Revisiting the Infamous Pernkopf Anatomy Atlas – Historical Lessons for Medical Law and Ethics: Could Recent Events be Invoked to Justify the Selective use and Application of the Atlas in Medical Practice?

by | Feb 21, 2026 | FUND, FUND V31I2

Revisiting the Infamous Pernkopf Anatomy Atlas – Historical Lessons for Medical Law and Ethics: Could Recent Events be Invoked to Justify the Selective use and Application of the Atlas in Medical Practice?

Authors Pieter Carstens and Chrislie Boers

ISSN: 2411-7870
Affiliations: At the time of authoring: Emeritus Professor of Criminal and Medical Law, Department of Public Law, University of Pretoria; Associate member of the Pretoria Bar; Lecturer, Department, Public Law, Akademia Private Higher Education Institution
Source: Fundamina, Volume 31 Issue 2, p. 57-103
https://doi.org/10.47348/FUND/v31/i2a2

Abstract

The Pernkopf Topographical Anatomy of Man is widely regarded as one of the most anatomically precise atlases ever produced, yet it remains indelibly tainted by its origins in Nazi Germany and its reliance on the bodies of executed victims of the Third Reich. This article revisits the historical, ethical and legal context surrounding the compilation and continued existence of the Pernkopf Anatomy Atlas. It situates the Atlas within a broader history of medical experimentation, and the procurement of human remains, while distinguishing premodern practices from the systematic, state-sanctioned atrocities of Nazi medical science. Against this backdrop, the contribution critically examines the complicity of the medical and legal professions in legitimising gross violations of human dignity and bodily integrity. The article further engages with the longstanding international debate concerning the continued use, rejection or conditional acceptance of the Atlas in medical education and practice. Attention is paid to the ethical significance of the Nazi insignia embedded in the original illustrations and to the relationship between medical law and medical ethics when confronted with research derived from unlawful and unethical conduct. Considering recent developments and renewed scholarly engagement with the Atlas, the article considers whether a more nuanced and context-sensitive approach—short of outright prohibition—can be justified. It ultimately argues that any engagement with the Pernkopf Atlas must remain firmly grounded in historical accountability, ethical transparency and respect for the dignity of the victims.

From Stage to Statute: The Historical Development of Performers’ Rights in South Africa

by | Feb 21, 2026 | FUND, FUND V31I2

From Stage to Statute: The Historical Development of Performers’ Rights in South Africa

Author Gretchen Jansen

ISSN: 2411-7870
Affiliations: Lecturer, Faculty of Law, Stellenbosch University. LLB LLM LLD (Stellenbosch University)
Source: Fundamina, Volume 31 Issue 2, p. 104-155
https://doi.org/10.47348/FUND/v31/i2a3

Abstract

This contribution traces the historical development of performers’ rights, with a particular focus on the South African legal context. Beginning with the first statutory recognition of performers’ rights in early twentieth-century Germany, it follows the gradual emergence of international instruments, from the Rome Convention to the Beijing Treaty, before examining how these frameworks influenced domestic developments in the United Kingdom, and, later, South Africa. The analysis reveals that while copyright law has historically prioritised the rights of authors and the protection of their works, the legal recognition of performers has remained secondary, often treated as peripheral to the core concerns of the intellectual property regime.
In South Africa, performers’ rights were first introduced by the Performers’ Protection Act 11 of 1967. Although modelled loosely on international norms, the Act provided a fragmented and limited form of protection, reflecting both colonial legal inheritance and a lack of engagement with international instruments. The contribution tracks the evolution of this legislative framework, including the proposed amendments that seek to modernise and expand the rights of performers in response to both technological change and international pressure. Drawing on legal history and comparative analysis, it assesses whether these reforms amount to a substantive shift in how performers’ protection is conceptualised in law.
Ultimately, the contribution argues that recognising the historical marginalisation of performers is essential to understanding the current moment of legal reform. A stronger and more coherent legal regime for performers’ rights in South Africa has the potential not only to correct past omissions, but also to support a more inclusive, equitable and culturally vibrant creative sector.

Jurisdictional Immunity in South Africa: Interpreting Section 2 of the Foreign States Immunities Act in Light of Article 6(2)(B) of the United Nations Convention on Jurisdictional Immunities of States and Their Property, 2004, and its Drafting History

by | Feb 21, 2026 | FUND, FUND V31I2

Jurisdictional Immunity in South Africa: Interpreting Section 2 of the Foreign States Immunities Act in Light of Article 6(2)(B) of the United Nations Convention on Jurisdictional Immunities of States and Their Property, 2004, and its Drafting History

Author Jamil Ddamulira Mujuzi

ISSN: 2411-7870
Affiliations: Professor, Faculty of Law, University of the Western Cape
Source: Fundamina, Volume 31 Issue 2, p. 156-206
https://doi.org/10.47348/FUND/v31/i2a4

