Law academic to run Africa study on use of force

The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights has appointed the University of Pretoria’s Professor Christof Heyns and some of his colleagues in the Faculty of Law to assist with a continent-wide comparative study on the use of force by law enforcement officials, says a Cape Times report. They are tasked with collecting all the applicable laws and collaborating with the commission to study how the use of force by law enforcement is dealt with in Africa in the context of the protection of the right to life and UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16. SDG 16 promotes peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provides access to justice for all, and builds effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels dealing with violence, justice and effective institutions. Heyns and his colleagues have been collecting the laws of every country in the world concerning the use of force by law-enforcement officials, and they will draw on this collection and supplement it for the AU study. Heyns said the study came from before the Covid-19 outbreak and allegations of police brutality and heavy-handed tactics. ‘The study deals with the authority of the police to use force in general,’ he noted.

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