International Journal of Legal Developments & Allied Issues
International Journal of Legal Developments & Allied Issues (IJLDAI) is a bi-monthly, peer-reviewed e-journal dedicated to exploring contemporary legal issues. With ISSN: 2454-1273, IJLDAI serves as a platform for the publication of cutting-edge research across a broad spectrum of legal topics and principles. The journal is not confined to any specific legal theme, allowing it to engage with diverse areas of law and interdisciplinary approaches. IJLDAI’s mission is to encourage rigorous legal scholarship and critical analysis of legal principles, offering opportunities for researchers, scholars, and practitioners to contribute valuable insights to the legal community. The journal welcomes submissions from authors whose research is closely related to any legal principle or theme, fostering an inclusive environment for legal discourse.
License Terms Ownership and Licensing: Authors of research papers submitted to any journal published by The Law Brigade Publishers retain the copyright of their work while granting the journal specific rights. Authors maintain ownership of the copyright and grant the journal the right of first publication. Simultaneously, authors agree to license their research papers under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0) License. License Permissions: Under the CC BY-SA 4.0 License, others are permitted to share and adapt the work, even for commercial purposes, provided that appropriate attribution is given to the authors, and acknowledgment is made of the initial publication by The Law Brigade Publishers. This license encourages the broad dissemination and reuse of research papers while ensuring that the original work is properly credited. Additional Distribution Arrangements: Authors are free to enter into separate, non-exclusive contractual arrangements for distributing the published version of the work (e.g., posting it to institutional repositories or publishing it in books), provided that the original publication by The Law Brigade Publishers is acknowledged. Online Posting: Authors are encouraged to share their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on personal websites) both prior to submission and after publication. This practice can facilitate productive exchanges and increase the visibility and citation of the work. Responsibility and Liability: Authors are responsible for ensuring that their submitted research papers do not infringe on the copyright, privacy, or other rights of third parties. The Law Brigade Publishers disclaims any liability for any copyright infringement or violation of third-party rights within the submitted research papers.
A REVIEW ARTICLE ON THE SOMALI LABOUR CODE (1972)
The Somali Labour Code of 1972 was designed to protect and further promote the labour rights across the country. This study examines and further assesses the compliance of the Somali Labour Code of 1972 with the international labour standards enshrined in major ILO Conventions and human rights treaties. The study involved the discussion of the international labour standards and examination of the Somali Labour Code and its compliance with the international labour standards set in ILO Conventions and Human Rights treaties. The study employed doctrinal legal research methodology which involved thorough analysis of the legal instruments concerning labour rights and other secondary sources which were textbooks, articles and journals. The study found that The Somali Labour Code of 1972 accepted and recognized most of the labour right enshrined in the ILO conventions, however, there are certain areas that the code does not go in detail. Another finding was that the code does not protect the employers from the illegal completion after the contract of employment ends. The study also found that Somalia has recently ratified ILO conventions and these convention was not domesticated. The study recommends Somali Ministry of Labour and Federal Parliament of Somalia to improve the code and make sure it in line with the major international instruments regarding labour right. It also recommends the government of Somalia and the Federal Parliament to domesticate the recent ILO Convention ratified by the Somali government.
Copyright (c) 2021 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0
AN IDEA OF SOVEREIGNTY IN INDIAN LIBERAL CONSTITUTION: CONCEPT AND ANALYSIS
Sovereignty is the most important of the elements constituting the state. No community can assume the form of a state until the dominion of state takes place. On the compliance of sovereignty vested invisible and inherent power in the state is the true outcome of compelling all the human and communities to respect and obey their order. Thus, the sovereignty vested an absolute and supreme power into the state authorities. The will of the state is final and must be obeyed in compliance of order passed by the state. Sovereignty is the 'will-power' of the state. Dicey remarked that the constitution consists all rules which directly or indirectly affects the distribution or the exercise of the sovereign powers in the state including all those rules which define the sovereign powers of member and the relation into such and the mode of power as well which is exercise by their authority. In theoretical form, it is absolute, comprehensive and permanent. This is the reason Earnest Barker considers the term ‘sovereignty’ to be the 'Authority of the Last Word'. This research paper is an attempt to reflect the notion of sovereignty in terms of historical evolution, with the help of main proponent and main scholars will elucidate the various ideas in this regard and also analyzed the context of sovereignty with respect to the Indian Constitution.
