The Enforceability of the By-Laws of District Municipalities on Local Municipalities: The Case of Solid Waste Disposal

by | Feb 15, 2021 | SLR, SLR V31 I2

The Enforceability of the By-Laws of District Municipalities on
Local Municipalities: The Case of Solid Waste Disposal

Authors: NF de Villiers, HJ van As and JC Botha

ISSN: 1996-2193
Affiliations: BIuris Dipl Juris LLB LLM, Attorney, Port Elizabeth; BIuris LLB LLD NDip (Pol), Professor, Nelson Mandela University, Port Elizabeth; BA LLB LLD, Associate Professor, Nelson Mandela University, Port Elizabeth
Source: Stellenbosch Law Review, Volume 31 Issue 2, 2020, p. 315 – 343

Abstract

When waste disposal services are regionalised, the result is that waste disposal services are not the principal responsibility of local municipalities. Instead, they are shared between local and district municipalities. The regionalisation and regulation of solid waste disposal is a contentious issue and raises numerous questions. These include the issue of whether a district municipality may adopt by-laws to regulate regional waste disposal services, and also whether a local municipality benefiting from the service is bound thereby. A significant challenge for the regionalisation process is the lack of constitutional and legislative guidance on the implementation procedures needed and the overarching nature of the functions and powers of the impacted local and district municipalities. This article claims that district municipal by-laws may standardise the regional waste disposal function and that these by-laws, although not without limitations, should be enforceable on local municipalities, provided that the principles of cooperative governance and public participation are promoted.

The Right to Life as an Alternative Avenue for the Enforcement of the Right of Access to Adequate Housing in Zimbabwe

by | Feb 15, 2021 | SLR, SLR V31 I2

The Right to Life as an Alternative Avenue for the Enforcement of the Right of Access to Adequate Housing in Zimbabwe

Author: Justice Alfred Mavedzenge

ISSN: 1996-2193
Affiliations: BA LLB LLM PhD, Researcher at the Democratic Governance and Rights Unit, University of Cape Town, Legal Advisor at the International Commission of Jurists
Source: Stellenbosch Law Review, Volume 31 Issue 2, 2020, p. 344 – 373

Abstract

The Constitution of Zimbabwe, 2013 (“Constitution”) does not expressly guarantee every person the right of access to adequate housing, yet the country is bedevilled with an acute national housing crisis. However, the Constitution guarantees the right to life for every person and requires that the rights enshrined in the Bill of Rights be interpreted in a manner which best protects and promotes the constitutional value of human dignity. It also requires courts to interpret constitutional rights in a manner which promotes the fulfilment of international obligations arising from treaties and conventions which Zimbabwe has signed and ratified. The Constitution also requires courts to interpret constitutional rights in a way that incorporates state policy objectives enshrined in Chapter 2 of the Constitution. In this article, I engage with these constitutional rules of interpretation and demonstrate that they allow the right to life to be interpreted in a way that incorporates the right of access to adequate housing in Zimbabwe. Given that Zimbabwean courts are yet to develop their own jurisprudence on the interpretation of the right to life, I make considerable reference to foreign case law from comparative jurisdictions, namely South Africa and India, although I also critically engage with counter-arguments from other jurisdictions.