scholarly journals An Agenda for Decolonising Law in Africa: Conceptualising the Curriculum

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Asikia Karibi-Whyte
Keyword(s):  
Legal System ◽  
Social Order ◽  
Social Behaviour ◽  
Political System ◽  
Social Engineering ◽  
Customary Law ◽  
African Countries ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Different Cultures ◽  
Behaviour Law

Decolonisation as a theory focus on challenging the colonial imperialist perspectives on Africa and Africans. It seeks to debunk hegemonic discourses on Africa by continually opposing and resisting those notions that cast Africans as primitive and backward.[1] Law permeates all realms of social behaviour; law is also a tool of social engineering. It is also a truism that society needs law to solve the problem of social order by protecting certain human interests.[2] Law in Africa has followed the standard and structure of the colonising powers (English, French, Spanish and Portugese) to the detriment of indigenous laws; though some African countries notably the English Speaking operate Legal Pluralism in order to include customary law. The decolonisation thesis is to jettison all that is colonial in the legal system; this idea may be laudable in principle. However, because Africa is bewildering in size with different cultures, language and political system, how will the curriculum be conceptualised. This paper therefore is an inquiry into conceptualising the Law in Africa curriculum, this becomes very necessary because it is a methodology against the experiences of insurgency against white hegemonic knowledge, social and intellectual domination.

What is to be done with African Customary Law?

1984 ◽  
Vol 28 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 56-71 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. N. Allott
Keyword(s):  
Customary Law ◽  
Law Reform ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Trace Back ◽  
Colonial Empire ◽  
Colonial Experience ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
British Colonial ◽  
Starting Date ◽  
Post War

What I should like to do today is to examine the evolution of customary law in English-speaking Africa over the last three decades. I have chosen my starting date of 1950 with a clear intention in view; because the developments that we observe currently taking place often find their origins in the colonial period. They do this in two ways. First, the laws which the African countries inherited at independence had been crucially shaped by the colonial experience; and secondly, some of the projects of law reform which have either taken place or are now under discussion trace back to initiatives and discussions which occurred during the latter part of colonial rule. There is a further factor: quite apart from conscious efforts to analyse and change the laws, the laws themselves, of whatever kind, have been exposed to the forces of economic, political and social change, which are continually working away below the surface, sapping the foundations of the existing legal systems.My own qualifications for this task I do not feel that I should dwell on. However, it is worth remarking, as symptomatic of the profound upheavals which have occurred within the period, that I was appointed to the first post in Britain of lecturer in African law in 1948. This was the period of the immediate post-war reconstruction of the British colonial empire in Africa. Things were not the same as they had been up to the Allied victory in 1945.

Early European Influences on Tswana Law

1987 ◽  
Vol 31 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 151-160 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. Schapera
Keyword(s):  
Legal System ◽  
Central Government ◽  
Government Control ◽  
Intensive Study ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Inaugural Lecture ◽  
Western Law ◽  
Local Courts ◽  
The Republic ◽  
The Impact

In the closing paragraph of his inaugural lecture Law and Language, Professor Allott referred to what he termed “a daunting obstacle” to the intensive study of African legal systems.That obstacle is the rapid disappearance, before our very eyes, of the traditional systems that we have proposed to study. A generation ago there would not have been that difficulty; but today the traditional tribunals have vanished in many African countries where their place has been taken by statutory local courts. Even where the traditional courts appear to have survived, at least in name, they are usually affected by the impact of western law and institutions and of central government control.Those words were written in 1965. How true and necessary they were is shown by the fact that more than fifty years previously—even more than “a generation ago”—the impact of “western” influences upon the Tswana peoples of the Bechuanaland Protectorate (now the Republic of Botswana) had already led to many changes in the indigenous legal system, although, at that time, the “traditional courts” still survived virtually intact and not merely “in name”.The nature and extent of those changes can be readily ascertained by the fortunate chance that, there are still available the records of approximately 470 cases tried, over a period of six and a half years, in the highest traditional court of the Ngwaketse, a major Tswana chiefdom.

scholarly journals Historical evolution of the judicial system of Ancient Russia in the aspect of customary law