PROTECTION OF CHILDREN FROM SEXUAL OFFENCES AND OFFENCES OF OBSCENE MATERIAL ON THE INTERNET – LEGAL PROVISIONS
This research paper talks about the impact of sexual offences on people, how such offences affect the lives of young children and leads to re-victimization of the affected children. Not only children but many other people young or adult or middle aged get affected with the negative impacts. Transmission of obscene material all over the internet through various electronic forms has also become common and a topic of issue causing deaths and suicides. Obscene Material travelling through the Internet is not a new piece of information. People have referred them and shared them in varied electronic platforms. With modernization of societies and dynamic changes pornography has become common as well. But what effects are they causing on the children and the young generation that are expected to be the future of India? There are laws for the removal of such content from any source available, there are laws that state such acts to be of illegal in nature and punishments for the same. Many young children become victims of child pornography and the issues goes unnoticed due to ignorance and fear caused due to threats. Children are even suffering with sexual abuses, harassments, and assaults. In some cases, it even happens because of their own family members. With the evolution of social cultures and dynamic changes, many laws have been amended in India such as the decriminalization of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code with response to the growing support for the people of the LGBTQ+ community. Child rights are required to be protected more strictly. Protection of children under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (hereafter POCSO Act) is widely and broadly explained, but still many children have been victims of various cruelties and sufferings. Child Labor which is widely seen in India is also illegal as per law but still it is evident that there are lakhs and lakhs of children under the age of 14 still working. Information Technology Act, 2000 also talks about the punishments for sharing of obscene materials. Exposure of children to pornography is highly dangerous for their mental as well as physical health. Obscene material on the internet also adds no good to the people but further deteriorates a decent mind and loss of a dignified life for the victims. Approximately 548 million times the word adult content is searched on the internet per year.
Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act
AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS ON THE MOST FAVOURED TREATMENT AND INVESTMENT NOMENCLATURES: A FOCUS ON TREATY-BASED CASES FOR TANZANIA
In the framework of international investment law, the beneficiary of the most-favoured nation clause is the investor. However, it could be imperative to differentiate between Most Favoured Nation and Most Favoured Nation Treatment. In that vein, A most-favoured-nation clause is a treaty provision whereby a State undertakes an obligation towards another State to accord most-favoured-nation treatment in an agreed sphere of relations, whereas Most-favoured-nation treatment is treatment accorded by the granting State to the beneficiary State, or to persons or things in a determined relationship with that State, not less favourable than treatment extended by the granting State to a third State or to persons or things in the same relationship with that third State. This paper therefore, analyses the rationale of using most. favoured nation treatment in Tanzania where there are economic and legal variances, and it further, shows how, MFN could be interpreted by the courts focusing on Tanzanian treaty investment framework.
RETHINKING TERMINATION FOR CONVENIENCE CLAUSES IN INDIA: IS THERE A NEED TO IMPORT AMERICAN STANDARDS?
Drafted termination for convenience clauses in contracts have consistently been gaining traction for the ease at which they allow a party to exit the contractual obligation. However, the Indian system of adjudicating these clauses and their viability, is deeply convoluted and inherently complicated. In light of the same, this essay provides reasons why the Indian jurisprudence must adopt the American system of adjudicating these clauses. It shows how the Indian judges are already using American standards of adjudication – sometimes directly, and sometimes indirectly - to adjudicate cases relating to these clauses in India. Thus, it argues, that it is only prudent to formally recognise such infusion, and if not adopt, acknowledge at least the American standards of adjudicating termination for convenience clauses in India.
CHALLENGES POSED BY ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE BASED TECHNOLOGIES TO PATENT AND COPYRIGHT SYSTEM
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a branch of computer science used for making intelligent computer systems which are capable of self-learning from experience and adjust to new inputs, thereby mimicking human like actions. The application of AI may include self-driving car, recommendation engines, predictive analytics, auto pilot functionality of flights, healthcare, robotics and so on. Machine learning (ML), a subset of AI, helps the computer systems to achieve the aim of AI by leveraging the information present in data and learning the same by itself. In conventional programming technology, the computer system receives input and applies the rules to provide a certain output from the user. However, in ML, computer system receives training data and once the training is completed, it receives input and instruction of expected output. However, the rule or model that computer system should follow to generate the output is generated by the computer system itself using ML and not by the user.
HOW DOES THE RIGHT TO SELF-DETERMINATION AFFECT THE LEGALITY OF SECESSION: CASE STUDY ON THE 2014 CRIMEA REFERENDUM?
