Local justice in southern Sudan / Cherry Leonardi [and others].

Format:

Book

Government document

Contributor:

Leonardi, Cherry

United States Institute of Peace

Rift Valley Institute

Series:

Peaceworks ; no. 66.

Peaceworks ; no. 66

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Justice, Administration of--Sudan.

Justice, Administration of.

Customary law--Sudan.

Customary law.

Courts--Sudan.

Courts.

Conflict management--Sudan.

Conflict management.

Sudan.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (94 pages) : illustrations.

Place of Publication:

Washington, D.C. : U.S. Institute of Peace, ©2010.

Summary:

This report analyzes the current justice system in Southern Sudan, focusing on the relationship between customary chiefs' courts and government courts and the ways that litigants navigate both types of courts in practice. Based on extensive interviews with litigants, chiefs, and court officials, the report argues that the line between chiefs' and government courts is blurred and that litigants prize the system's hybridity and flexibility, as they often seek restorative and consensual dispute resolution over retribution. The report's analysis suggests that current justice reform efforts, aiming at stricter jurisdictional limitations and the ascertainment of customary law, may reduce litigants' abilities to achieve the justice they want, undermine fairness, and exacerbate local conflict. Interventions should keep the current system's flexibility intact and focus on long-term education and information efforts. Where such knowledge resources are available, there is evidence that individual litigants deploy them in their disputes and cases, contributing to the gradual processes of change that the flexibility of local justice engenders.

Contents:

Introduction. Project context

Project objectives and methodology

Research sites

Research findings. Courts, chiefs, and customary law

Step by step : the processes and culture of dispute resolution

Local perceptions of the justice system

Choices of forum

Alternative sources of resolution and mediation

Areas of concern or conflict

Implications and recommendations. The current status of local justice

The question of recording customary law

Criminal justice

Human rights and local justice

Priorities for reform

Conclusion.

Notes:

Title from title screen (viewed on Oct. 7, 2010).

"October 2010"--Page [1].

"A joint project of: United States Institute of Peace, Rift Valley Institute"--Cover.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 89-91).

OCLC:

669049623