The Significance of legal Institutions in Conflict Resolution in Tribal Societies

It is observed that the belief system of any tribal society has unique legal features of judgment in terms of traditions and religious beliefs that are worthy of anthropological attention. There are certain supernatural beliefs attached to two particular objects “fire and water”. These two objects are considered as judicious and arbitrary in their nature which is part of their adherence to fore fathers’ traditions and certain religious events in the history of mankind. So these “naturally” judicial objects are utilized in local conflict resolution and identification of the responsible person for a crime.

Law and its function as a social institution has led to the division of anthropology in its sub-division called Anthropology of Law. In order to put forward the role of law in the society, we need to distinguish the concept of legal from other relevant issues. The most important is to separate the institution of law from political organization of the community. The very existence of politics in a society, especially in the traditional society is linked to some sort of legal institution.

In any traditional community, there are certain norms to which the members of community essentially adhere in the course of every day action. This concept puts the norms in the category of a legitimate body just as the courts and constitution in the urban set up. These norms are always excluded from the “ought” aspects of the moral values of the community. This legal nature of norms produces order in the society which is on the one hand the task of a legal institution in the society and on the other hand a subject of anthropological interest. This interest is primarily concerned with the institutions of legal nature. The study of these institutions, involved their functions in folk societies and the exercise of power in dispute settlement. This power is basically infused to certain authorities by those norms, having the legal character. Religion, mythology, supernatural beliefs and the inevitable need to resolve the erupting conflicts in a society are among various sources of these norms, taboos and institutions in various traditional communities of the world.

Thus the significance and function of legal institutions to create order, cohesion, and equity and conflict resolution in a society are serious concerns of anthropology to be studied and analyzed. This dynamic character of norms and traditions in terms of law has been the hallmark of anthropological observations and studies of traditional societies.