Indigenous Authority and Justice in State–Society Armed Conflict: A Case of the Uganda National Rescue Front II in Uganda, 1996–2002

Abstract

This chapter exposes the functionality of indigenous authority and justice mechanisms in resolving armed conflict between the Government of Uganda and the Uganda National Rescue Front (UNRF) II at a time when the military approach and modern judicial system had collapsed. It contributes to the debate on the relevance and legitimacy of indigenous justice as an alternative justice system vis-à-vis the national and international human rights law. This study established that indigenous peace-building grounded on the indigenous authority of the clan leaders and women, have functioned as an alternative to and complemented the formal State court system in contemporary ethnic societies in Africa. This work explores the role of indigenous authority and justice in resolving armed conflict in the twenty-first century. In the wake of the failure of the legal and military approaches to resolve the Government of Uganda-UNRFII armed conflict, the Lugbara indigenous authority and justice was used to end the armed conflict. Written sources, oral tradition, and oral history have since been used to retrieve the indigenous authority and peace-building mechanisms and practices. Whereas men played a traditional role in conflict resolution, this conflict reveals the invisible role of women, and their indigenous authority in de-escalating the armed conflict and building peace in the West Nile region of Uganda. This work argues that embracing indigenous authority could provide a hybrid approach towards sustainable peace in Africa characterised by inclusion of the indigenous people in the conflict resolution and peace-building process.