Indigenous justice systems and the administration of justice in Uganda: a study of Karamoja region
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The Karamoja region has had its own unique history underpinned by the way the region has been marginalised administratively from colonial times. The formal structures of administering justice and ensuring social order have therefore not taken root. This has left the region in a situation that has substantially remained untouched by modern development leaving most of the modem structures unknown and to a large extent unworkable to this area. The indigenous or traditional judicial or dispute resolution systems still need to be explored in order to assess their workability, and evolve ways in which they can be drafted into the legal system and let to work in tandem with the formal judicial system. The aim of this research paper therefore is to retrieve African traditional judicial practices using the Karamoja system as a veritable model for justice. The study specifically focuses on the districts of Kotido and Nakapiripirit in Karamoja region. The first chapter presents the administrative hiccups in a historical fashion. The chapter examines the functioning of formal and indigenous/traditional judicial structures in Karamoja region. The chapter also spells out the methodology employed in the research which was mainly exploratory and analytical and the data was collected through key informant interviews, Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) aided by an interview guide and observation. Chapter two contains the theoretical and socio-legal aspects of the administration of indigenous justice through an examination of relevant archival sources. The key findings of this research which are contained in chapter three and four revealed that the formal justice institution is faced with administrative and structural impediments coupled by its being ignored and shunned in favour of a robust, accessible, and respected and recognised traditional mechanism, which employ satisfactory restorative and restitutive approaches in their administration of justice. These findings are analysed in light of the various philosophical and scholarly works related to the subject under inquiry. Chapter five of this research makes recommendations including but not limited to formal recognition of the role of indigenous mechanisms within the broader framework of the judicial system, and redefining the role of the police in the context of both the formal and informal judicial structures. The study also recommends the building of confidence in the formal structures through a phased approach that engenders progressive appreciation of the functioning of the formal structures, and embracing pluralist and relativist philosophies within the administration of justice to give room for preservation and promotion of indigenous values. The study recommends the redefinition of the functioning of state structures by paying heed to the enduring heritages and the emergence of strong voices that are in favour of re-activating traditional mechanisms to deal with impunity, conflict and crime in failed states.
Keywords
Customary law courts - Karamoja District, Common law - Reception - Karamoja District, Justice administration