This book offers a historical analysis of the embattled structures of rural local governance in South Africa, with specific reference to the role of traditional authorities in Xhalanga in the... Show moreThis book offers a historical analysis of the embattled structures of rural local governance in South Africa, with specific reference to the role of traditional authorities in Xhalanga in the Eastern Cape. More specifically, the book illustrates how at least in the Xhalanga district chieftainship was contested from the establishment of the district in 1865 to the advent of democracy in South Africa. Two related themes are addressed: the question of the survival of traditional authorities up to the postcolonial/apartheid era and the question of how traditional authorities derive their authority and legitimacy. The book shows that the survival of traditional authorities can be linked directly to their control of the land allocation process, rather than popular support. The issue of the legitimacy of traditional authorities, especially in a democracy, is investigated against the background of the tension in the 1993 Interim Constitution and the 1996 Constitution, which recognized the institution of traditional leadership. These constitutions, along with emerging post-1994 legislation, advocated a form of democracy that was based on the liberal principles of representation at all levels of government, including local government, while, at the same time, recognizing a hereditary institution of traditional leadership for rural residents. [ASC Leiden abstract]. Show less
The papers included in this volume were earlier presented at a conference on the settlement of land claims in Africa, which was held in Amsterdam in September 2003. The papers are written... Show moreThe papers included in this volume were earlier presented at a conference on the settlement of land claims in Africa, which was held in Amsterdam in September 2003. The papers are written primarily from an anthropological perspective. Contributions: Introduction: competing jurisdictions: settling land claims in Africa, including Madagascar (Sandra Evers, Marja Spierenburg and Harry Wels); Communal tenure 'from above' and 'from below': land rights, authority and livelihoods in rural South Africa (Ben Cousins and Aninka Claassens); Land tenure reform in South Africa: a focus on the Moravian Church land in the Western Cape (Lungisile Ntsebeza); Contestation, confusion and corruption: market-based land reform in Zambia (Taylor Brown); 'We fought the war to return to the old ways': conflicts about land reforms in Dande, northern Zimbabwe (Marja Spierenburg); Fractionating local leadership: created authority and management of State land in Zimbabwe (Bill H. Kinsey); First-comers and late-comers: the role of narratives in land claims (Carola Lentz); State formation, access to the commons and autochthony among the Berbers of the Middle Atlas, Morocco (Bernhard Venema); Land and the politics of identity: the case of Anywaa-Nuer relations in the Gambella region (Dereje Feyissa); Trumping the ancestors: the challenges of implementing a land registration system in Madagascar (Sandra Evers); The struggle for land rights in the context of multiple normative orders in Tanzania (Rie Odgaard); Traditional additional authorities in Uganda and the management of legislatively decentralised forest resources (Frank Emmanuel Muhereza); Participative approaches and decentralized management of the Samori forest in the Baye municipality, Mopti region (Mali) (Br‚hima Kassibo); Insiders out: forest access through village chiefs in Senegal (Sagane Thiaw and Jesse C. Ribot); Fighting over crumbs? : small valleys in West Africa as a new locus of land claims (Mayke Kaag). [ASC Leiden abstract]. Show less
This thesis gives an overview of the Maasai livestock economy as it has developed between 1890 and 1990. Particularly, it analyses the processes and policies of land use and landownership of the... Show moreThis thesis gives an overview of the Maasai livestock economy as it has developed between 1890 and 1990. Particularly, it analyses the processes and policies of land use and landownership of the Maasai pastoral areas in Kajiado district, Kenya, from the arrival of the Europeans until the recent massive individualization of land tenure. The loss of grazing pastures due to increased cultivation, the establishment of game parks and mineral exploitation is said to undermine the livestock economy of Maasai pastoralists in Kajiado district. Furthermore, the recent subdivision of group ranches into too small individual holdings, it is feared, will result in the selling of land to outsiders. This study examines the outcome of this process as well as the Maasai response of economic intensification and diversification, including increasing the productivity of the herd, cultivation, wage employment, outmigration, etc. Fieldwork for the study was carried out in 1988-1989. Show less
Pendant l'année 1982 et une partie de l'année 1983 l'auteur a effectué une recherche au Sénégal avec la collaboration de M. Sypkens Smit, anthropologue. Le thème central de la recherche était l... Show morePendant l'année 1982 et une partie de l'année 1983 l'auteur a effectué une recherche au Sénégal avec la collaboration de M. Sypkens Smit, anthropologue. Le thème central de la recherche était l'interaction entre les différents systèmes de droit foncier. Le présent rapport relate la phase préparatoire de la recherche, ainsi que les activités des deux chercheurs sur le terrain, en Basse Casamance. Le chapitre sur "Les aspects anthropologiques du droit foncier: le cas d'un village diola" est de la main de M. Sypkens Smit. Show less
