Die beskerming van kinderslagoffers van seksuele misdrywe, met besondere verwysing na die reg op menswaardigheid en inligting

Abstract

Section 234 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, states that in order to deepen the culture of democracy established by the Constitution, Parliament may adopt Charters of Rights consistent with the provisions of the Constitution. In accordance with its obligations caused by ratifying various international instruments, the government adopted the Service Charter for Victims of Crime in South Africa in 2007. The Service Charter entrenches seven specific rights to a victim of a crime, which also includes the child as a victim. The purpose of this dissertation is to investigate the question whether the rights of child victims to be treated with fairness and with respect for dignity and privacy, to offer information and to receive information are satisfactorily protected within the South African legal framework in light of the requirements of the Constitution and the international legal framework. As point of departure, the background and legal nature of the Service Charter will be investigated briefly. The background of the relevant international and regional instruments are also discussed. This is followed by an analysis and an explanation of the theoretical foundations of the right to be treated with fairness and with respect for dignity and privacy, from an international, regional and a South African perspective. Attention is particularly drawn to the way the courts have interpreted the right to be treated with fairness and with respect for dignity and privacy. What the right entails within the Victim’s Charter is also investigated. This is followed by an analysis and an explanation of the theoretical foundations of the right to offer information and to receive information, from an international, regional and a South African perspective. What the right entails within the Victim’s Charter is also investigated. Finally, a conclusion is reached.