One of the reasons international law so developed was because of the interactions between different states and the disputes that arose through these interactions of various states. As such, the definition of statehood is a topic which resides at the core of international law. Through historical events, how statehood is understood has evolved, bringing with it the idea of self-determination. This is apparent through the various secessionist movements and attempts around the world such as the Kurdistan Independence Movement in Iraq, the Catalonia Independence Movement in Spain, the Scotland Referendum and the Crimea Referendum among many others. Further, situations such as the Palestine-Israel Issue and the formation of Kosovo have prompted the discussion of how identity of the people of a particular territory might play a role in defining what a state is. Hence it has become important to understand how the right to self-determination affects secession. The aim of this paper is to understand how the right to self-determination affects the legality of secession. This paper answers this question through the case study on Crimea’s 2014 Referendum. Though these questions have been discussed by the UN and the International Court of Justice through the Advisory Opinion on Kosovo’s Declaration of independence, it is important to understand whether such a standard will be applicable in answering all questions of self-determination and the legality of secession. This paper will discuss about what self-determination and secession is, including the Crimean Referendum and will attempt to understand whether the standard laid down in the Advisory Opinion on Kosovo applies to the Crimean Referendum.
ANIMAL SACRIFICE/ QURBANI - AS AN EXCEPTION UNDER THE PREVENTION OF CRUELTY TO ANIMALS ACT
The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 prohibits any person from inflicting, causing, or if it is the owner, permitting, unnecessary pain or suffering to be inflicted on any animal. The Act makes it a crime to beat, kick, torture, mutilate, administer an injurious substance, or cruelly kill an animal. It is also illegal to over-ride, over-drive, over-load, or work an unfit animal. It is an offense to cruelly transport, confine, chain or tether an animal. It is a violation to engage in animal fighting or shooting competitions in which animals are released from captivity to be shot. An owner commits an offense if he or she fails to provide sufficient food, drink or shelter, unreasonably abandons any animal, or permits any diseased or disabled animal to roam or die in any street. However, Section 28 of the act carves out an exception for animal sacrifice for religious purposes. Is this a lacuna in the law, which disregards the rights of Animals?
The concept of Law and Morality has intrigued jurists and philosophers for a long period of time. They both are related yet very different. The aim of law and morality is to regulate the social conduct of an individual in the society. The debate is whether they go hand in hand, or one is better of the other. This paper will take a subjective look on whether there is a place of morality in law? Jeremy Bentham was the founder of utilitarianism. He is of the opinion that utility is a tool for happiness and prevention of evil. Every human action is governed and driven by pain and pleasure. He used this quantitative method of psychological hedonism in his study. The paper revolves around on the fact that human actions are stimulated by the desire to enjoy pleasure and prevent from pain. He is a positivist who believes, law is not something made by god. The following paper will also help to have an objective look on the four sources of pain and pleasure classified by Bentham i.e. Physical, Political, Moral and Religious. In the end it’s going to sum up Bentham’s theory on law and morality followed by my take on the theme, I am of the opinion that there is no real & sensible connection between law and morality therefore there shouldn’t be any place for morality in law
ASCERTAINING THE CONTRACTUAL FEATURES, LEGAL CLASSIFICATIONS AND MODELS IN THE EXISTING LEGAL FRAMEWORK OF PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP (PPP) IN NIGERIA
The paper explores the various features, classifications and models of PPP with a view to measuring whether the existing dominant legal framework in Nigeria, the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) Act 2005, could accommodate the various PPP tendencies and manifestations. When the ICRC Act was promulgated in 2005 and its Board inaugurated in 2009, there was so much optimism that the PPP policy in Nigeria would deliver public infrastructure and services successfully. In less than a decade and latching on the optimism, many agencies of the Federal Government came up with various innovative PPP programmes and schemes whose regulation by the ICRC was ambivalent. The amortization arrangement of the NPA, the land swap programme of the FCT, the road tax credit scheme of the Federal Ministry of Finance, the production sharing contracts of the NNPC, and the InfraCorp and other PPP intervention projects of the CBN are programmes and schemes which the ICRC neglected or refused to effectively regulate. Since the aspirations of the Federal Government in closing the public infrastructure stock deficit are expressly stipulated in its various National plans, there is a need to explore if existing legal framework could accommodate the various features and classifications of PPP as to make such aspirations achievable. The paper therefore looked at the general features and classification of PPP to conclude that the provision of the ICRC Act did not capture expressly and adequately the general classifications and models of PPP as to give both the public and private sectors the confidence to explore and innovate different PPP arrangements. Consequently, the paper recommended for the amendment of ICRC Act and the institution of value threshold to enable public authorities pursue specific category of PPP projects with less regulatory bureaucracy.
