African Customary Law In South Africa

African Customary Law in South Africa: Post-Apartheid and Living Law Perspectives provides a clear introduction to indigenous law in South Africa. The text provides a structure for understanding the nature and overarching system of customary law, illustrating its distinctness in relation to other areas of law, and exploring the dynamic precepts and values of living customary law. The text suggests an approach which supports harmonisation of customary law precepts and values with the common law and Western constitutional jurisprudence, and offers an authentic, culturally sensitive framework within which contentious issues might be resolved. The text is pedagogically designed to assist learning and the development of academic skills, encouraging readers to develop an approach of independent enquiry and analysis. This text is suited as core course material for students who are studying African Customary Law, Indigenous Law, or Legal Diversity as a module of the LLB degree. It also serves as a useful first reference for scholars who are interested in this field of law, legal practitioners, magistrates and judges. The following teaching resources complement the text, and are available to lecturers, to support teaching and learning: PowerPoint slide presentation Application questions

This book promotes discussion and understanding of customary law and explores its continued relevance in sub-Saharan Africa. It considers the characteristics of customary law and efforts to ascertain and codify customary law, and how this body of law differs in content, form and status from legislation and common law.

Reprint of the 1995 edition with 1999 addendum.

The position of customary law in the South African legal system has been much improved since the enactment of the new Constitution. As a constitutionally protected cultural heritage, customary law now enjoys a status equal to that of Roman-Dutch law. By drawing on a range of materials, both legal and and anthropological, from South Africa and elsewhere in Africa, this book provides a comprehensive account of the major branches of customary law: marriage, divorce, succession, children, courts and procedures, tradtional leadership, land tenure and the conflict of laws. Constant reference is made to the tensions generated by conflict between the Bill of Rights and the African legal tradition. The book also explores the complex nature of customary law, which exists in oral traditions, in codes, precedents and academic texts and, above all, in the system of living norms that regulate the everyday lives of the great majority of South Africans.

The author is a Don at the School of Law, University of Nairobi Kenya and a development consultant with various NGOs and other international bodies in Eastern Africa region and Italy. He is a researcher and writer of articles and texts on matters concerning law and culture. Dr. Onyango is an expert in modern legal science with wide knowledge of law ranging from comparative legal system, international public law, ethics, philosophy, theology, sociology, mass media and social realities today. He is currently teaching Social Foundations of Law, Customary Law, International Public Law and International Relations at the University of Nairobi and he is a part-time lecturer at St. Pauls University. Among his publication are Cultural Gap and Economic Crisis in Africa and, Dholuo Grammar for Beginners.

African Customary Law in South Africa: Post-Apartheid and Living Law Perspectives provides a clear introduction to indigenous law in South Africa. The text provides a structure for understanding the nature and overarching system of customary law, illustrating its distinctness in relation to other areas of law, and exploring the dynamic precepts and values of living customary law. The text suggests an approach which supports harmonisation of customary law precepts and values with the common law and with Western constitutional jurisprudence, and offers an authentic, culturally sensitive framework within which contentious issues might be resolved. The text is pedagogically designed to assist learning and the development of academic skills, encouraging readers to develop an approach of independent enquiry and analysis.