Restitution Process Research Articles

Media’s Roles in Reporting Corruption in the Cameroon Development Corporation (CDC) Lands Restitution Process in Fako Division: 2014-2021

Media’s roles in exposing corruption is itemised in the CDC land restitution process in Fako Division of Cameroon, captioned as “The Land Grabbing Saga in Fako Division” by newspapers. Journalism in general and investigative reporting in particular, play a critical role in raising consciousness of and fighting against corruption. It is one of the most effective means of raising public consciousness about corruption. It is in this light that the researchers set out to investigate the actual role played by the media in reporting corruption in the CDC land restitution process. Two qualitative research methods were used to gather data. The first method, the qualitative content analysis, examined contents of four editions of CRTV Buea Press Club radio programme and also exploited contents of some newspapers and online media platforms on corruption in the CDC land restitution process. The second research method, in-depth interview, was used to gather data from some elites of Fako Division, members of the affected villages, journalists who reported on the corruption, some accused persons and CDC officials to ascertain media’s role in exposing corruption. The data reveal that the media played three roles in exposing corruption in the CDC land restitution process: giving information and creating awareness; public education; and prompting peers (other journalists) to also report on corruption. The elites and members of the affected communities attested that some of them were not aware of any corrupt practices until they heard about it on CRTV Buea Press Club and later followed it on newspapers and online media platforms. Findings also show that media investigative reports corroborated evidence to establish the occurrence of corruption in the restitution process. The media exposed this issue by naming and shaming those involved in the corruption (publishing their names and pictures). Amongst other things, this study recommends that the media should be considered as an important tool in the fight against corruption; those interested in exposing corruption in the media should be involved in investigative journalism that will enable them back their reports with documented evidence since corruption is a complex crime. Also, people in public offices should be compelled by law to make available information that is of public interest and good to journalists to enable them expose societal ills (like corruption), especially in public offices and spheres.

Background of corruption and its importance in land seizure in Colombia

The administration of justice in Colombia has always raised concerns about the control of the acts of the authorities to proscribe and limit the abuse of power, as a consequence of structural, functional and organizational problems, despite attempts at profound reforms to the judicial system A certain degree of opinion persists in society that reflects dissatisfaction about the functioning that negatively affects the confidence of the Colombian people. This article is developed with a historical research method, which shows the legislative journey around studying and analyzing the scope of crime that, from legal persons, intervenes to the detriment of the land restitution process in Colombia.

FORMULATION OF LEGAL PROTECTION REGULATION IN THE FORM OF COMPENSATION/RESTITUTION TO COMMUNITIES OF VICTIMS AFFECTED IN CASE OF FOREST AND LAND FIRE

A good and healthy environment is a human and constitutional right for every Indonesian citizen (UUD NRI 1945). However, increasingly complex environmental problems continue to threaten human rights, such as cases of forest and land fires. The community is the most disadvantaged party due to the forest and land fires, ranging from environmental damage, healthy problems, delays in the learning process in schools, and other activities that have an impact on economic losses. In this case, the community cannot apply for restitution. The legal problem is that there is a void in norms governing the restitution process for victims affected by environmental crimes in general, including victims of forest and land fires. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to formulate a formulation in the criminal justice system in Indonesia related to legal protection in the form of compensation/restitution for the victims affected by forest and land fires. This type of research is a legal research with a statutory approach, a conceptual approach, a case approach, and uses a legal material analysis technique in the form of a qualitative descriptive technique with inductive logic. The results of this study conclude that the formulation of appropriate norms must be carried out immediately and must also be made in a balanced manner, not sharp down and blunt up, these regulations must be made taking into account the rights and obligations as well as the dignity and worth of the community as victims of forest and land fires based on Human Rights (HAM) which recognizes the basic human right to be able to live in a good and healthy environment and is obliged to maintain and be responsible for all actions to prevent pollution. Restitution is given taking into account the amount of losses suffered by the affected victims.

