“Advancing the Rule of Law in East Africa: Overcoming Barriers” by Brian Dennison
This paper is a spoken word transcript of a presentation made by the author at Regent Law School’s 3rd Annual Symposium of the Center for Global Justice. The theme of the symposium was “Advancing the Rule of Law in East Africa.”
This paper addresses the topic of barriers to advancing the rule of formal law in Uganda. The content of the presentation is based largely on experiences working at at Ugandan law school and seeking to address various legal challenges through the operation of a clinical legal education program at the law school. The presentation was offered as part of a three member panel discussion entitled “Advancing the Rule of Law in East Africa: Overcoming Barriers.”
The paper addresses eight barriers: 1) the difficulties caused by the existence and use of variety of indigenous languages in the context of a formal legal system that operates in English; 2) the challenges arising out of a lack of resources to build the capacity of the formal legal system and for citizens to afford to access the formal legal system; 3) the ongoing repercussions of a colonial heritage on the development of a post-colonial legal system; 4) the strains arising out of a deeply pluralistic legal context; 5) the legal challenges related to an underdeveloped common law system that has yet to fill in gaps and legal applications through published legal opinions; 6) the impact on the legitimacy and functioning of the formal legal system caused by the prevalence of corruption and the ubiquity of petty bribery; and 7) the problems that arise from ongoing cultural practices that are not aligned with universal human rights and the formal law.
The paper offers a concise and practical introduction to these carried challenges along with ideas and proposals that can address these challenges in ways that build the rule of law within the Ugandan context. The paper provides the reader with insights on cross cultural legal challenges that a Westerner might encounter when seeking to advance the rule of law in Uganda or in a similar majority world context.
Suggested Citation: Dennison, David, Advancing the Rule of Law in East Africa: Overcoming Barriers (Febrary 22, 2013). Regent Journal of Global Justice and Public Policy, Vol. 1, page 115-122 (2014), Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2645805