Imperialism, Colonialism and International Law
54 Pages Posted: 7 Jul 2010
Date Written: January 1, 2007
Abstract
This article explores the relationship between imperialism and colonialism in nineteenth-century international law. This article traces the distinctions between made in the literature between formal and informal empires, and by showing how the protectorate form of British colonialism collapsed this distinction. It then shows how the East African Protectorate government transmogrified Maasai peasant and property relations and how the Maasai sought to resist these incursions in British courts. It then traces the contest and resistance to expropriation of Maasai land in British courts which was rarified by a highly formalist and positivist jurisprudence. It concludes by exploring parallelisms between jurisprudence of British courts surrounding the question of protectorates in the nineteenth century, and contemporary cases such as those involving questions of the exercise of extraterritorial jurisdiction over transnational commercial conduct or in the holding of detainees abroad in the war against terrorism.
Keywords: international law, imperialism, colonialism, East Africa, Maasi
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