@article{CRSIJ26000193,
                  author = {Popoola Kayode Julius},
                  title = {Communalism, Consensus and Decolonial Justice: A Comparative Analysis of Ujamaa and the Igbo Traditional Justice System},
                  journal = {Cosmo Research and Science International Journal},
                  year = {2025},
                  volume = {1},
                  number = {6},
                  pages = {662-674},
                  issn = {3108-1584},
                  url = {https://cosmorsij.com/published/CRSIJ26000193.pdf},
                  abstract = {Contemporary African justice systems continue to operate largely within colonial legal frameworks that emphasize adversarial procedures, punishment, and state-cantered authority, often at the expense of communal reconciliation and social restoration. This reality has renewed scholarly interest in indigenous African approaches to conflict resolution as alternative pathways for peace building and justice. Despite the extensive literature on African communal philosophies, limited comparative attention has been devoted to the relationship between Julius Miserere’s Ujamaa philosophy and the Igbo Traditional Justice System of southeaster Nigeria. This study addresses this gap by comparatively examining how both traditions conceptualize justice, communal responsibility, consensus-building, and conflict resolution. Adopting a qualitative comparative approach based on documentary analysis, philosophical inquiry, and selected case illustrations, the study interrogates the foundational principles, institutional mechanisms, and contemporary relevance of both traditions. The analysis reveals that Ujamaa and the Igbo Traditional Justice System share a common African philosophical orientation rooted in communalism, consensus-based decision-making, restorative justice, and the prioritization of social harmony over punitive sanctions. While Ujamaa emerged as a postcolonial political philosophy articulated through state-led communal structures, the Igbo system evolved through decentralized kinship institutions, councils of elders, and customary norms. Despite these differences, both traditions conceive justice as the restoration of fractured relationships rather than the punishment of offenders. The study argues that these indigenous frameworks provide important resources for decolonizing contemporary peace building and justice systems in Africa. It concludes that integrating indigenous principles of communal accountability, restorative reconciliation, and participatory deliberation into modern governance structures can contribute to more culturally legitimate and sustainable approaches to conflict resolution. The article contributes to emerging debates on indigenous peace building, restorative justice, and the decolonization of African conflict resolution scholarship.},
                  keywords = {Ujamaa, Igbo Traditional Justice System, Communalism, Consensus, Restorative Justice, DE colonial Peace building, Conflict Resolution},
                  month = {May}
        }