Resettled but not redressed: Land restitution and post‐settlement dynamics in South Africa

AbstractRedressing the wrongs of the past has been a central theme in democratic South Africa. The land restitution programme was specifically intended to foster the process of redressing the loss and pain inflicted through racially motivated and violent dispossession of land. After more than two and half decades of implementing the land restitution programme, there are serious questions around how far this programme has contributed to redressing the injustices of the past. This paper, drawing from three land restitution case studies, illustrates that while many victims of colonial and apartheid land dispossession have been compensated, the land restitution process has scored limited success in redressing past injustices. The paper argues that the failure to substantively redress colonial and apartheid land dispossession is partly due to the narrow conceptualization of the restitution programme, which has emphasized procedural aspects, ignoring the need for meaningful redress of the victims of land dispossession. As a result of this, the land restitution programme has not fulfilled its transformative objectives of reconciliation, reconstruction, and reducing land inequalities in the country.

Utilitarianism: Merging the Dichotomy between Nationalist and Internationalist Conception of Cultural Property

Abstract The quest for the restitution of cultural property has not been an easy endeavour. Despite the availability of multiple legal regimes securing various channels for the restitution of cultural property, improvement has been quite sluggish. This article argues that the debacle to the restitution process lies in the simultaneous operation of two diametrically opposed conceptions of cultural property- the nationalist and internationalist schools of thought. The 1954 Hague Convention sees cultural property as the cultural heritage of all mankind whilst the 1970 Convention takes the view that it is the cultural heritage designated by each country. These two approaches have been used to characterise nations theoretically in the international arena into source nations with nationalistic interests and market nations with international concerns. The conflict between both conceptions of cultural property becomes evident where the nationalists seek to employ legal and extra-legal means to protect their cultural heritage and facilitate their return and restitution; whereas, internationalists sabotage these efforts on the ground that cultural heritage is the common heritage of mankind thereby contradicting the notion of return. This article finds that although both schools of thought have divergent propositions, they nonetheless share a common theoretical underpinning- utilitarianism, which validates their respective ideologies. Since utilitarianism supports the maximisation of the overall happiness of a collective group, nationalists can predicate the protection of their cultural heritage on the need to secure this happiness just like the internationalists. This article, therefore, seeks to examine if the common theoretical foundation which both schools of thought share can serve as a reconciliatory tool that bridges the gap between them towards the promotion of the interest of the international community in protecting cultural heritage.

Robbed and Dispossessed: The Emotional Impact of Property Loss during the German Occupation of the Netherlands, 1940–1945

During the occupation of the Netherlands, the Jewish population was systematically robbed and deprived of their property rights. Their economic and social isolation went hand in hand with a loss of social status, connectedness, security and identity, as homes were expropriated and furniture was confiscated. The process of depriving the Jews of everything they owned, which happened with such apparent ease by the seemingly all-powerful authorities, had a profound impact on the victims that went far beyond mere material loss. Furthermore, after the war, the restitution process confronted the survivors with bureaucratic procedures and formalities that evoked negative feelings among the persecuted victims. A strictly quantitative approach to compensation for the loss of furniture and other household items therefore seems to fall short. The view of loss as something that can be compensated with money does not take into account the psychological aspects of losing those personal possessions. This article pleads for a more qualitative approach to the subject of looting and restitution, free from the limitations imposed by the quantitative scope of official archives. The authors suggest that future research should relate more to the link between ‘dignity taking’ – a term that was coined by Bernadette Atuahene, professor of Law in Chicago – and ‘emotional loss’. Looking into property loss from an emotional perspective will teach us more about the fragility of settledness against the backdrop of occupation and persecution.

