¹ Except for Somalia where the Somali language is spoken by all Somalis as their mother tongue. There are other countries where a single African language is spoken by the majority of the people. These include Botswana, Burundi, Ethiopia, Lesotho, Rwanda and Swaziland.

² See generally O'Barr, W. M., “Language use and language policy in Tanzania: an overview” in O'Barr, W. M. and O'Barr, J. F.Language and Politics, The Hague, 1976.Google Scholar

³ Massamba has noted for example, that“although there are some languages with fewer speakers than others, none of the minority speakers would succumb to the majority speakers by regarding their language as superior to theirs”: Massamba, D.,“An assessment of development and modernisation of the Kiswahili language in Tanzania”, unpublished paper, 1985, 3.Google Scholar

⁴ Ibid. at 6.

⁵ Ibid. at 14; H. Trappes-Lomax,“Can a foreign language be a national medium?” in C. M. Rubagumya (ed.), Language in Education in Africa: A Tanzanian Perspective, Philadelphia, 1990, 98.

⁶ I am grateful to Weston for the background material: see generally Weston, A. B.,“Law in Swahili—problems in developing a national language”, (1965) 35(2) Swahili.Google Scholar

⁷ For a detailed discussion of the work of the Institute of Kiswahili Research (IKR) in developing Kiswahili see Massamba, above, n.3.

⁸ Such titles included Mkurugenzi meaning Director, Kaimu meaning Deputy and Mwandamizi meaning Senior. For a more detailed discussion see Mwansoko, H.,“Swahili terminological modernization in the light of the present language policy in Tanzania” in Rubagumya (above n.5), 133.Google Scholar

⁹ See S.13(1) and (2) of the Magistrates Court Act, 1984 which states that the language of the primary courts shall be Kiswahili and that of the District and Resident Magistrates Courts shall be either English or Kiswahili as the presiding magistrate shall direct.

¹⁰ It was during this period that I published Sheria ya Ndoa Tanzania (Institute of Kiswahili Research, 1981) and in 1983 submitted for publication Sheria Juu ya Hali na Haki za Watoto (Tanzania Publishing House, forthcoming).

¹¹ Prominent among these was Mwakasungula, E. whose law pamphlets, published mainly by the Tabora-based Catholic Mission Press (TMP), are widely read.Google Scholar

¹² They include a series of Kiswahili books edited by Mwita, Matiko and published by the Tanzania Publishing House.Google Scholar

¹³ See Massambo, , above n.3, 15.Google Scholar

¹⁴ See s.19 MCA and 4th Sch. MCA, 1963; Primary Courts (Evidence) Regulations, GN 22/1964 and the Primary Courts (Civil Procedure) Rules, GN 310/1964.

¹⁵ See generally Kavugha, D. and Bobb, D.,“The use of language in the law courts in Tanzania”, in Polome, E. and Hill, C. P. (eds.), Language in Tanzania, Oxford, 1980.Google Scholar

¹⁶ See the Tanzania Court of Appeal (Amendment of Rule 3A) Rules, 1985 which provides that“3A. The language of the Cour t shall be either English or Kiswahili as the Chief Justice or, as the case may be, the presiding Judge holding such court shall direct, but the judgment, order, or decision of the Court shall be in English.”

¹⁷ Established respectively under the Permanent Labour Tribunal (Amendment) Act No. 3, 1990: the Rent Restriction Act, No. 17, 1984 and the Permanent Commission of Enquiry (Art. 130 of the Tanzania Constitution).

¹⁸ See n.15.

¹⁹ The percentage frequency of vernacular language use for the various courts was as follows: High Court 12%, R.M.'s Court 1%, District Court 6% and Primary Court 8%.

²⁰ According to Kavugha and Bobb (above n.15) even where English is used in court proceedings, in 74.5% of the situations all the speakers know Kiswahili and are able to follow the proceedings (cited in M. Martin-Jones, Foreword to Rubagumya above, n.5, 12).

²¹ In 1970 and 1971 while studying law, I worked during vacations as a court clerk and interpreter. I was able to see the language limitations of my “colleagues” and a few times I was asked to assist other magistrates in spontaneous translations of judgments from English to Kiswahili. I believe that two decades later the situation must have become worse. This is the more so if one considers the undisputed fall in the English language proficiency of all secondary school graduates from where court clerks are recruited and put to work without any training.

