Northwestern Zambia, 1992. Some districts have their own police forces and legal courts to settle legal cases, but in many rural areas the law is upheld in village and chiefs courts. In village courts, respected male elders oversee cases involving land ownership, family quarrels, theft, and other disputes. A village headman usually leads the village court. During a village court session, the male elders sit together on one side of the open yard.
Female elders sit on the other side.
The parties involved in the conflict sit in the middle, where they explain their situations one at a time. Usually an audience gathers to listen. The individuals and witnesses involved in the disputes are asked direct questions. A decision is made by court agreement. Guilty individuals are instructed to apologize and may have to pay fees of goods or money or to repair the damages they have caused.