Identifying the peopling of Tanganyika-Germany East Africa through Skeletal Remains: A case study of the Restitution process in Tanzania

Identifying the peopling of Tanganyika-Germany East Africa through Skeletal Remains: A case study of the Restitution process in Tanzania

Spatiality, Temporality and Ontology: Constraints for the Restitution of Indigenous Peoples’ Territorial Rights in Colombia

In this article, three limitations to how ethnic land restitution has been carried out in Colombia to date are discussed. The specific restrictions that I mention are related to 1) temporality, 2) spatiality, and 3) to the ontology of the idea of reparations concerning indigenous peoples’ territorial rights. These findings result from fieldwork conducted in 2017 and 2018 in the Aponte indigenous reserve of the Inga people. The first section of the article briefly describes the history and functioning of Act 1448 of 2011, known in Colombia as the Law on Victims and Land Restitution. In the second section, I describe the case of the Inga people in Aponte, located in the department of Nariño, in southern Colombia. In the third section, I discuss the three limitations mentioned above regarding the land restitution process, followed by a conclusion.

Intricacies of Moral Geographies of Land Restitution in Estonia

This article employs moral geographies in analysing the land restitution process and outcome. Moral geographies investigate how abstract values, deliberations and judgements are translated into everyday life and, consequently, to landscape. The dynamics of moral geographies are analysed by transdisciplinary research methods using mainly qualitative data, such as documents, media and literature, but also spatial and statistical data. Land restitution in Estonia had its start in 1991, instigated by the heat of national reawakening, aiming to reverse the past 50 years of Soviet ‘wrongdoings’. This task proved to be not so straightforward. The initial heydays got entangled not only in all subsequent matters of practicalities, but also with social and spatial justice. To date, land reform has been completed on 99% of Estonia’s territory. For over 30 years, the land restitution has been shaped by global changes as well as local particularities and, in the process, moral ideas have been transformed. Thus, though landscape reflects moral categories and ideology, these two are interdependent: landscape can, in turn, mould moral ideals in certain ways.

Ambiguous Outcomes of Returnees’ Land Dispute Resolution and Restitution in War-Torn Burundi

Redressing land dispossession in the aftermath of violent conflicts is daunting and complex. While land dispute resolution and restitution are expected to promote return migration, this outcome is contingent upon the changing social, economic and political conditions under which return takes place. Drawing on qualitative data from Makamba Province in southern Burundi, this case study highlights the politically and historically shaped challenges underlying the resolution of competing and overlapping claims on land following protracted displacement. These include the undocumented and fluid nature of customary land rights, institutional and legal pluralism and shifting land governance relations. This paper emphasises the centrality of the state in regulating returnees’ land dispute resolution and restitution processes. Violent conflicts and forced migration have enabled the state to expand its control over customary land tenure. The gradual exclusion or replacement of local authorities has shaped a competitive structure of jurisdictions and confused authority over land. National land restitution commissions have been used by the central government to shape land tenure and state–citizen relations and to exert pressure on land tenure institutions. Addressing competing claims on land following armed conflicts may fail if attendant struggles over public authority and changing political dynamics are insufficiently considered.

The First Data on Parasitic Arthropods of the European Bison in the Summer Season with a World Checklist

The European bison (wisent) Bison bonasus is not only the largest terrestrial mammal in Europe, but also an example of the successful restitution and reintroduction of a species that became extinct in nature at the beginning of the 20th century. Even so, it remains a rare, protected species, and one susceptible to varied threats, including diseases. It has a specific parasitofauna, comprising only a few specific species retained with the last hosts in the restitution process, and some others acquired from other ungulates, or via environmental interactions. The current data on parasitic arthropods originated from the winter season, and less frequently, from autumn and early spring. The present study contains the first information on the occurrence of arthropods in the European bison (n = 6) in the summer season, which is the period of their increased activity. Data on the seasonal and populational dynamics of ectoparasites have been verified; specific parasite species (Demodex bisonianus, Bisonicola sedecimdecembrii, and recently described Demodex bialoviensis) and typical parasite species (Chorioptes bovis, Ixodes ricinus) have been recorded. The data refer to the information from other study periods, summarizing and valorizing data on parasitic arthropods in the form of a global checklist. These arthropods occur in European bison frequently (prevalence reaches up to 100%), but they are present in small numbers, and do not present a burden for the host; only sometimes, with high intensity of infection, they cause parasitoses (chorioptosis, mallohagosis). However, as an effect of regular activity, by penetrating the skin of the host, they create gateways for secondary infections, and hematophagous parasites (e.g., ticks) can be vectors of pathogens that can be hazardous, even at low infection levels. The identification of the parasitological threats faced by European bison is not only important from the standpoint of the study object, i.e., the Białowieża Forest European bison population, from which the existing bison population of Europe has been derived, but also the fact that their transfer to different parts of Europe can entail the additional transfer of their parasites.

