Call for papers of the scientific quarterly, Afrique Contemporaine

“What is the outlook for the justice system in Africa ?”

Media, research and evaluation reports repeatedly criticize the judiciary in Africa, decrying it as a “judicial shipwreck,” “financial wasteland,” or “public service without any service, judge, or justiciable offense,” among other epithets. Simultaneously, public authorities task the justice system with increasingly numerous and ambitious missions ; these are considered guarantees of democracy and economic development. These judicial tasks are accompanied by assertions about models, the introduction of innovative tools and procedures, and the creation and monitoring of indicators.

How do the judicial system and those in the system – whether on the side of the judges or the judged – absorb these new missions ? How are judicial practices transformed by these new tasks ? How do these changes and issues articulate with a plurality of laws ? How does the system and those in it navigate between “tradition,” “modernity,” “endogenous,” and “exogenous” – the ongoing tensions noted by researchers and insiders alike.

The articles we are calling for might address any one of a number of subjects, such as :
1. Constitutional justice : The outcomes and limits of constitutional justice as a means of consolidating and guaranteeing democratic processes.
2. Transitional justice : Is transitional justice a new form of justice ? Is it effective ?
3. Commercial justice : Stable rules of law for investors. Recent laws and jurisprudence that aim to increase the safety of international investments, such as the reform movement promulgated by OHADA (or Organisation for the Harmonization of Business Law in Africa). What is the judicial environment for such reforms ?
4. International, continental and regional justice : Are international judicial bodies, such as the International Criminal Court (ICC), principally targeted at Africans ? How well are the continental and regional jurisdictions performing ?
5. Justice and real estate.
6. Justice and penal institutions.

The articles should be based on an analysis of “justice in action.” emphasizing the uses and transformations of judicial systems. The articles should also present the views of various participants in the judicial system symmetrically – the justiciable issues in all their variety, auxiliary aids to justice, judges, juries, law enforcement, experts, and others.

Timeline
The timeline for this special issue follows (subject to change) :
Authors indicate their interest in contributing an article by submitting a one-page note that identifies the topic, provides a brief outline, and describes the data or fieldwork that will be used ; submissions are due by 2 December 2013.
The editors will select article topics and authors by 16 December 2013.
Selected authors must submit a first draft of their articles by 10 March 2014.

In their published versions, the articles will be 35,000 signs in length, including spaces, footnotes and bibliography. Each article will be blind peer-reviewed by two subject matter experts.

Contacts :
Please submit your response to this call for papers via email to : afrique-contemporaine@afd.fr and fortuiti@afd.fr