Judicial politics in new democracies : cases from Southern Africa / Peter VonDoepp.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

VonDoepp, Peter, 1967- author.

Series:

Challenge and change in African politics.

Challenge and Change in African Politics

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Justice, Administration of--Africa, Southern.

Justice, Administration of.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (199 p.)

Place of Publication:

Boulder, Colorado : Lynne Rienner Publishers, 2009.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

"That judicial institutions are important for emerging democracies leaves little (if any) room for debate. But to what extent do judiciaries in these new democracies maintain their autonomy? And what accounts for varying levels of autonomy across states? Drawing on the cases of Malawi, Zambia, and Namibia - and offering a novel analytical framework - Peter VonDoepp illuminates why power holders behave as they do toward the courts." "VonDoepp considers whether and why political leaders have respected or undermined judicial autonomy in each of the three cases. He also addresses how the courts themselves have shaped executive-judicial relations. His findings present unexpected challenges for existing frameworks, as well as important lessons about the factors and conditions affecting judicial development in transitional states."--BOOK JACKET.

Contents:

""Book Title""; ""Table of Contents""; ""List of Tables""; ""1-Democracy and Judicial Autonomy: Investigating the Southern African Cases""; ""Democracy, the Rule of Law, and Judiciaries in Africa""; ""Questions, Cases, and Methods""; ""Key Arguments and Overview""; ""Notes""; ""2-Understanding Government Choices: Judicial Politics in Theoretical Perspective""; ""Conceptualizing Judicial Autonomy""; ""Government-Judicial Relations in Theoretical Perspective""; ""A Framework for and Insight from the African Cases""; ""Judicial Behavior as an Area of Concern""; ""Notes""

""3-Neopatrimonial Politics and the Intimidation of the Courts in Zambia""""Legacy: The Judiciary and the First Two Republics""; ""The Courts and the Move to Multiparty Politics""; ""Politics and Judicial Development: The Chiluba Period""; ""Judicial Politics Under Mwanawasa""; ""Conclusion""; ""Notes""; ""4-Informal Ties, Threats, and the Problem of Judicial Control in Malawi""; ""Courts Under the Banda Dictatorship""; ""Political Transition and the New Role of the Courts""; ""Judicial Politics in Malawi�s First Democratic Decade""; ""Mutharika and the Bench""; ""Conclusion""; ""Notes""

""5-Party Dominance and Judicial Autonomy in Namibia""""Historical and Institutional Contexts""; ""Government-Judicial Relations in Independent Namibia""; ""Court Behavior""; ""Restraint and Respect: Namibia in Comparative Perspective""; ""Conclusion""; ""Notes""; ""6-Insights from the Southern African Cases""; ""The Limits of Thin Strategic Models""; ""Weak States and Neopatrimonial Politics""; ""The Judiciary as an Independent Variable""; ""Conclusion""; ""Notes""; ""References""; ""Index""; ""About the Book""

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

1-62637-109-1

OCLC:

1334343702