²² See the Political Parties Act, No.5 of 1992 and Sheria ya Mabadiliko ya Nne katika Katiba ya Nchi ya Mwaka 1992 (the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution, of 1992). See also The Constitution (Consequential, Transitional and Temporary Provisions) Act, 1992. All three | statute s came into force on 1 July, 1992 and are aimed at facilitating a smooth transition from a single party to a multi-party system of government.

²³ Two exceptions to this include a paper by DuBow, F.,“Language, law and change: problems in the development of a national legal system in Tanzania“, in O'Barr and O'Barr, above n.2 and a paper by Mukoyogo, C. M. which is due to be published by the Eastern Africa Law Review. This is to be contrasted with the hot debates which continue in the other departments of the University of Dar es Salaam and in the Ministry of Education about the suitability of Kiswahili as the language of instruction.Google Scholar

²⁴ Chen, A. H. “Law in a foreign language: the case of Hong Kong” in Cheek-Milby, and Mushkat, R. (eds.), Hong Kong: The Challenge of Transformation, Hong Kong, 1989, 212.Google Scholar

²⁵ I am grateful to C. M. Mukoyogo from whose unpublished paper I have obtained this source.

²⁶ See Alam Shah “Bilingual hazards in legal education and legal practice in Bangladesh”, paper presented at the CLEA Conference on Emerging Educational Challenges for Law in Commonwealth Asia and Australasia, 1992 (hereinafter) called CLEA Conference); Mahmood, N. R.,“Bilingualism in legal education: a Malaysian experience”, CLEA conference paper; and H. M. Zafrullah,“Law and language in a multiracial society: the switchover from English to the national languages in Sri Lanka”, CLEA conference paper.Google Scholar

²⁷ Above, n.5.

²⁸ See, for example, Mlama, P. and Matteru, M., Haja ya Kutumia Kiswahili Kufundishia Katika Elimu ya Juu, Oar es Salaam, 1978; and Rubagumya, C. M.,“Language planning in the Tanzania education system: problems and prospects”, 7, Journal of Multilingual & Multicultural Development, 283–300.Google Scholar

²⁹ See Rubagumya, , above n.5, 27.Google Scholar

³⁰ See most of the contributors in ibid.

³¹ Martin-Jones, , above, n.20, 12 has correctly read the study of Kavugha and Bobb by observing that the use of Kiswahili in the higher courts is“out of necessity” because despite the fact that the official language is English, judges and other court officers have to deal regularly with non-English speakers who appear in court as parties, witnesses or accused persons.Google Scholar

³² Based on a short discussion with ProfKanywanyi, J. L., the present Dean of the Faculty (August 1992). I am grateful for his time and views on this point.Google Scholar

³³ I experienced more acutely the inadequacy of the Kiswahili version when I was writing Sheriaya Ndoa Tanzania in 1979.

³⁴ See the Report of the Judicial System Review Commission (Dar es Salaam, 1980).

³⁵ See Kavugha, and Bobb, (above, n.15, 233, 237).Google Scholar

³⁶ Above n.20, 13. It is perhaps fitting to add that Kiswahili, though not as widely spoken as in Tanzania, is also the national language of Kenya and Uganda. It is one of the languages spoken in Zaire and northern Mozambique. It is has been adopted as one of the official languages of the Organization of Africa Unity.

³⁷ The problems of delay in the administration of justice and congestion in the courts of Tanzania has been a subject of regular public criticism. Countermeasures have included the appointment of honorary judges and magistrates (see ss.16 and 17, Magistrates Court Act, 1984), the creation of special traffic courts and small claims courts (Ward Tribunals) to reduce the case volume in regular courts.

³⁸ Chen, above, n.24, 217.

³⁹ In view of the fact that it is likely to be the ordinary citizen who already suffers from the inability to mobilize the legal system to his or her advantage, it is unlikely that such a challenge can be launched without legal aid or other comparable assistance.

⁴⁰ See Tume va Raisya Mfumo wa Chama Kimoja au Vyama vingi vya Siasa Tanzania 1991; Kitabu cha Kwanza; Kitabu cha Pili na Kitabu cha Tatu.