Introduction

The Research Ethics Committee (ResEthics) of the Faculty of Humanities has been instigated according to a dictate from the Senate Committee for Research Ethics and Integrity of the University of Pretoria. This committee has a twofold goal. In the first place, it is the function of ResEthics to ensure that all research in the Faculty of Humanities that utilises human subjects and/or informants is bound by specific ethical principles. The underlying rationale is to preserve and respect the rights, freedom and well-being of all people. ResEthics therefore acts to protect the community from where the human research subjects have been selected. ResEthics does not function in the place of the ethically conscious researcher, who must take the responsibility for his/her human subjects and/or informants and control group. Rather, ResEthics reminds all researchers in the humanities that there is a complex network of individuals and systems concerned with research undertakings. ResEthics therefore serves as a go-between in this network of people in order, where necessary, to exercise impartial adjudication of the execution of research. Secondly, ResEthics has a monitoring function in respect of generally accepted scientific principles that underlie all research. This function is performed with due circumspection throughout so that the integrity of departments, and the University, is not jeopardised.