MD Legal Consultants

31/01/2024

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09/11/2023

14/09/2023

GBV Continued
Types of evidence that may be applicable.

Sometimes victims of gender-based violence endure violence at the hands of their abuser for a long period of time. It may be that they are afraid to speak up and seek help or that they simply believe it will not happen again or they are working up the courage to seek help. The violence may take place over a short or long period of time or it may just be a single instance. Whatever the case may be, it is important for the victim to gather as much evidence as s/he can, which will be helpful when or if s/he decides to seek help and take legal action.

Witnesses

Victims should keep a record of any witnesses to the violence by taking note of their details, such as their names and contact information and what they know about the matter. For example, family members or neighbours that may have witnessed incidents of violence. Affidavits or statements from witnesses can also be obtained, however, if the matter comes before a court, the witness will have to testify in court
Photographs

Photographs of injuries and damage to property caused by violent acts of the perpetrator should be taken, such as photographs of bruises or broken doors, tables, dishes and so on.

Record of incidents

If the violence is occurring over a long period of time and/or numerous occasions, victims should keep a record of the details of each incident as it occurs. The record could include information of these incidents, such as the dates and times of the incident, what the perpetrator did or said, what actions the victim took (reporting to the police or another organisation), were there any witnesses and any other relevant information.

Communication and social media

If there were any communications of a degrading or violent form between the perpetrator and victim, the victim should also save any voice notes, e-mails, or text messages as proof of the violent behavior. Social media posts should also be saved in the form of screenshots to limit the risk of not seeing it at a later stage if it has been deleted.

Reports

Previous police reports, hospital and doctors’ reports related to the violence must be kept by the victim.

These are just a few examples of what evidence a GBV victim could have. It is not an exhaustive list, nor does a victim need to have all of the listed types of evidence. This list merely entails what victims should bear in mind when pursuing their matter. Any type of evidence the victim may have can be very helpful with investigations and in later court proceedings, whether it is in a criminal trial or an application for a protection order. However, victims should not be discouraged to report instances of GBV or seek help if they have no or little evidence.

10/09/2023

Gender Based Violence (GBV)

Gender-based violence can take different forms and mostly affects women and girls. This is violence directed against a person because of that person’s gender or violence that affects persons of a particular gender disproportionately. Violence against women is understood as a violation of human rights and a form of discrimination against women and shall mean all acts of gender-based violence that result in, or are likely to result in physical harm, sexual harm, psychological harm, economic harm or suffering to women.
It can include violence against women, domestic violence against women, men or children living in the same domestic unit. Although women and girls are the main victims of GBV, it also causes severe harm to families and communities. There are various forms of Gender-based violence that can take place within a domestic relationship or in any other type of situation. Although it is possible to obtain a protection order, it is also possible to lay criminal charges in some instances. However, each case has to be assessed on its merits to establish whether criminal charges are applicable or not.

Examples of gender-based violence

Domestic violence includes all acts of physical, sexual, psychological and economic violence that occur within the family, domestic unit, or between intimate partners. These can be former or current spouses also when they don’t share the same residence.

Sex-based harassment includes unwelcome verbal, physical or other non-verbal conduct of a sexual nature with the purpose or effect of violating the dignity of a person.

Female Ge***al Mutilation (FGM) is the ritual cutting or removal of some or all of the external female ge***alia. It violates women’s bodies and often damages their sexuality, mental health, well-being and participation in their community. It may even lead to death.

Forced marriage refers to marriage concluded under force or coercion – either physical pressure to marry or emotional and psychological pressure. It’s closely linked to child or early marriages, when children are wed before reaching the minimum age for marriage and against their consent.

Online violence (cyber harassment) is an umbrella term used to describe all sorts of illegal or harmful behaviours against women in the online space. They can be linked to experiences of violence in real life, or be limited to the online environment only. They can include illegal threats, stalking or incitement to violence, unwanted, offensive or sexually explicit emails or messages, sharing of private images or videos without consent, or inappropriate advances on social networking sites.

Forms of gender-based violence

Physical abuse: Any act or threatened act of bodily injury towards someone. For example, punching, slapping, kicking, stabbing, choking and so on. Related criminal offences include: common assault; assault through threats; and assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm. It results in injuries, distress and health problems, and may even lead to death in certain cases. Typical forms of physical violence are beating, strangling, pushing, and the use of weapons.

Sexual abuse: Conduct of a sexual nature without the consent of the complainant. It includes unconsented sexual acts, attempts to obtain a sexual act, acts to traffic, or acts otherwise directed against a person’s sexuality without the person’s consent. Examples and related criminal offences: R**e: sexual pe*******on of a complainant without his/her consent.

