THE PEOPLES’ LAW: TOWARD A NEW COMMON LAW FOR AFRICANS

Abstract

Law on the African continent draws from both indigenous, customary sources and from the legal norms and conventions brought to the continent by outsiders, principally colonial settlers. Historically however, customary African laws have been subordinated to the legal systems introduced through colonisation. The author argues in favour of achieving a better balance between these two sources of law in which customary law is, in future, shown more deference than it has been shown to date. Such reforms would make the array of applicable laws within Africa clearer and more comprehensible and, as well, bring law on the continent into closer conformity with citizens’ lived experience.