Blog

Select a blog category

OxHRH

Prorogation: Constitutional Principle and Law, Fact and Causation

Paul Craig - 31st August 2019

Constitutions Institutions and Nation Building

The Prime Minister’s recent announcement that Parliament would be prorogued, thereby severely curtailing the opportunity for parliamentary debate, raises important issues of constitutional principle and law, and also issues concerning fact and causation. They are examined in turn. Constitutional Principle and Law We begin with constitutional principle and law. We seek to decide whether the […]

Read full article »

OxHRH

Hong Kong’s anti-extradition movement and common law judges’ extrajudicial opinions

Jeremy Lam - 29th July 2019

Constitutions Institutions and Nation Building| Freedom of Expression

During the recent anti-extradition movement in Hong Kong, a High Court judge participated by signing a petition against the controversial bill amendments, which was considered inappropriate by the Chief Justice. This is reminiscent of an incident involving Australian High Court Justice Michael Kirby, who called upon the government to boost funding for state schools in […]

Read full article »

OxHRH

South African Supreme Court of Appeal Confirms Principle of ‘Constitutional Damages’ for Homeless People Whose Property is Destroyed by State

Jackie Dugard - 31st May 2019

Constitutions Institutions and Nation Building

On 3 April 2019, the South African Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) handed down judgment in the matter of Ngomane & others v City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality & Another (Ngomane). In its judgment, the SCA declared that the destruction of the applicants’ property by the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality (Johannesburg) was unconstitutional, and […]

Read full article »

OxHRH

Brazilian Supreme Court Inquiry into ‘Fake News’ Violates Freedom of Speech

Renan Araujo - 20th May 2019

Constitutions Institutions and Nation Building| Freedom of Expression

The Brazilian Supreme Court has begun a confidential inquiry, ex officio, to investigate alleged crimes against the honour of the Justices and ‘fake news’ about the Court. This inquiry is a part of a trend in which the Supreme Court has censored news reports relating corrupt conduct by its Justices and facilitated the confiscation of […]

Read full article »

OxHRH

Privacy International: Reaffirming the Rule of Law

Tom Lowenthal - 17th May 2019

Constitutions Institutions and Nation Building

On Wednesday, the UK Supreme Court delivered its judgment in Privacy International. The issue was whether the Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT), a body set up to review state surveillance decisions, was itself subject to judicial review in the ordinary courts. The Supreme Court decided that it was, in spite of the fact that an “ouster […]

Read full article »

OxHRH

Turkish Local Elections: What Does the Delayed Declaration of Election Results Mean?

Saeed Bagheri - 25th April 2019

Constitutions Institutions and Nation Building

While nearly three weeks have passed since local elections were held in Turkey on 31st March 2019, the Turkish Supreme Electoral Council has not issued any statement on the election results in two major cities of the country – Istanbul, and the Turkish capital, Ankara. According to Article 79 of the Constitution of the Republic of Turkey (1982), election […]

Read full article »

OxHRH

Zambia’s police force undermine opposition in Sesheke

Mwai Daka - 18th April 2019

Constitutions Institutions and Nation Building

Recent reports and video footage of the political unrest in Sesheke’s Parliamentary by-elections have brought to light the disproportionate use of force by Zambia’s police, who opened fire at the opposition party, the United Party for National Development (UPND) and its supporters, during a political rally. These events have brought the uneasy relationship between President […]

Read full article »

OxHRH

“Social will” as important as political will for implementing human rights

Azadeh Chalabi - 6th March 2019

Constitutions Institutions and Nation Building

What has been largely overlooked in the human rights theory and practice is what I would call the lack of “social will” as the twin concept of the lack of political will to implement universal human rights. Whereas the lack of political will is concerned with states’ rights practices, the lack of social will is […]

Read full article »

OxHRH

Diminishing Accountability, Corruption, and C.Y. Leung

Stephanie Tai - 8th February 2019

Constitutions Institutions and Nation Building

The Hong Kong Bar Association formally issued a statement on 21st December 2018, regarding the Department of Justice’s choice to not obtain independent legal advice in its decision not to prosecute former Chief Executive C.Y. Leung over the UGL corruption incident. The Department of Justice’s decision not to consult independent legal advice is worrying and […]

Read full article »

OxHRH

“A Past Still Present”: Equal Rights Trust report explores discrimination and inequality in Egypt, eight years after the revolution

Camilla Alonzo - 28th January 2019

Constitutions Institutions and Nation Building

Last week marked the 8th anniversary of the Egyptian revolution – known as the “25 January revolution” – which led to the deposal of President Mubarak after 29 years in office. As with other countries that experienced popular uprisings during the Arab Spring, the post-revolutionary era in Egypt heralded the promise of freedom, equality and […]

Read full article »

OxHRH

Indian Supreme Court Judge Calls for Abolishing the Death Penalty

Rahul Bajaj - 9th January 2019

Constitutions Institutions and Nation Building

In a powerful dissenting opinion that has reignited the debate on the retention of the death penalty in India, Justice Kurian Joseph of the Indian Supreme Court has called for a reassessment of the need for the death penalty. Justice Joseph’s dissent was delivered in an appeal by an accused sentenced to death for committing […]

Read full article »