Resettlement and Regeneration: The Pafuri Camp Joint-venture Lodge, Kruger National Park, South Africa

Abstract This case describes how the Makuleke community reclaimed formal ownership over their land in the Kruger National Park through a land restitution process in South Africa. On the basis that the land could only be used for conservation, the Makuleke formed agreements with private operators to build and operate joint-venture tourism lodges. These generated income, employment and empowered people that had previously been forcibly removed from land by the state. Information Snyman, S. and Spenceley, A. (2019) Private Sector Tourism in Conservation Areas in Africa, CABI © CAB International 2019

Museum restitution problems: The cases of the Grosz and Flechtheim families against the New York Museum of Modern Art

The relevance of the topic raised in this article is justified by the importance of the issue of restitution of cultural property after the Second World War and the interest it arouses in society at the current stage of development. During the time that has passed since the defeat of Nazi Germany, many former owners of works of art, from whom the Nazis requisitioned their collections, have regained their artifacts. The process of restitution continues up to the present. The idea of restitution arose from the idea of protecting cultural property from encroachment. And if shortly after the war, the families of former owners of works of art tried to return their art property from private collectors, now lawsuits are usually directed against museums. One of the well-known restitution cases in recent years is the lawsuit against the New York Museum of Modern Art, which is an attempt to return family values by the descendants of the German artist Georg Grosz and collector Alfred Flechtheim. Dispute resolution has not yet been brought to its logical conclusion. The purpose of the article is to establish the problems of returning the lost cultural property that was illegally acquired by the Nazis during the Second World War and sold to museums, as well as to private collectors. Today, many of these works of art are owned by American collectors or museums. The descendants of repressed cultural figures who suffered from the Nazi regime demand the restoration of their rights, through the restitution of art artefacts or compensation for lost works of art.

Eve Tucker

Abstract Evelyn Tucker, a Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives (MFA&A) representative, worked in the US military–occupied zone of Austria, investigating and restituting Nazi-plundered, Austrian-owned cultural property between 1946 and 1949. Her experiences remain hidden despite passing references in the scholarship covering Allied restitution of Nazi-looted, Jewish-owned cultural property, as the literature focuses on postwar Germany, not Austria. She attempted to openly criticize the US Army for the thefts by blaming the Army’s appalling behavior on its lack of understanding US restitution efforts. However, she was incapable of stopping this gross negligence, and her condemnation of the Army led to her dismissal. I argue that contentious political divisions within the Allies’ policymaking in occupied Austria stalled Tucker’s restitution investigations, thus her work deserves critical investigation. Tucker defied expectations, and a thoughtful analysis of her contributions to the restitution process helps us gain a clearer appreciation of the political and cultural chaos of occupied Austria. In relationship to that gap, my archival research sheds light on the underappreciated role of Eve Tucker in her fight for rightful restitution.

Land Reform for a Landless Chief in South Africa: History and Land Restitution in KwaZulu-Natal

AbstractLand claims and contests have been central to the construction of political authority across the African continent. South Africa’s post-apartheid land reform program aims to address historical dispossessions, but the program has experienced numerous obstacles and limits—in terms of pace, communal land access, productivity, and rural class divides. Drawing on archival and newspaper sources, Kelly traces how the descendant of a colonially-appointed, landless chief manipulated a claim into a landed chieftaincy and how both the chief and the competing claimants have deployed histories of landlessness and firstcomer accounts in a manner distinct to the KwaZulu-Natal region as part of the land restitution process.

