyril Ramaphosa, after the country moved to lockdown level 2 last week. Government at the time, argued that the ban was to protect the health of South Africans during the pandemic and cigarette producers failed to convince the country’s courts that the sale of tobacco products was a necessity. We’ll also be looking into whether businesses have a stronger case, in the events whereby they might plan to sue government for loss of damages, due to the pandemic. Repercussions of the lockdown has disadvantaged so many companies from various industries, where many were unable to make profits. We got a legal opinion on this matter. wits.journalism.co.za

The show is now focusing on the second part of police brutality during the stringent lockdown regulations. In last week’s show, we spoke with Titus Mametse, an Alexandra resident who was unfortunate to be shot by the police earlier this year. We also featured the police watchdog, who are the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID), where they outlined their duty on holding police accountable. Tonight, we are extending the conversation by adding your various views on the topic and we also get a legal opinion from Megandree Naicker from Legal Aid. That’s a wrap on our two series show on police brutality under strict lockdown restrictions. wits.journalism.co.za