SUPREME COURT OF NIGERIA’S CASE JUDGMENT REVIEW: ESENOWO Vs UKPONG & MOBIL PRODUCING NIGERIA (1999) LPELR-1166 (SC)
Some scholars and authors make comments on judgments of superior courts on reading the ratio decidendi without reading the facts or the entire judgment to decipher the reasons behind the judgments. This is one of such cases where, on the surface of it or after glancing through an online review, one may shout blue murder and exclaim, ‘why did the court fall into this technicality trap’ and that is the research problem. Doctrinal research methodology was applied wherein the law report that contained the case was studied. The crux of the matter is that a medical doctor got angered by the fact that when he applied for reimbursement concerning a patient he treated in his hospital with a document he signed as Dr E.J Esonowo, the respondent on checking the register of medical doctors as prepared by the Nigerian Medical Council, did not see Dr E.J Esonowo on the list and based on that, minuted to another staff in the organization that the name did not exist among the medical doctors as contained in the Nigerian Medical Council’s register of doctors and therefore that the reimbursement should not be paid. There was however a name; Dr J.E Esonowo on the register. Dr Esonowo felt infuriated and sued both Dr I.Ukpong who sent out the minute and Mobil Producing Nigeria, for libel. A simple as the case appeared, it went from High Court up to the Supreme Court wherein the appeal of Dr Esonowo was dismissed as the Supreme Court held that there is a big difference between Dr E.J Esonowo and Dr J.E Esonowo. This work found that there was no resort to alternative dispute resolution which would have solved the problem in the beginning and that the matter which lasted for 15 years could have been solved if the appellant exercised a little patience to confirm the veracity of what the respondent wrote. It recommends alternative dispute resolution and exercise of patience to verify a matter before suing, that people should generally follow the rules on writing of names and that there should be quicker dispensation of justice by Nigerian courts.
STUDY ON THE INTERNATIONAL COMMERCIAL AND CORPORATE LAWS
The improvement of international trade requires consistency and consistency of the relevant lawful structure. Such prerequisites can be fulfilled utilizing international uniform commercial law shows, which attempt to present cognizant and uniform collections of significant principles. Private international law additionally assumes a key part, an instrument working at an alternate level however regularly remembered for the uniform shows themselves. This paper examines the connection between international uniform commercial law shows and private international law to research how it has created throughout the most recent seventy years and proposes another way to deal with international commercial exchanges as far as coordination instead of alternativeness of the two distinct instruments.
‘CUSTODIAL VIOLENCE: AN EGRIGIOUS AMESS’
Custodial Violence is reckoned as one of the most canvassed and debated topic in Indian legal framework. This issue is more or less a ubiquitous one in India despite of passing several prominent judgments and legislations in this regards. It is a paradox that in a country which practices and professes the concept of non-violence and protection of rights and also has the bulkiest constitution in the world, is unable to preserve the rights of its prisoners. The fundamental principle of legal system is ‘presumption of innocence’ meaning thereby, an accused is innocent until proven guilty. Keeping in consideration this, the question of infringing upon the rights of undertrial prisoners should not arise at the first place. The paper throws light on the menace of custodial violence in India and its associated aspects.
TRACING THE MATERIALIZATION OF THE KERALA JOINT HINDU FAMILY SYSTEM (ABOLITION) ACT, THROUGH ITS HISTORICAL CONTEXT
A description of the Hindu family in India would be incomplete without accounts of its vast jointness. In fact, this was such a characteristic feature, from time immemorial, that it induced the mutation of the adjective into a tangible concept – the Hindu Joint Family (hereafter the HJF). Interestingly, empirical evidence has shown that novel urban settings did not induce a complete breakdown of the joint family system, implying that change and continuity were not mutually exclusive for this Hindu institution. However, adapting to the changing moors of society was not de rigueur for joint families all across the nation. In 1975, a state tucked into the Southern corner of India abolished the HJF, decimating an entire kinship system in the process. This paper seeks to examine the events that led to the decline of the HJF in Kerala, culminating in the Kerala Joint Hindu Family System (Abolition) Act of 1975 (hereafter the Kerala Act or the 1975 Act). This analysis will be utilized to understand why this was an isolated incident in the state. The argument pursued is that this precocious legislation was inevitable for the HJF in Kerala, stemming from the uniqueness of the family systems and societal changes within the state; hence, it is comprehendible why a similar fate did not befall HJFs outside the state.