A Virtual Space Built on a Canvas Painting for an “Augmented” Experience to Catch the Artist’s Message

“Entering” a canvas to examine and learn about the work from unexplored points of view is an experiential “journey” in an environment reconstructed through the use and integration of innovative technologies, such as descriptive geometry and digital photogrammetry, solid modeling and immersive photography. Generating a “sense of presence” in the viewer means connecting it with immediacy to the artist’s message and grasping even the most subtle elements of the painting that are difficult to understand, such as architectural inconsistencies or the play of perspectives that, very often, bring out the situations scripted, characterized by discoveries that prelude to the aesthetic pleasure as the multiplicity of meanings and the “stylistic overcoding” of the work is revealed. The research hypotheses were applied to a case study, or to the splendid “Last Supper” by the Flemish artist Gaspar Hovic, a canvas painted in oil (late 15th century AD) and kept in the Matrice SM Veterana Church di Triggiano (BA), where the representation of the suggestive moment of Jesus with the Apostles is carried out through numerous symbols, in an evocative architectural context rich in details. The pictorial subject provides a series of very interesting ideas suitable for research of the role of perspective. The inverse method of linear perspective was used to reveal the plants and sections corresponding to the perspective space of the painting, used as the basis for the reconstruction of the 3D model of the entire scenic composition. Although the painting represents the apparently rigorous application of the perspective technique, by “entering” the canvas it is possible to observe some exceptions to the geometric rules deliberately introduced by the artist, thus making the perspective restitution process an effective interpretative act of the work.

A 3D REWORKING OF THE URBAN TRANSFORMATIONS OF PALERMO IN RECENT HISTORY FOR A HYPOTHESIS OF A "CITY MUSEUM" BASED ON DIGITAL VISUALIZATIONS

Abstract. The objective that drives this research is given by a multitude of information which, in addition to the contribution of technology, allows us to study, analyze, verify and remodel the sites, monuments and evolutions of the city through graphic processes of perspective restitution that start from the analysis of historical photos. The drawing methods, the digital graphic rendering and through the aid of geometric techniques, contribute to the reconstruction of projects and architectures that are now lost, this is possible thanks to the methods of perspective, axonometry and three-dimensional restitution.This remarkable photographic heritage belonging to Palermo, but also to any other city in the world that is sometimes not even considered in the least or that is even forgotten in archives today finds new life thanks to the perspective restitution. Shooting and photographic images following particular studies, allow us to precisely establish the observation points and the dimensions of architectures that have now disappeared, giving them new life through the transposition and reconstruction of the same within a “memory archive three-dimensional”.In order to describe the transformations of the city, both urban and architectural, we have taken as a case study an architecture that has now been lost in the city of Palermo: villa Rutelli. It was a neo-Gothic villa, built in the first twenty years of the twentieth century on the axis of Via Libertà and demolished in the 1960s along with other buildings of the Palermitan Liberty during the years of the infamous "sack of Palermo". Through the iconographic and archival research at the CRICD and the Bronzetti fund (photographer) and with the aid of research and cataloging studies, illustrative material emerged which was useful for reworking the particularities of the model through the perspective restitution.

Restitution: Paths Toward a Clearing

Restitution: Paths Toward a Clearing

The Financial Commitment of Repository Countries: A Key Element of Reparation

The Financial Commitment of Repository Countries: A Key Element of Reparation

Basic factors regarding land restitution in the face of forced displacement

This article analyzes the land restitution process, which is characterized by a systematic phenomenon of patrimonial loss suffered by victims in their property subject to registration. All of this, due to the modalities used by both natural persons and legal entities, linked to the effects of dispossession, together with the various consequences that are generated by such virtue, such as in cases of forced displacement to cities in Colombia. In this sense, it is possible to notice that initially this aspect is reflected in the peasant victims of violence, which through a diaspora phenomenon extends to all types of social phenomenon. Likewise, it is intended to identify, if from the phenomenon, the legal instruments are sufficient to demonstrate the responsibility of both natural and legal persons that are associated with the phenomenon of dispossession.