Call for abstracts for conference on Bhe v Khayelitsha Magistrate: Twenty Years of Promises, Progress and Pitfalls

The Centre for Legal Integration in Africa in the Department of Private Law at the University of the Western Cape and the Department of Private Law at the University of Cape Town are pleased to invite abstracts for papers on the impact of the Constitutional Court decision in Bhe and Others v Khayelitsha Magistrate and Others [15 October 2004]. This judgment invalidated the customary rule of male primogeniture. As the most critical judicial intrusion in African customary law since the end of apartheid, it has inspired law reforms and numerous publications. But 20 years later, it is time to examine its impact on the interaction of laws in South Africa.

What is the pattern of the law reforms it has inspired? What should law reformers have done differently? Importantly, how have traditional communities embraced these reforms? The Bhe Conference seeks to explore the above questions in a legal pluralist framework. Contributions may adopt comparative or interdisciplinary perspectives, explore legal philosophies or legal history, and/or present findings from the field.

You are invited to submit an abstract of 150-250 words to clia@uwc.ac.za, copying adiala@uwc.ac.za and fatima.osman@uct.ac.za. The deadline is 29 February 2024. Abstracts should summarise a proposed paper in line with the conference theme. Decisions shall be communicated to authors by 18 March 2024, and draft papers will be due on 5 August 2024. Selected papers will be published as a special edition in a DHET accredited journal.

Date of conference: 20 – 21 August 2024.

Keynotes will be given by retired Constitutional Court judges, Albie Sachs and Dikgang Moseneke, and Prof. Janine Ubink, President of the International Commission on Legal Pluralism

If you have any questions, please contact us. We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Anthony Diala and Fatima Osman

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