PublicationsResearchCriminal Justice, Study on the Violent Nature of CrimeAnger, Hatred, or Just Heartlessness? Defining Gratuitous ViolenceViolent crime in South Africa is sometimes said to be unusual, because it is perceived to frequently be gratuitous. This article engages with the question of how to define gratuitous violence. It also analyses whether South African violence is characterised by unusual levels of gratuity when the concept is more clearly defined. Read More David BruceDecember 1, 2010
PublicationsResearchPsychosocial Support, Torture and State Violence, Trauma CounsellingThe Land of Milk and Honey: A Picture of Refugee Torture Survivors Presenting for Treatment in a South African Trauma CentreThe paper attempts to paint a clearer picture of the bio-psycho-social state of torture survivors accessing services in South Africa, while highlighting many of the contextual challenges which impact on recovery. It draws on intake data obtained from 55 refugee torture survivors accessing trauma treatment services at a centre in Johannesburg, South Africa. The intake forms part of a more comprehensive… Read More Monica Bandeira, Craig Higson-Smith, Megan Bantjies and Peter PolatinSeptember 1, 2010
PublicationsResearchCorrectional Services, Gender-based ViolenceImprisoning Men in Violence: Masculinity and Sexual Abuse (A View from South African Prisons)This article explores sexual violence in male prisons in South Africa. It focuses on the social meanings and identities that surround sexual violence, particularly the ideas of manhood that shape both the perpetration of sexual abuses and how it is dealt with – or not. Read More Sasha GearSeptember 1, 2010
PublicationsResearchTransitional JusticeAdvocating Justice: Civil Society and Transitional Justice in AfricaThe “Advocating Justice” workshop brought together Africa-based practitioners and scholars to share experiences and evaluate African civil society’s advocacy for transitional justice on the continent. Drawing on workshop papers and discussions on strategies used in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sierra Leone, and Liberia, this report examines and highlights local organisations’ central role in… Read More Jasmina BrankovicAugust 30, 2010
PublicationsResearchCriminal Justice, PolicingAn Acceptable Price to Pay: The Use of Lethal Force by Police in South AfricaThis paper is concerned with the use of lethal force by police in South Africa. Police in apartheid South Africa were associated with the excessive use of force. With the transition to democracy various measures were taken to control the use of force by police. These measures may have initially contributed to reductions in the use of lethal force by… Read More David BruceAugust 5, 2010
PublicationsResearchTrauma and TransitionTraumatic Stress Update (volume 1, number 4)This issue of the Traumatic Stress Update provides an update on the Trauma and Transition Programme (TTP). In the first article, Tumi, our clinical coordinator shares some of the challenges and solutions to coordinating a trauma clinic. Modiegi Merafe gives an update on the PsySSA conference, in which six members of TTP presented, and then Sonto Mbatha updates us on… Read More Dominique Dix-PeekAugust 1, 2010