PUNISHMENT AND MANDATORY MINIMUMS IN THE INDIAN CONTEXT
Crime and punishments are inseparable, a cause and effect; one devoid of the other is incongruous and noxious. Sentencing, as observed by Justice Krishna Iyer is a means to an end, a psycho-physical panacea to cure the accused of socially reprehensible behavior that caused the crime. Through such punishments, people are warned that they put their own rights on the line if they infringe on those of others through harmful conduct. Common among civilized societies, is a consolidation of crimes and concretization of their resultant punishments as some form of a codex. In India, the Indian Penal Code (hereinafter “the IPC”) serves this larger purpose, containing a curious amalgamation of rules on sentencing -- ranging from mandatory minimum to maximum punishments, or discretionary fines. As we approach the quarter-21st century, it makes sense to reflect on the goals and justifications of sentencing and punishment. With neoteric shifts in theories of punishment, like an increased emphasis on victimology and discontent with the doctrine of lex talionis, is there a need to update the sentencing groundwork of the IPC? This paper attempts to analyze the historical and current manifestation of punishment, noting the pressure such theories exert on the criminal justice system. Although there is a vast amount of literature on the American and Canadian systems of mandatory minimum sentencing, scholarship on Indian mandatory minimums are relatively sparse. In analyzing the law on minimum sentencing in other jurisdictions, this paper will also try to elucidate the rationale behind the IPC needing supplementary guidelines or overhauling of its mandatory minimums. It concludes by elucidating that the experience of other nations can be pedagogic in function, while acquiescing that redesign remains a mammoth task.
India lacks both a clear Policy and Legislation to counter the surveillance business model of the tech giants. This has resulted in massive amounts of data collection about individuals which in turn help the tech giants to take advantage of the behavioral patterns of the individual and monetize the same. Recently, in the year 2019, India witnessed the scenario where one political party weaponized the algorithms that collect data for the tech giants. It managed to create a political communication which was unchecked and continuous that ultimately leads it power in the country. This might seem wrong to some but it was in no way illegal or against public policy as it was within the confines of the policy framework. The present paper discusses the various policy alternatives available to counter this problem. Amongst, the choices the use of blockchain technology for data collection seems to be the most transparent form of data collection. It is evident that data collection is not going to stop therefore making the process transparent and attaching accountability to the data collector in case of abuse seems to be the most viable solution. There is a challenge when it comes to development of infrastructure or implementation of the same but it is necessary to do so. The paper further suggests a comprehensive implementation plans and lays down a blueprint to tackle limiting factors.
EFFECTS OF WORK FROM HOME ON EMPLOYEES DURING COVID – 19 PANDEMIC
The concept of ‘Work From Home’ (WFH) is hinged on the notion that employees are permitted to perform their job responsibilities from the confines of their homes or any other remote location convenient to the employee. Whilst the WFH existed prior to Covid-19 pandemic, more companies found it reliable for the sustenance of their business as the need for continuous economic activities became apparent despite the restriction of movement caused by the need to limit the spread of the virus. However, the adoption of WFH has thrown further concerns on the need to align the interest of parties to employment contracts particularly in a bid to protect employees from possible adverse effect of continuously working from home. This study therefore investigates the general and specific effects of the Work From Home arrangement from the employee perspectives using an empirical methodology. With the use of questionnaires, relevant information were retrieved from 265 respondents in respect of whether the respondent would like WFH to continue and whether the said WFH has so far had an adverse effect on the respondents. The study found that more employees consider WFH convenient and would like it to continue. The study equally confirmed that the productivity of a company is not limited by WFH, but that more employees are experiencing adverse effects as a result of continuous WFH. As recommended by this study, more policy changes would be required to align the interest of the employers with that of the employees.
Since the collapse of the central government in Somalia in 1991after being overthrown by rebel groups, Somalia has suffered from the absence of the rule of law and thus lack of access to justice. Many Somalis were killed in the civil war, while many others had their property, including houses, money, and lands looted. But after the re-establishment of successive Somalia transitional governments based in Djibouti and Kenya, plans were set to restore the Rule of law in the country by re-establishing the justice institutions, including formal courts, police, custodial corps, and ministry of justice. In 2012 when President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud was elected as Somalia President, he set six objectives to achieve in his four-year term. The first pillar was to enhance the justice institutions, and he organized a National Dialogue on Justice Reform Conference in Somalia by inviting many law scholars and justice stakeholders to develop a strategic plan aimed at restoring the Rule of Law in Somalia.
