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This paper explores legal pluralism in West Africa and its relationship to women?s rights as citizens. The study explains that three factors are required to protect women?s rights in democratizing states: 1) increased legitimacy of civil judicial structures; 2) increased education concerning citizen?s rights in democratic society and; 3) recognition of the political and economic character of the conflict over constitutional and ?customary? or religious law. This analysis includes a discussion of citizenship in Africa and an examination of the concepts of dual authority and dual citizenship. The following section explains the role of judicial legitimacy and constitutional literacy in protecting citizen rights. By focusing on the political nature of the discourse on protecting religious and customary norms in Mali, Nigeria and Benin, the debate is expunged from a purely cultural arena. Analyzing power and how it relates to women in plural societies is critical to better understanding of democracy and the position of women in these states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is an analysis of legal pluralism in West Africa. In particular, it focuses on the conflict that exists between constitutional protections of women¡¯s rights in the newly democratizing states of Mali and Benin and the role of traditional law in the judicial structures of these states. Given that traditional law is in conflict with the constitutional rights of women, the laws governing family and inheritance must be addressed as an important aspect of democratization, particularly given the influence on the lives of women in Africa. These areas, most frequently governed by traditional norms, continue to be controversial. In Africa, and throughout the postcolonial world, civil law, or in many cases common law, exists in conjunction with religious and ¡*customary¡± legal norms. Every individual must juggle multiple identities including those based on his or her nationality, ethnicity, religion and gender. These numerous identities, in conjunction with the colonial history and imposition of European legal structures onto African societies, contribute to current difficulties in establishing legitimate judicial institutions©¤cornerstones to democracy. I do not argue that ethnic or religious pluralism make democracy unattainable, rather that in certain cases the complexities of legal pluralism challenge the rights of individuals as protected by constitutional law. In Africa, navigating the channel between constitutional law and customary law is crucial to protecting women¡¯s rights as citizens. Frequently, the divide between the pays r¨¦el and the pays l¨¦gal, particularly with reference to women¡¯s rights, is not considered an obstacle to the establishment of democracy. Protections of all citizens¡¯ constitutional rights are central to the process of democratization. This study is a preliminary analysis that considers the power dynamics involved in establishing and maintaining traditional rights. In addition, the dual citizenship of many citizens in African states serves as a challenge to protecting the constitutional rights of women, a challenge that threaten these newly forming democracies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]