Sexual assault: sexual violation of a complainant, which includes direct or indirect contact between the ge***al organs of one person and any body part of the complainant.

Flashing: for example, the exposure of the ge***al organs of any person to the complainant without consent.

Compelled r**e or sexual assault: where one person forces another person to r**e or sexually assault the complainant.

Emotional, verbal and psychological abuse: Degrading or humiliating conduct towards someone to cause emotional and psychological pain. It includes psychologically abusive behaviours, such as controlling, coercion, economic violence and blackmail. Examples: repeated insults or name calling, repeated threats to cause emotional pain, repeated display of obsessive possessiveness or jealousy, which constitute a serious invasion of a person’s privacy, freedom, human dignity and security. Related criminal offences include: Crimen injuria.

Economic abuse: the unreasonable withholding or removal of money or property to which a complainant (in a domestic relationship) is entitled to under law. Examples: The unreasonable refusal to provide monies for groceries, the unreasonable disposal of household property in which the complainant has an interest in or the use of a joint bank account for personal use without the complainant’s consent.

Intimidation, harassment or stalking: Unreasonable and repeated conduct that induces fear of harm to a complainant. Examples: Repeatedly following and watching the complainant, or loitering outside of or near the house, workplace or other building where the complainant may be, repeatedly making unwanted telephone calls or getting someone else to make telephone calls to the complainant, repeatedly sending unwanted e-mails or text messages to the complainant, threats of violence or death towards the complainant. Related criminal offences are trespassing and intimidation.

Damage to property: The intentional damaging or destruction of property that belongs to the complainant is a criminal offence. Examples: breaking into the complaints house; in relation to the GBV, damage to the complainants’ clothes or other property.

30/07/2023

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04/07/2023

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31/05/2022

Loan Agreement

This is a legally binding contract between two or more parties to formalize a loan process. It establishes how much money is being borrowed and sets other terms of the loan including repayment schedule and interest if applicable. There are many types of loan agreements ranging from simple promissory notes between family and friends to more detailed contracts like mortgages. Simple loan agreements can be little more than short letters stating how long a borrower has to pay back the money and what interest might be added to the principal. Others like mortgages are elaborate documents that are filed as public records and allow lenders to repossess the borrower's property if the loan is not repaid as agreed.

Purpose of a loan agreement

The main purpose of a loan agreement is to define what the parties involved are agreeing to, what responsibilities each party has, and for how long the agreement will last. It should comply with state regulations which will protect both lender and borrower should either side fail to honor the agreement. The signed loan contract is proof that the lender and borrower commit that funds will be used for a specified purpose, how the loan will be paid back, and at what amortization rate, if the money is not used for the specified purpose it should be paid back to the lender immediately. A formal loan contract makes every detail clear for both parties, can be legally binding, and can help prevent disputes.

What to include in your loan agreement

A loan agreement specifies all the details of a personal or business loan, including the amount of money or the assets being lent, the repayment terms, and what happens if the borrower defaults. Each loan agreement has its conditions of repayment governed by state guidelines designed to prevent the illegal or excessive interest rates on repayment. Default terms should also be detailed to avoid confusion or potential legal court action. In case of default, the terms of collection of the outstanding debt should specify the costs involved in collecting the debt.

Detailed clauses

• Fluctuation of interest clause: Gives banks permission to change interest rates based on base-rate fluctuations.
• Force majeure clause: Gives the lender permission to alter interest rates based on extraordinary economic circumstances.
• Security cover clause: For secured loans, outlines assets that are being offered as security for the loan amount. For home loans, the security is the property being bought.
• Default definition clause: Defines what qualifies the loan as being in default. Often, this means the borrower has missed a certain number of payments.
• Disbursement clause: This makes it clear exactly where the borrowed money will be sent.
• Reset clause: Defines if and when interest rates will be revisited and reset.
• Other balances set-off clause: Outlines how payments will be offset by other balances owed between the parties.
• Third-party repayment collection clause: Claims the right of the lender to hire third parties to help in the collection of payments.
• Amendment clause: Gives the lender the right to amend any clause without informing the borrower (a cause for particular caution on the part of the borrower).
• Notification clause: Specifies certain life changes that the borrower must inform the lender about, such as a change in income or residential address.
• Severability clause: Proclaims that should one provision of the agreement be deemed void or unenforceable, it will not affect the validity of the other provisions of the loan.
• Entire agreement clause: This defines what the final agreement will be and supersedes any agreements previously made in negotiations whether written or oral, this is the final say, and anything that was said or written before no longer applies.

Until then…