AN APPRAISAL OF ORDINARY LAW PROCEEDINGS OF TAX COLLECTION UNDER CAMEROON’S LAWS
Since human beings entered into the information age, data has brought great changes to the production and life of the whole society. People can now use mobile app for online shopping, enterprises produce and monitor automatically through intelligent systems, and social managers use artificial intelligence to catch criminals in public places, all of which are based on data. The importance of data is not only because it has penetrated into every aspect of our daily life, but also because of its basic role in the social production—a new and special factor of production which contains great value. Because of this, China attaches great importance to the openness and utilization of data. On April 9, 2020, the CPC Central committee and the State Council issued the Opinions on Building a More Perfect Market-Oriented Allocation System and Mechanism of Factors, which clearly requires “to study and improve the nature of property rights according to the trading and industry self-discipline mechanism”, and to juxtapose data with traditional production factors such as land, capital and labor. On May 18, 2020, the CPC Central Committee and the State Council issued the Opinions on Accelerating the Improvement of the socialist Market Economic System in the New Era, which once again emphasized the importance of “accelerating the cultivation and development of the data element market, establishing the data resource list management mechanism, improving the data ownership definition, open sharing, trading and circulation and other standards and measures, and giving play to the value of social data resources”.
THE IMPACT OF ECO-LABELLING ON TRADE AND CONSUMER CONSCIOUSNESS
This paper seeks to analyse the role of consumer consciousness within the World Trade Organization (“WTO”) regime. This becomes an important facet to free trade, particularly because it has become an emerging trend for brands to label products as “sustainable” or “ethically sourced”. Such labels have proven to be key factors in determining consumers’ behaviour and this has been recognised by the WTO Technical Barriers to Trade Agreement (“TBT Agreement”). Part I of this paper will introduce the abovementioned subject matter by highlighting the growing trend of sustainable development in the WTO regime with a particular focus on the idea of eco-labelling and offer insights into prominent debates on this question. Part II will analyse the role of consumer consciousness within the WTO framework using provisions of the TBT Agreement, particularly those related to the labelling of products and how this affect consumer behaviour. Part III will analyse various key decisions of the WTO Panel and Appellate Body which have recognised the importance of consumer information. Part IV shall operate as a conclusion as well as offer certain critiques of the current treatment of consumer interests under the WTO regime.
One of the primary objectives of an effective tax enforcement in any country is to attain the degree of tax compliance best capable of reducing tax gap while maximizing tax revenue to the topmost. Enforcement in administration of taxes plays very crucial role in enhancing tax compliance. However, the apathy many Cameroonians (including corporate bodies) show towards payment of tax coupled with the increase in government spending is presumably the reasons for tax authorities to dust up tax statutes to find legitimate ways like ordinary law proceedings of tax collection which help in shoring up revenue accruing to the country. In this article we appraise the ordinary law proceedings of tax collection under Cameroon’s legislative instruments. In carrying on this research we made use of existing literature on the subject, coupled with consultation with expert and taxpayers. Both methodologies led us to the conclusion that effective enforcement through ordinary law proceedings of tax collection is being challenged by the fact that the controlling laws themselves may be extremely difficult to locate. that very often there is a tangled nuance of laws, regulations, decrees, jumbled together with amendments and modifications. The country also suffers from the fragmentation of taxing power between ministries, which participates to the complexity and the multiplicity of actual tax regimes. Consequently, we propose among other recommendations that the annual amendments that are incorporated into the yearly budgets should be aligned with the principal legislation (Cameroon’s General Tax Code) to avoid confusion. Also, tax measures should remain the exclusive competence of the government, more particularly of the Ministry of Finance, which is better placed to take a more holistic view on what rates could serve the economy best.
SOME LEGAL ISSUES INVOLVED IN INTERNATIONAL ARBITRAL AWARD IN THE CASE OF PROCESS AND INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT LIMITED v THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA
The case of Process and Industrial Development v The Federal Republic of Nigeria has generated a lot of controversies in the government circle as well as in the academic world. The controversies centred on the near punitive award against the Nigerian government in favour of Process and Industrial Development Limited. The typology of this type of damage which forms a common feature of International Arbitral Award is difficult to fix into the existing and well-known typologies of damages. In this situation, nations wallow in a dilemma when their officials entered into an international contractual agreement with forum selection clause and without the knowledge of the executive or with the knowledge of the executive head that lacks the adequate knowledge of the legal implications of such agreement. It is against these backgrounds that this paper addresses the legal implications of the United Kingdom’s Arbitral Tribunal’s award in the case of Process and Industrial Development v Federal Republic of Nigeria. Legal issues forming the focal points of the paper among others are the deployment of the Dcf model which is a damage reduction mechanism to grant a more than the punitive award and the impropriety or otherwise of refusal of public policy argument by the enforcing court to grant Nigeria’s relief for a stay of enforcement; the fact that the Tribunal and the enforcing court lacked jurisdiction to grant and enforce the award; that the Tribunal and the court adopted the narrow view of public policy and the inability of the court and the Tribunal to distinguish between factual causation and legal causation among others. It is therefore against these backgrounds that we are going to address in the second part of this paper the recent relief granted Nigeria by the English court.
