Power and privilege in the administration of law : land law reforms and social differentiation in Cameroon

The objective of this study is to determine to what extent the land law reform which was implemented in Cameroon in 1974 caused dislocations of local norms, and to what extent it gave the State better control and management of land. More specifically, the author's aim is to examine how different categories of people reacted to the land reforms, and how the new laws have affected other normative and value systems that governed land tenure before the reform. The study focuses on North-West Province (NWP), but a comparison is made with South-West Province (SWP). After a survey of the evolution of land law reforms in Cameroon, the author deals with land use practices in NWP, the responses of different groups to the 1974 land reform, situations of legal pluralism, the role of the State elite in land tenure reforms, the responses of businessmen, the traditional elite, women and peasants, and land registration trends in SWP as compared with those in NWP. In conclusion, the author assesses the value of such theoretical concepts as 'legal pluralism' and 'semi-autonomous social fields' for the subject studie

Palm tree justice in the Bertoua court of appeal : the witchcraft cases

This paper examines thirty witchcraft cases reviewed by the Court of Appeal of Bertoua (East Province, Cameroon) during the period 1981-1984. The basic aim is to highlight the nature and sources of witchcraft accusations, the process of securing a conviction (i.e. proof), and finally, the magnitude of punishment meted out on sentencing. These issues are crystallized by a number of questions: Who initiates a witchcraft accusation and under what circumstances is such an accusation initiated? How do the modern courts establish proof in witchcraft accusations? What role does a witch doctor/diviner play in witchcraft proceedings? Are the modern State courts well suited to judge issues whose manifestations are strictly outside the limits of observable phenomena? A close review of the thirty cases shows that witchcraft accusations can be loosely classified into five main groups, according to their sources: village unrest and menace to State institutions; jealousy and hatred; quest for power; mystical cannibalism and irresistible impulses; and malpractices by witch doctors. The review is preceded by a brief survey of the colonial legacy on witchcraft and allied phenomena