Skip to main Communities My dashboard Log in Sign up Pan-African Research Journal Africa Published April 13, 2026 | Version v1 Journal article Open Militarised Customary Brokerage: Armed Conflict and the Transformation of Traditional Governance in South Sudan Authors/Creators Nyuon, Abraham Kuol 1 Show affiliations 1.
¹ Associate Professor of Politics, Peace, and Security; Principal, Graduate College, University of Juba, South Sudan Description This article develops militarised customary brokerage as an analytical lens for understanding customary authority, legal pluralism, and the wartime remaking of local governance. Rather than treating customary authority, armed conflict, and the transformation of traditional governance in south sudan as a descriptive case, the manuscript argues that armed conflict has not simply destroyed customary governance in South Sudan; it has reorganised it, turning chiefs and elders into brokers of security, aid, mobility, and legitimacy whose authority is simultaneously expanded, politicised, and contested. Anchored in Legal pluralism (Griffiths; Merry); customary authority in African politics (Mamdani; Englebert; Tignor); transitional justice and traditional justice (Huyse & Salter). Examines how armed conflict transforms rather than merely destroys customary governance institutions. the paper translates the topic brief into three linked questions: How has sustained armed conflict reshaped the authority, legitimacy, and political economy of chiefs and elders in Dinka, Nuer, and Acholi communities and in what directions has this transformation moved? Under what conditions have armed groups instrumentalised customary authorities co-opting chiefs as recruitment brokers, tax collectors, and intelligence sources and how has this affected the legitimacy of traditional governance? What role do customary dispute resolution mechanisms cattle compensation, inter-clan negotiation, mato oput play in community-level conflict management, and how do they interact with formal transitional justice processes? Methodologically, it is organised around Multi-site ethnographic fieldwork in Bor, Rumbek, Torit, and Yambio; interviews with chiefs, women's groups, youth leaders, and returned IDPs; archiva Files final_69dcf981de94b4.48675021_militarised-customary-brokerage-armed-conflict-and-the-transformation-of-traditional-governance-in-south-sudan.pdf Files (597.5 kB) Name Size Download all article.html md5:c2fc1db2008f837d151eac63640bd75d 405.8 kB Download final_69dcf981de94b4.48675021_militarised-customary-brokerage-armed-conflict-and-the-transformation-of-traditional-governance-in-south-sudan.pdf md5:65eda5c8fc4a1d372856739bbb116aff 187.2 kB Preview Download review_bundle.zip md5:4918460d6d523e7746165cf95f6b3a1c 4.5 kB Preview Download Additional details Related works Is identical to Journal article: https://parj.africa/ajls_custl/article/view/32219 (URL) 26 Views 23 Downloads Show more details All versions This version Views Total views 26 26 Downloads Total downloads 23 23 Data volume Total data volume 4.6 MB 4.6 MB More info on how stats are collected.... Versions External resources Indexed in OpenAIRE Communities Keywords and subjects Keywords Customary authority legal pluralism transitional justice South Sudan traditional governance armed conflict Details DOI DOI Badge DOI 10.5281/zenodo.19555485 Markdown [](https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19555485) reStructuredText .. image:: https://zenodo.org/badge/DOI/10.5281/zenodo.19555485.svg :target: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19555485 HTML <a href="https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19555485"><img src="https://zenodo.org/badge/DOI/10.5281/zenodo.19555485.svg" alt="DOI"></a> Image URL https://zenodo.org/badge/DOI/10.5281/zenodo.19555485.svg Target URL https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19555485 Resource type Journal article Publisher Zenodo Published in Studies in African Customary Law (Law/Social/Anthropology crossover), 1(1), 2026. Languages English Rights License Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International The Creative Commons Attribution license allows re-distribution and re-use of a licensed work on the condition that the creator is appropriately credited. Read more Citation Export Technical metadata Created April 13, 2026 Modified April 13, 2026 Jump up About About Policies Infrastructure Principles Projects Roadmap Contact Blog Blog Support Help FAQ Developers REST API OAI-PMH Contribute GitHub Donate Funded by Powered by CERN Data Centre & InvenioRDM Status Privacy policy Cookie policy Terms of Use This site uses cookies. Find out more on how we use cookies Accept all cookies Accept only essential cookies