Legal realism is a natural theory of law which obtained its significance from societal norms and moral values. According to this theory, judges consider not only abstract rules, but also socio-economic interests and public policy when deciding a case. The realists are of the opinion that law must only be analyzed using natural science methods which are commonly accepted in ways which are value free. Law is inseparable from its use and its scope is beyond understanding when applied in daily life. It focuses more on the aspect as to how the law actually exists in practice, rather than how it exists on the books. Critics have claimed that the realists are the ones who have exaggerated the extent of law and law has been “riddled” or “made fun of” with contradictions. This paper highlights the key features, significance of legal realism, the patterns of legal realism at with in India and the criticisms thereof.
NEED TO DEVELOP THE DEFINITION OF INVESTMENT UNDER INTERNATIONAL INVESTMENT LAW BEYOND SALINI AND QUIBORAX TESTS TO ACHIEVE EQUITABILITY
The globe is not physically fragmented as this phrase is very relevant in the context of global economic relations. Investment is the key contributor to the economic development of any country. In the global context, cross border investments are inevitable and inexorable, particularly for the developing and underdeveloped countries which need such investments greatly for their economic development. However, when a person or institution from one country invests money/capital in another country, the question of protecting such investment certainly reaches the surface. The modern investment law encompasses two important protective principles (1) protecting the rights of investors, and (2) protecting the right to the economic development of host countries. In any dispute between the money/capital contributor and the host country, a fundamental question is whether the claimant’s contribution of money/capital in the host country constitutes an investment. It is an important question, as the rights and duties of the parties depend on the answer to this. The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) which is the main forum for the settlement of the international investment disputes, did not define investment. This made the tribunals under ICSID to determine this question. Two different tests (1) the Salini test and (2) Quiborax test articulated by the tribunals create uncertainty in the investment law. This paper will focus on the merits and demerits of these tests and will discuss how to achieve an equilibrium whereby both parties’ interests are reasonably protected.
Muhammed Anver Muhammed Hussain Barry Barry
SAFETY AND PROTECTION STRATEGIES OF THE NORTHEAST WOMEN IN DELHI
Delhi, the capital of India is meant for all communities, as it is not under the control of a particular race or tribe. Every race, tribe, castes have its own cultural heritage, cultural identity and there exists cultural commonalities among each other. Richness of cultural magnificence of Northeast India in arts, culture, music, literature, games and sports received good recognition in the mainland India. In a cultured society, one race is expected to honour the culture of another race without any discrimination to attain a common culture or goal. There had been numerous cases of sexual harassment against Northeastern people in Delhi neighborhood, public places, institutions and working places. Gender-based violence and racial discrimination has intensified against the Northeast women during the Covid-19 Coronavirus pandemic. Many experienced discrimination, verbal abuse and harassment, some women traumatised from such incidents consequently had to lost their profession and livelihood. They face ddiscrimination on the bases of racial outlook and lifestyle. Cultured society should have equal opportunity to participate in the social, political and economic spaces. This article highlights the core issues and concerns facing the Northeast women by addressing gender, racial discrimination and exclusion. Identify strategies and make recommendations towards possible solutions to this problem, re-examined the relevant protective measures towards safety and security of the women of Northeast India.
PUBLIC HEALTH LAWS IN INDIA: ISSUES AND CHALLENGES
Covid-19 signified the inevitability of the right to health of the people. Right to health is not a recent phenomenon in the legal system. Right to health is recognized as a fundamental human right by the World Health Organization. The right to health for all people means that everyone should have access to the health services they need, when and where they need them, without suffering financial hardship. The simple reason behind emphasizing the significance of right to health is no one should get sick as well as die due to poverty or because non availability of access to public health care system. The right to health is wider concept which includes several aspects such as right to good health, right to control their own health and body, right to privacy, right to live with dignity and medical experimentation, right to access to health system etc. Overall approach of the WHO in this context is people centric health care system. In this context, it is expected that states will formulate their health policies in tune with WHO and accordingly, India has introduced several public laws and different policies to provide access to people to health care system.
