Law Commons^™

African Regional Trade Agreements As Flexible Legal Regimes, James Thuo Gathii

James Thuo Gathii

Based on the types of treaty commitments contained in African Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs) and how these RTAs are understood by their members, this article argues these RTAs are flexible legal regimes. Flexibility here refers to the following defining features of African RTAs. First, these RTAs are regarded as establishing flexible regimes of cooperation as opposed to containing rules requiring scrupulous and rigorous adherence. Second, African RTAs incorporate as a central feature the principle of variable geometry according to which different speeds towards meeting time tabled and other commitments are adopted. Third, African RTAs adopt a broad array of social, …

African Regional Trade Agreements As Flexible Legal Regimes, James Thuo Gathii

James Thuo Gathii

Based on the types of treaty commitments contained in African Regional Trade Agreements (RTAs) and how these RTAs are understood by their members, this article argues these RTAs are flexible legal regimes. Flexibility here refers to the following defining features of African RTAs. First, these RTAs are regarded as establishing flexible regimes of cooperation as opposed to containing rules requiring scrupulous and rigorous adherence. Second, African RTAs incorporate as a central feature the principle of variable geometry according to which different speeds towards meeting time tabled and other commitments are adopted. Third, African RTAs adopt a broad array of social, …

Africa, Mark J. Calaguas

Mark J Calaguas

The Africa Committee's contribution to the 2008 Year-in-Review issue of the American Bar Association Section of International Law's quarterly journal, The International Lawyer

The Kiss Of Death: A Sowellian Analysis Of International Recognition And The Somaliland Paradigm, Donato J. Latrofa

Donato J Latrofa

The concept of “statehood” and “recognition” governs debate about the future of Africa, and in particular, what should be done with Somalia/Somaliland. The question lately has been whether or not newly-formed/seceded nations should be “recognized” (as if recognition by the rest of the organized world equates to legitimacy or functionality). Many scholars believe that Somaliland should be “recognized” because it has shown itself to be a bastion of calm in the Horn of Africa. However, these scholars overlook that such a decision may not be costless to Somalilanders and their government. The first part of this article gives a background …

Constructing Governance, But Constructive Governance? The Emergence And Limitations Of A Dominant Discourse On The Regulation Of Private Military And Security Companies, Surabhi Ranganathan

Surabhi Ranganathan

The private security industry’s rise to prominence has led to much debate, primarily relating to concern for human rights and the role of the state. The industry’s potential to level the playing-field between developed and developing countries in obtainment and deployment of security is often remarked upon, but the divide created by their differing capacities and motivations to control security service providers goes unnoticed. The result is a dominant discourse which embraces assumptions that limit effective policy formulation.

This discourse has two central tenets. The first is the normalization of private military companies as partners and agents of state governments. …

Kenyan Politics And The Politics Of Summer Programs, Patrick Kelly

Patrick Kelly

This brief article for the Proceedings of the American Society of International Law’s annual symposium discusses the interrelationship of Legal education partnerships in Africa and domestic politics using Kenya as an example. The practicalities and cultural benefits of living and studying in a foreign country are inevitably intertwined with the political tensions and aspirations embedded in that society. This article first discusses the special rewards and practicalities of a summer program in Africa; and then attempts to provide a richer, more complex picture of the recent political struggle and ethnic conflict in Kenya after the December, 2007 Presidential election. It …

Vultures, Hyenas, And African Debt: Private Equity And Zambia (Private Equity Symposium), Olufunmilayo B. Arewa

Olufunmilayo B. Arewa

A 2007 U.K. court case involving Donegal, a private equity fund, and the Republic of Zambia, has contributed to an ongoing debate about the operation of so-called vulture funds in African and other developing countries. Donegal sued Zambia for more than fifty-five million U.S. dollars in connection with a debt owed by Zambia to Romania for Zambia’s acquisition of agricultural machinery from Romania pursuant to a credit agreement dated April 17, 1979. Donegal acquired the Zambian debt from Romania in 1999 at some eleven percent of face value. Although the Donegal court explicitly limited its scrutiny to the legal questions …