Abstract

In East Asian Consortium BV v MTN Group Limited the applicant sued the respondent in a South African court for allegedly bribing Iranian officials to award the latter a tender at the expense of the former. The respondents invoked section 2 of the Foreign States Immunities Act, 1981, to argue that South African courts did not have jurisdiction over the matter because the action was indirectly against the Iranian government which enjoyed jurisdictional immunity under article 6(2)(b) of the Immunities Convention, 2004. The majority of the court declined to interpret section 2 of the Foreign States Immunities Act in light of article 6(2)(b) of the Immunities Convention. In reaching this conclusion, the court relied on the United Kingdom Supreme Court’s decision in Belhaj v Straw, which held that the drafting history of article 6(2)(b), as well as state practices, showed that it is not customary international law, and that in the United Kingdom the Immunities Convention was not regarded as international law. In this article, the author argues to the contrary. By undertaking an in-depth analysis of the drafting history of article 6(2)(b) of the Immunities Convention and current state practices, the author argues that article 6(2)(b) of the Immunities Convention is international law (as understood by the South African Constitutional Court). Consequently, the court should have relied on it in interpreting section 2 of the Foreign States Immunities Act. It is also argued that a combined reading of the drafting history of article 6(2)(b) of the Immunities Convention and section 2(2) of the Foreign States Immunities Act shows that the court should have held that it did not have jurisdiction in the case. It is argued, further, that article 6(2)(b) is not limited to cases where a foreign state has legal interest in property but that it is applicable to interests, rights, property and activities. Furthermore, since the alleged bribery took place in Iran and the acts in question were juri imperii, South African courts did not have jurisdiction.

Petitions and Democracy: an Understanding of the Historical Significance of the Right to Petition in Nineteenth-Century United States of America

by | Sep 6, 2025 | FUND, FUND V31I1

Petitions and Democracy: an Understanding of the Historical Significance of the Right to Petition in Nineteenth-Century United States of America

Author Tameshnie Deane

ISSN: 2411-7870
Affiliations: BProc LLB LLD. Vice Dean: Law: Research Postgraduate Studies at Internationalisation, University of the Free State
Source: Fundamina, Volume 31 Issue 1, p. 1-29
https://doi.org/10.47348/FUND/v31/i1a1

Abstract

With the expansion of liberal, constitutional and representative systems, the so-called long nineteenth century (1780–1914) in the United States is regarded as a transformative period in the development of democracy. Whilst voting and party politics have become central to democratic practice, the right to petition, enshrined in the First Amendment to the US Constitution, historically played a pivotal role in American political life. Petitions provided disenfranchised groups, including women, immigrants and African and native Americans with a way to actively engage in political processes reserved for the voting public discourse. Importantly, during this period, petitions were not merely symbolic, but were an active tool for democratic participation that empowered marginalised groups and contributed to the shaping of American democracy. Scholars emphasise the significance of petitioning as a powerful, inclusive form of political engagement, often more accessible than voting, especially when rights were limited. In contrast to today’s focus on voting and party politics, petitioning provided a vital alternative avenue for political participation, bridging the gap between elections. However, the historical importance of this right has been largely forgotten in contemporary political discourse, with recent Supreme Court opinions indicating a lack of understanding regarding its constitutional significance. The disregard for petitioning in modern democracy has contributed to a narrowing of democratic engagement. By revisiting the history of petitioning, this contribution aims to reconsider the historical role of petitioning in democracy in the US, exploring its potential to complement electoral politics and to strengthen participatory democracy in contemporary settings. The justification for this study arises from the growing interdisciplinary interest in petitions and the practice of petitioning across diverse historical and contemporary contexts.

Women and/as Space: the Impact of Apartheid Geography on Women and the Construction of Womanhood

by | Sep 6, 2025 | FUND, FUND V31I1

Women and/as Space: the Impact of Apartheid Geography on Women and the Construction of Womanhood

Author Nosipho Goba

ISSN: 2411-7870
Affiliations: LLB LLM (UP) LLD (UFS). Postdoctoral Fellow, School of Law, Wits University
Source: Fundamina, Volume 31 Issue 1, p. 30-67
https://doi.org/10.47348/FUND/v31/i1a2

Abstract

Legal scholars have considered the confluence of law, space and sexuality. What is less visible is a focus on the connections between women and apartheid geography. This contribution explores those connections with particular reference to the Group Areas Act 41 of 1950 and argues that the latter made use of racialisation and the control of their movement to use women as spatial markers. Drawing on feminist geography, this contribution unpacks the role of gender in the production of space and the manner in which space is complicit in the constitution of gender to explore the inscription of space on women’s bodies. It then considers the inscription of space on women’s bodies as the producers of populations, which must be understood as “racialised”, to (re)produce segregation. Furthermore, this study considers the role of gender in the production of race and the role of race in the construction of varying iterations of gender in the context of Afrikaner nationalism. By unpacking the concepts of the volk and the volksmoeder, this contribution illustrates how the usurpation of white womanhood and motherhood, as tools of Afrikaner nationalism, were instrumental in the formation of apartheid and its geography. This, in turn, had a devastating impact on black women. This contribution also looks at the manner in which women were affected by apartheid legislation that made their bodies the site of segregatory and apartheid geography. It is argued that women became a primary means by which the Group Areas Act demarcated race. This, together with the manner in which that Act controlled the movement of women, meant that women became the signifiers of space. It is submitted that women were used to (re)produce urban areas, townships and homelands.