Wastell, Sari. 2007. When is Law and Custom not Customary Law? Journal of the Finnish Anthropological Society, 32(2), pp. 71-84. ISSN 03553930 [Article]

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Abstract or Description

This study endeavours to re-think debates about the competing values of ‘tradition’ and ‘modernity’ in Swazi law (and politics) by considering the extent to which the characterisation of the Swazi legal system as ‘dual’ is an apt description of the state of affairs. While the country seems to exhibit a straightforward instance of post-colonial, state-law pluralism, where both a ‘received’ and ‘customary’ code of law obtain, the paper will argue against this assessment. by suggesting that what Swazis term ‘Swazi law and custom’ cannot be equated with what Swazi statute understands as the ‘customary law’, the article hopes to suggest the need for a similar re-consideration of the term ‘tradition’ in Swazi political debate.

Item Type:	Article
Departments, Centres and Research Units:	Anthropology
Dates:	Date Event 1 August 2007 Published
Item ID:	715
Date Deposited:	12 Mar 2009 15:41
Last Modified:	07 Dec 2012 12:50
Peer Reviewed:	Yes, this version has been peer-reviewed.
URI:	https://research.gold.ac.uk/id/eprint/715

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