2021 ◽  
pp. 126-131
Author(s):  
Nan Gong ◽  
I. I. Fedorov
Keyword(s):  
Coercive Force ◽  
Legal System ◽  
The State ◽  
Judicial System ◽  
Customary Law ◽  
Positive Law ◽  
Feudal Society ◽  
Self Defense ◽  
Primitive Society ◽  
The Social

The formation of the Russian procedural legal system is closely connected with its unique historical evolution. Russian Russian culture According to the Norman theory of the origin of the Russian nation, the Scandinavian culture is the most important source of early Russian culture. During the chaotic period of the tribe at the stage of primitive society, the Norman Varian was invited to Russia to reconcile the tribes of Russia and manage them, and this brought the Germanic custom to regulate the socio-economic and legal relations of various tribes. Since the formation of the ancient state of Russia, the ruling class has constantly strengthened the drafting of new laws and regulations, but customary law still dominates the legal system of the state. At the same time, ordinary norms in the system of customary law as a quasi-legal norm between morality and law have become an integral organic component of social customs and norms at all stages of Russian social development.During the period of Ancient Russia, the common custom of the Slavic people and the Norman Customary Law had a profound impact on the social life of ancient Russia. From the beginning of the 9th to the 17th century, customary law existed as the main legal source for regulating social relations in the late period of the development of Russian primitive society and in the earlier time of feudal society. His coercive force was based on the conviction that was widespread in the social community during this period, that is, "existing customs denote a reasonable basis". With the formation of the East Slavic state, the rulers began to work on drafting new legal norms, but inheritance is still mainly based on customs based on the clan system. As a result, as a rule of conduct recognized and guaranteed by the state, traditional customs gradually acquired a legal nature, and after that, positive law was formed. "Russkaya Pravda" is the most representative legal collection in the early years of the Russian feudal society, "The Truth of Ross", which was compiled according to the customs of the Eastern Slavs, and is the very fi rst positive law of ancient Russia.Before the appearance of formal law, customary law always played a role and coercive force as legislation, but the self-defense and insane methods of revenge obtained from it also caused social unrest. In order to stop personal self-defense and self-arbitrariness, as well as to strengthen ties between different regions, it is necessary to use the power of common law to unite the Principality into a whole. Although the new law does not exclude the original good customary norms, if there are no necessary penalties for violations, it will be destructive for the law. Therefore, it is necessary to give customary law a legal meaning and a compelling force, without changing the existing content of customary law.I must say that the German customs and the traditional customs of the Slavic people are intertwined in the historical codifi cation of Russian procedural law, forming a unique historical path of development of the procedural legal system of ancient Russia. Although national customs were recognized by the state in the form of positive law with the help of " Russian Truth”, and became the norm of justice and social norm on the basis of the guarantee of national coercive force, but this did not change the essence of customary law, but the form of positive law was given to it. As the modernization of the Russian judicial system moves into modern times, generations of legislators and lawyers are focusing on the study of national legal traditions and history, trying to discover the natural laws governing the development of the Russian legal system, and are constantly trying to make progress in the modern and modern process of judicial reform. The harmony of legislation, the borrowing of laws and national customs to a certain extent ensured a reasonable adjustment of national laws and norms of customary law.

scholarly journals Communication Challenges for Foreign Students Studying in English in a Non-English Academic Environment

2019 ◽  
Vol 86 ◽  
pp. 56-67
Author(s):  
Beata Grebliauskienė
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Students ◽  
Cultural Backgrounds ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Global Industry ◽  
Academic Achievements ◽  
Study Programs ◽  
Communication Challenges ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Different Cultures ◽  
Research Show

Recently, education has become a global industry driven by students who have decided to study abroad. Trends show that more and more students choose to study at universities abroad for one reason or another. The growing number of international students also means a growing number of different cultures in a classroom. Cultural diversity is a highly complex phenomenon that influences the process of learning and teaching with its elements and has both positive and negative effects.The challenges faced by students with different cultural backgrounds, their impact on learning processes and academic achievements are of interest to researchers. But it should be noted that this type of research is mostly carried out in universities, where both local and foreign students study in the same language and operate in the same linguistic and cultural environment. However, an increasing number of universities operating in a local cultural and linguistic environment offer study programs abroad (mostly in English). And these organizations, as far as foreign students, face unique problems.The results of the qualitative research show that foreign students studying in such programs face both similar andunique challenges compared to studies in universities in English-speaking countries.