PROTECTING THE RIGHTS OF THE ACCUSED UNDER THE MILITARY JUSTICE SYSTEM IN NIGERIA: AN APPRAISAL
Military justice appears esoteric to so many people who even wonder whether there is justice in military trials. The long military rule in Nigeria during which military trials witnessed a lot of impunity did not help matters. Military Law is not offered as a main course in legal studies in Nigeria, which has made it even more distant to the people. It is in view of the misunderstanding of whether there is justice in military trials and whether those who undergo such trials have rights and if those rights are protected, that this article was crafted to appraise the rights of accused persons in the military justice system in Nigeria. Doctrinal and teleological research methods were used in the work. Doctrinal through consulting primary and secondary legal authorities and teleological from the experience of the author from military legal practice for several years. The work found that though there are provisions made for the protection of the rights of the accused, there are still gaps in the implementation. As a way out of the problem, the work recommends that negative command influence should be eliminated and that military law should be taught in Nigerian universities.
SHOULD PRISONERS BE TREATED AS EQUAL CITIZENS: RIGHT TO VOTE A WAY FORWARD?
“Fundamental rights do not flee the persons as he enters the prison although they might suffer shrinkage necessitated by incarceration”. The prison and persons detained therein have once again come to the forefront of the discussion in the context of the ongoing pandemic and the deteriorating conditions in Indian prisons. ‘Prisons’ are a State subject under Entry 4 of List II of the Seventh Schedule in the Constitution of India. It basically means that administration and law-making falls under the purview of respective State Legislative Assembly. Hence, the prison legislations of different states vary in their content. Although the Ministry of Home Affairs advises the States and UTs on various Prison matters. The Prison Act, 1894 has been an ideal set of rules and regulation for Indian States while formulating their respective Prison Laws. But the issue with this is that the source laws being referred to here are archaic and focus alone on maintaining discipline, prison offences and the punishment for these offences. Prisoners are forgotten human beings once they enter the gates of a prison. Prisons in India often get a bad name for the inhumane living conditions that the prisoners must face, from torture by prison authorities and fellow inmates, degrading accommodation, nutrient poor food and the list goes on and on. They are denied the most basic needs what to talk of the other higher rights that have been taken away just in the name of them being prisoners. It has been established from time to time that the prisoners continue to be humans and deserve basic human rights even after being convicted for a crime. Preservation of rights of such people become necessary as their movement is restricted and they are put in isolation away from the society. Thus, prisoners are entitled to the rights like any other citizen of a country except those, which are taken away or temporarily suspended for the duration of their incarceration hence, establishing that the fundamental rights of the prisoner are not absolute.
PRISONS IN INDIA: AN EPITOME OF COLONIAL LEGACY
Prisons in India are administered by the state government under the Prisons Act of 1894. An Indian prison accurately depicts an old and despised residential area that is home to people whose physical and physical health is in danger. Facts have proved that its imprisonment rate is the lowest in the world: 33 prisoners per 100,000; however, there is no difference between sentenced and imprisoned. Under the current circumstances, the prison’s goal—correcting prisoners—has not been achieved. In India, the idea of ​​rebuilding a prison was caused by the cruellest conditions that prisoners must face when incarcerated. Even prisoners are treated as animals in trials because their human rights are buried, because this shows the urgent need to change prison rules to ensure discipline and good governance. It does this by classifying multiple prisoners into civil and civil criminal prisoners, temporary offenders and ordinary offenders and criminals. The study of how prisons have evolved in our nation throughout the periods of history which play a major role in passive reforms brought about by the change of time and the authority also shows the various measures that need to be taken to develop prisons in India. Explains the different approaches taken by many countries to improve and redesign existing prisons and prison management systems.
INTERNATIONAL LAW AND ITS APPLICABILITY IN THE SOMALIAN LEGAL SYSTEMS
This study calls for discussion on the question of how international law is applicable in the Somalian legal systems. States achieve the incorporation into their national law of multilateral or bilateral treaties of which they are contracting parties, so that the rights and duties contained in such international law may become applicable and enforceable domestically. With regards to the application of international law, the Somalian judicial systems have chosen to considerably circumvent in pleasing with international law aspects when adjudicating in the parties concerned. One of the main objectives of the study is to examine Somalia’s international law practice right from independence up-to date. During the study, it was based on doctrinal methodology. From primary sources of information and secondary sources of information were fully adopted such as the constitution of Somalia, Acts of parliaments, statutory instruments and Textbooks, Law of journals, legal dictionaries, and newspapers respectively. The study concludes that the government of Somalia through legislative should enact a new legal framework for the better implementation of international law such as adaptation and promulgating of treaty-making procedure act among others. The study finds that, any foreign policy submission put to federal Ministers, the Attorney General should give advices as to whether the state can ratify or accede to international treaties and conventions, since the Attorney General is the general legal adviser of the state, like any other nations in the world. At the end, the study therefore, recommends that all international agreements or treaties to which Somalia is contracting party shall be permissible in Somalia without any parliamentarian involvement. Hence, incorporation procedures take longer as it requires.