ABSTRACT
This chapter shows how the recognition of traditional authority in post-war Mozambique has contributed considerably to state (re)formation in former war zones. It focuses on daily operations of the state police and on public events where state authority and tradition are ritually staged. The chapter focuses on dilemmas of claiming sovereignty in legal pluralistic contexts, as it addresses how transgressions of social order(s) are handled and perceived. The result of the local state practices is 'microstates' within the State, to borrow a phrase from Santos. The different state formation processes in Mozambique since Portuguese colonial rule have, as in many other African countries, been in constant ambiguous relationship with 'tradition' and chieftaincy. The anti-traditionalist and state-centric position however came to coexist quite quickly with a more moderate approach towards indigenous justice. The former village-level Popular Courts are still not part of formal justice system, but under the new label of 'community courts', promises have been made to strengthen their status.
