Several calls, from a wide spectrum of sectors for the enactment of hate-crime legislation in South Africa, suggest that there is limited knowledge about the theoretical underpinnings of this area of criminal law and of the practical problems associated with the implementation of hate-crime laws. This submission briefly examines the origins of hate-crime laws and attempts, by using existing American sources, to provide a conceptual framework for hate crimes. The different models of hate-crime laws, definitional issues and the controversies associated with hatecrime laws are considered. These controversies include disagreements about the use of the term 'hate', the inclusion of victim categories, and the consideration of motive as a requirement of hate crimes. The article also considers practical problems associated with the implementation of hate-crime laws. These problems could commence at the complaint stage when evidence of bias has to be established by law-enforcement officers, and extend to the trial stage, when the role of victims must be considered, when plea bargaining is a possibility and when bias has to be proved in court. "Haatvervolging": 'n Oorsig van probleemareas wat betrekking het op haatmisdade en uitdagings tot straflitigasie Verskeie beroepe wat vanuit 'n wye spektrum ontvang is vir die daarstelling van Suid-Afrikaanse wetgewing op haatmisdaad veronderstel dat daar beperkte kennis is oor die teoretiese grondslae van hierdie area van strafreg, asook oor die praktiese probleme wat met die implementering van wetgewing op haatmisdaad verband hou. Hierdie bydrae ondersoek bondig die ontstaan en pogings van wetgewing op haatmisdaad deur gebruik te maak van bestaande Amerikaanse bronne ten einde 'n begripsgrondslag vir haatmisdade daar te stel. Die verskillende modelle van haatmisdaadwetgewing, omskrywingskwessies, asook die twispunte wat met hierdie wetgewing verband hou word oorweeg. Hierdie polemiek sluit verdeeldheid in oor die gebruik van die terminologie 'haat', die insluiting van kategorieë van slagoffers, asook die oorweging van motief as 'n vereiste vir haatmisdade. Hierdie artikel oorweeg ook praktiese probleme wat verband hou met die implementering
Criminal and procedural law has recently come under scrutiny and been criticised as being the 'white-man's law'. The claim is that this academic discipline of law, as conceptualised and studied thus far, has remained too Eurocentric and lego-centric, incorporating only Western legal concepts and not embodying African values and cultures. Criminal and procedural law studies are described as Western concepts created from the viewpoint of a dominant Western culture which does not take sufficient cognisance of other cultural traditions and therefore lacks certain elements of legitimacy. There has been increasing pressure on these subjects to Africanise the law and to make it relevant to the greater South African population. Combining indigenous legal concepts and general legal theory, this article examines the current situation and endeavours to develop methods to account for the effect of African law on criminal and procedural law. The article concludes that recognition should be given to the Africanisation (or South Africanisation) of law. Law students need to be better equipped to understand the manifold pluralities within and between legal systems in order to produce lawyers and judges who are "thoroughly grounded in the cultural milieu of the society in which the courts are based". 1 Inkorporering van Afrika-waardes en-kulture in die regskurrikula: 'n Saak vir straf-en prosesreg Straf-en prosesreg het onlangs onder die soeklig gekom en is as synde die 'Witman se wet' gekritiseer. Die bewering is dat hierdie akademiese regsdissipline, soos tot dusver gekonseptualiseer en bestudeer, te Eurosentries en lego-sentries gebly het wat slegs Westerse regsbegrippe inkorporeer en nie Afrika-waardes en-kulture nie. Straf-en prosesregstudies word beskryf as Westerse konsepte wat uit die oogpunt van 'n dominante Westerse kultuur geskep is wat nie voldoende kennis van ander kulturele tradisies neem nie en dus sekere elemente van legitimiteit ontbreek. Daar is toenemende druk op hierdie vakke om die wet te Afrikaniseer en om dit meer relevant tot die groter Suid-Afrikaanse bevolking te maak. Deur inheemse regskonsepte en die algemene regsteorie te kombineer, ondersoek hierdie studie die huidige situasie en strewe daarna om metodes te ontwikkel wat om die effek van Afrika gewoontereg op die straf-en prosesreg te verantwoord. Die gevolgtrekking word gemaak dat erkenning aan die Afrikanisering (of Suid-Afrikanisering) van die wet gegee moet word. Regstudente moet beter toegerus word om die veelvuldige pluraliteite binne asook tussen verskillende regstelsels te verstaan, ten einde regspraktisyne en regters te produseer wat "deeglik gegrond is in die kulturele milieu van die gemeenskap waarin die howe gebaseer is". 2
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