The DOI matches its Crossref record; 13 of the 13 references it cites were found in a registry or an index; none of the 101 sources its claims cite is checked for support yet.
African Customary Law, Customs, and Women's Rights
Open accessAbstract
The sources of law in most African countries are customary law, the common law and legislation both colonial and post-independence. In a typical African country, the great majority of the people conduct their personal activities in accordance with and subject to customary law. Customary law has great impact in the area of personal law in regard to matters such as marriage, inheritance and traditional authority, and because it developed in an era dominated by patriarchy some of its norms conflict with human rights norms guaranteeing equality between men and women. While recognizing the role of legislation in reform, it is argued that the courts have an important role to play in ensuring that customary law is reformed and developed to ensure that it conforms to human rights norms and contributes to the promotion of equality between men and women. The guiding principle should be that customary law is living law and cannot therefore be static. It must be interpreted to take account of the lived experiences of the people it serves.\nHuman Rights and Legal Systems Across the Global South, Symposium, Indiana University Maurer School of Law, Bloomington, Indiana. 9-10 April 2010.
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Claims the paper makes
81 Sources not found · 24 Own interpretation · 7 Own result · 5 No basis given · 3 Not checked yet
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In the paper
“In Ghana, faced with similar problems, the courts have shown flexibility and readiness to nullify customary norms that discriminate against women.”
boosted- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
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In the paper
“Judges interpreted this situation as permitting the application of provisions of customary law that discriminated against women.”
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None of the sources cited for this claim could be matched to a paper in Crossref, so there is nothing to check it against.
In the paper
“The fact that the postdemocratization constitutions do not immunize customary law against scrutiny based on human rights norms is very significant for women's rights because customary law embodies and underpins customs and traditions that discriminate against women.”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [55]
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
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plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
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In the paper
“Judges are increasingly asserting the supremacy of human rights norms and declaring customary discriminatory norms unconstitutional or invalid and inapplicable in modern society.”
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In the paper
“For decades, decisions by African courts took a static view of customary law and did little to mitigate its discriminatory operation against women.69”
What the sources say
- Not matchedcites [69]
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plain- Asserted: passes — The authors put it forward as true.
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In the paper
§ 107. (2005) eKLR.
“145.2009 (2) SA 66 (CC) T 54.”
§ 166. Id. 172.
“150.2008 (2) SA 66 (CC) 44-49.”
Rated minor: it would not touch a result — a value no result rests on, a p-value that stays on the same side of the significance level, or a conflict that is clerical, resolved elsewhere in the paper, or outside its own findings.
In the paper
§ II. EMERGING JURISPRUDENCE IN THE ERA OF HUMAN RIGHTS
“A similar approach can be found in the 1985 Uganda Constitution, which in article 33 provides that”
§ 53.
“56.CONSTITUTION OF THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA 1995, ch. 4, art.33.”
Citations
Cites
African Values and the Human Rights Debate: An African Perspective
Cobbah, J. (1987) · Human Rights Quarterly · doi:10.2307/761878 · Cited by 265
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
(1977) · Bulletin of Peace Proposals · doi:10.1177/096701067700800313 · Cited by 179
The Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa
Ocran, C. (2007) · African Journal of International and Comparative Law · doi:10.3366/ajicl.2007.15.1.147 · Cited by 123
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
(2003) · doi:10.1163/9789004502994_112 · Cited by 44
Fourth World Conference on Women, 1995
Shaw, D. J. (2007) · Palgrave Macmillan UK eBooks · doi:10.1057/9780230589780_34 · Cited by 43
Allott, A. N. (1970) · Medical Entomology and Zoology · Cited by 37
Palmer, V. V., & Poulter, S. M. (1974) · Verfassung in Recht und Übersee · doi:10.5771/0506-7286-1974-1-102 · Cited by 24
Mwambene, L. (2010) · UWC Research Repository (University of the Western Cape) · Cited by 17
A “Woman to Woman” Marriage and the Repugnancy Clause: A Case of Putting New Wine into Old Bottles
Akpamgbo, C. O. (1977) · The Journal of Legal Pluralism and Unofficial Law · doi:10.1080/07329113.1977.10756234 · Cited by 8
Death African Style: The Case of S. M. Otieno
Doren, J. W. V. (1988) · The American Journal of Comparative Law · doi:10.2307/840412 · Cited by 8
Widows under Zambian customary law and the response of the courts
Ndulo, M. B. (1985) · Comparative and International Law Journal of Southern Africa · Cited by 4
Ndulo, M. B. (1984) · Medical Entomology and Zoology · Cited by 4
Church, W. L. (1974) · Zambia law journal · Cited by 2
Research works printed but not linked: 1
- [6]6. Press Release, Southern African Development Community (SADC), SADC Heads of State and Government Sign the SADC Protocol on Gender and Development (August 2008), available at http://www.safaids.net/content/sade-heads-state-and-government-sign- sadc-protocol-gender-and-development (click "Mediate Release on the SADC Gender Protocol.doc"); SADC, Protocol on Gender and Development, Aug. 17, 2008, available at www.sadc.int/attachment/download/file/247.
Cited by
Renzaho, A. M. N. (2020) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph17103445 · Cited by 115
“In addition, there is a coexistence of common law and customary law [59].”
BackgroundAnderson, S. (2018) · American Economic Review · doi:10.1257/aer.20151047 · Cited by 101
“It varied by colony how integrated the “native” courts were with the statutory courts (Ellovich 1985, Ndulo 2011, Musembi 2007).”
BackgroundTackling Legal Impediments to Women’s Economic Empowerment
Puh, K. C., Yiadom, A., Johnson, J. E., et al. (2022) · IMF Working Paper · doi:10.5089/9798400203640.001 · Cited by 64
To “Mother” or not to “Mother”: The Representative Roles of Women Judges in Ghana
Dawuni, J. J. (2016) · Journal of African Law · doi:10.1017/s0021855316000115 · Cited by 51
Empowering Women: Legal Rights and Economic Opportunities in Africa
Hallward-Driemeier, M., & Hasan, T. (2012) · doi:10.1596/978-0-8213-9533-2 · Cited by 47
Metadata
- Authors
- Ndulo
- Affiliations
- Indiana University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Ndulo
- Venue
- Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies
- Publisher
- Indiana University Press
- Published
- 2011
- Volume
- 18
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 87
- ISSN
- 1080-0727 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2001975792
- Cited by
- 170
- References
- 13
- Citations by year
- 2026: 22 · 2025: 17 · 2024: 15 · 2023: 8 · 2022: 12 · 2021: 16 · 2020: 15 · 2019: 27 · 2018: 12 · 2017: 5 · 2016: 6 · 2015: 3 · 2014: 5 · 2013: 4 · 2012: 2
- FWCI
- 51.51
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- scholarworks.iu.edu
- Locations
- Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies (publishedVersion)
- Indiana Magazine of History (Indiana University) (submittedVersion)
- Project Muse (Johns Hopkins University) (submittedVersion)
- Scholarship @ Cornell Law (Cornell University) (submittedVersion)
- bepress Legal Repository (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Law › Indigenous Peoples' Rights and Law
- Social Sciences › Law › Family and Matrimonial Law
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Multicultural Socio-Legal Studies
- Keywords
- African customary law, women's rights, gender equality, patriarchy, customary law reform, personal law, marriage, inheritance, traditional authority, human rights standards, living law
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