Mutations of customary law and state law in the south of Mozambique: paths of hybridisation on gender and family matters

João Pedroso; Elisa Samuel Boerekamp; Carlos Fernandes; Virgílio  Pinto Augusto

doi:10.35295/osls.iisl/1972

Authors

João Pedroso Centro de Estudos Sociais da Universidade de Coimbra https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8956-2250
Elisa Samuel Boerekamp Centro de Formação Jurídica e Judiciária de Moçambique (CFJJ)
Carlos Fernandes Centro de Estudos Africanos da Universidade Eduardo Mondlane (CEA) https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2988-739X
Virgílio Pinto Augusto Instituto de investigação Sociocultural de Moçambique (ARPAC)

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.35295/osls.iisl/1972

Keywords:

legal pluralism, gender and family, customary law, state law, Mozambique

Abstract

This paper departs from the sociolegal study about the “Norms and Practices of local populations in Conflict Resolution and Access to Law and Justice”. Specifically, we will focus the Chókwè district, in the south of Mozambique, on the social space of the family, namely the paths of hybridisation on gender and family matters, in three main topics: the norms and practices in the family social space, pointing out the tensions between customary law and state law in a context of legal pluralism; the identification and analysis of the norms and practices and the main actors involved on this conflict resolution, by drawing a map of instances and their interactions; and different paths of hybridization between customary law and state law reflected on the practices related in the fieldwork. We argue that Chókwè reflects an emergence of a new Mozambican configuration of legal pluralism in family matters – a composed Local Law.

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Author Biographies

João Pedroso, Centro de Estudos Sociais da Universidade de Coimbra

João Pedroso has a Bsc degree in law (1983) and both Msc (2002) and a Ph.D. degree in Sociology of Law, the State and Administration (2013) from the University of Coimbra. He's an Assistant Professor with tenure, since 2013, at the Faculty of Economics of the University of Coimbra and a researcher at the Center for Social Studies (CES) from University of Coimbra, since 1992. As a scientific researcher, in 1986, he was granted a scholarship from the Council of Europe, in 1995, he was awarded with an ERASMUS scholarship from SciencePo Paris, and, in 1996, he was awarded with the Gulbenkian Prize for Social Sciences. He was a pioneer in the study of justice administration, specifically about the courts in contemporary societies (Pedroso, 1996) but also the judicial systems reforms, leading the way to an interdisciplinary approach between law and sociology regarding the transformation of justice. He participated in many research projects, and, since 2007, he has coordinated 7 research projects funded by FCT. The insight of how the judicial system and the courts operate has been an important topic of research, aiming to understand how law can be used to foster more democratic societies. He authors books and articles on law and sociology of law and has presented communications in national and international events.

Connected to his academic and scientific experience, his professional expertise allows him to have a wide knowledge about the political and judicial practices. He's a judge on unpaid leave, since 1990, and a Lawyer (from 1990 to 1995 and since 2003). Between 1996 and 2002, he was responsible for several public offices and coordinated several legislative reform commissions: chief of cabinet for the Labour Ministry (1996-2000), President of the Solidarity and Social Security Institute (2001) and chief of cabinet for the Prime-Minister (2001-2002). He was also Counsellor of the Superior Council of the Judiciary, elected by the Assembly of the Republic (2003/2005) and of the Consultative Council of Justice (2001).

Contact email: jpedroso@fe.uc.pt

Elisa Samuel Boerekamp, Centro de Formação Jurídica e Judiciária de Moçambique (CFJJ)

High Court Judge, Human rights and gender equality activist. Currently, Director of Centro de Formacao Juridica e Judiciaria-CFJJ- The Judicial Training Institute of Mozambique. As Director of the CFJJ she’s also Member of the advisory council of the Ministry of Justice. She’s the Executive Secretary of the Mozambican Judges Association and member of the advisory council of International Association for Court Administration- IACA. Prior to her appointment as the Head of the Judicial Training Institute she serves in various roles in the judiciary of Mozambique as Judge President of Judicial Districts Courts of Bilene-Macia and Machava in Maputo Provincial Court. Email: elisa@cfjj.gov.mz

Carlos Fernandes, Centro de Estudos Africanos da Universidade Eduardo Mondlane (CEA)

Assistant Researcher and Deputy Director for research and extension at CEA-UEM. He holds a PhD in African Studies from the Federal University of Bahia, Brazil. He was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of the Western Cape (2012-2013), the University of Fort Hare (2013-2014) both in South Africa, and the University of Basel in Switzerland (2014-2015). He has published articles in Identity & Culture, Kronos, Journal of Southern African Studies, Afro-Asia, Social Dynamics, American Historical Review, and Journal of African History. His research interests lie in the area of sociology of knowledge, intellectual history and social conditions of knowledge production in Africa (with special emphasis on Mozambique). Email: cfernandes@uem.mz

Virgílio Pinto Augusto, Instituto de investigação Sociocultural de Moçambique (ARPAC)

Instituto de investigação Sociocultural de Moçambique (ARPAC). Email: virgiliopinto2@gmail.com

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