Community Values, Domestic Tranquility, and Customary Law in Upper Volta

1978 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 295-310 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carol Bohmer
Keyword(s):  
Legal System ◽  
Customary Law ◽  
Community Values ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
Upper Volta

The theme of this article is the decline of customary law in Upper Volta where, like most countries in Africa, customary courts operate side by side with the modern, ex-colonial legal system.1 My study of Le Tribunal de Premier Instance in Bobodioulasso suggests that customary courts may not in fact apply customary law. An examination of the criteria and the process by which decisions are reached here may help us to gain an insight into the function the Court serves for the community.

Adats and Rituals Related to Blood Feuds the Peoples of Mountainous Dagestan (19th — Early 20th Century)

Istoriya ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (10 (108)) ◽  
pp. 0
Author(s):  
Gimbatova Madina
Keyword(s):  
20Th Century ◽  
Political System ◽  
Legal Pluralism ◽  
Russian Empire ◽  
Customary Law ◽  
Early 20Th Century ◽  
Cultural Reconstruction ◽  
Historical Comparative ◽  
The Russian Empire ◽  
Legal Consequences

The article is devoted to one of the most common, and currently almost disappeared custom of blood feud. The authors aim to characterize the adats and rituals associated with blood feuds among the peoples of mountainous Dagestan in the 19th — early 20th century. The research is based on historical-comparative, historical-typological methods and the principle of historical-cultural reconstruction. The chronological framework of the study covers the 19th — early 20th century. This is the period of legal pluralism in Dagestan, when the norms of customary law (adats), Sharia and the laws of the Russian Empire were in force in the mountains.The reasons for the occurrence of blood feuds, adats regulating the legal consequences of murder, as well as the rites of reconciliation of blood relatives are identified and investigated. It is established that in Dagestan, due to the specific features of the socio-economic and political system, such types of criminal punishment as deprivation of liberty, execution, corporal and degrading measures of influence did not arise for the murder of a person. The results of the study can be used by employees of education and culture to familiarize the younger generation with the legal experience of their ancestors.

Scientific Publishing in English for Non-English-Speaking Academicians

2019 ◽  
pp. 278-294
Author(s):  
Eda Başak Hancı-Azizoglu
Keyword(s):  
Data Sets ◽  
Academic English ◽  
Scientific Publishing ◽  
Anglo Saxon ◽  
Lingua Franca ◽  
Significant Challenge ◽  
Scientific World ◽  
The World ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Different Cultures

The majority of scientific research in the world is published in English. The chapter expands the discussion on English as a lingua franca a step further to initiate a discussion on English as a scientific lingua franca. English as a scientific lingua franca poses a significant challenge for the non-Anglo-Saxon scholars by disregarding their data sets and research unless the research is written in academic English with culturally determined rhetorical conventions. This chapter investigates why different cultures have tendencies to write in culturally affected writing styles and forms. Toward that end, the chapter shows how the failure to give proper attention to other rhetorical styles results in losing crucial intellectual information from the non-Anglo-Saxon scholars. With this in mind, the chapter offers short-term solutions for academicians to join in the scientific world despite possible language barriers.

Using Electronic Payment Programs as an Anti-Corruption Strategy in Africa

2020 ◽  
pp. 153-172
Author(s):  
Olayemi Abdullateef Aliyu ◽  
Chris Niyi Arasanmi ◽  
Samuel M. Ekundayo
Keyword(s):  
Complex Nature ◽  
Extensive Literature ◽  
Electronic Payment ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Primary Focus ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Different Cultures ◽  
Alternative Solutions ◽  
Public Revenues

The theft of public revenues is a daily ethical failing associated with corruption in African countries. Yet many government sectors and agencies in Africa have failed to use ICTs to create the required culture of transparency. What do recent literature and empirical research findings reveal about solutions to these problems? Thus, the primary focus of this chapter is to conduct an extensive literature review on how electronic payment programs can be used as an anti-corruption strategy in Africa. Given the complex nature of corruption, the focus in this proposed chapter is to understand how other developing countries like Malaysia have successfully used electronic payment programs to reduce corruption and improve national accountability. A critical review of the observed ambiguity in the contemporary definition of corruption from different cultures in Africa will be reviewed. The ambiguity of the true commitment of African power elites in fighting corruption will also be examined with alternative solutions from existing literature.

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