Rethinking Shangwe Traditional Philosophy in Resolving Agrarian Conflicts in Contemporary Gokwe Communities

In Mbih Jerome Tosam & Erasmus Masitera (eds.), African Agrarian Philosophy. Springer Verlag. pp. 375-391 (2023)
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Abstract

Agrarian disputes and contestations have culminated into a plethora of far-reaching developmental challenges in Shangwe communities. It is unfortunate that these agrarian conflicts have remained a thorn in the Gokwe region because traditional law codes have not been sufficiently used in conflict resolution. Agrarian wrangles are inevitable in any society especially in Africa where agriculture is the backbone of national economies. Agrarian conflicts in the Gokwe region usually emanate from land pressure, farmer-grazier contestations, and crop and stock theft. The Zimbabwean government has relied on contemporary law in dealing with land contestations and other agrarian issues. It is important to note that indigenous Shangwe people developed sophisticated codes for conflict resolution. These codes and laws are embedded in several linguistic of genres including proverbs, folklores, riddles, idioms, myths, legends and taboos. These were used by sage during indigenous court proceedings as a form of reprimanding wrongdoers. The essence of the chapter therefore is to problematize the efficacy of Shangwe jurisprudence in resolving agrarian conflicts in contemporary Gokwe communities. However, a nexus between contemporary law and indigenous customs should be established in order to efficiently and rigorously solve agrarian wrangles. Contemporary courts and indigenous Shangwe courts should operate in-loco-parentis. They should complement each other in terms of handling agrarian matters.

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