German Colonialism and the Law

Open Access

German Colonialism and the Law
Editor
Dr Florian Jeßberger
Professor of Law
Humboldt-University of Berlin

In collaboration with
Leon Trampe
Researcher
Humboldt-University of Berlin2026

ISBN: 978-1-0672373-9-4
DOI: https://doi.org/10.29053/978-1-0672373-9-4
Pages: 510
Print version: Available
Electronic version: Free PDF available

About the publication

The volume places law at the centre of the analysis of German colonialism. It proceeds from the assumptions that, first, colonialism was not merely a historical or political phenomenon with legal implications, but a deeply juridified project in which law played a constitutive role in shaping colonial governance, ordering relations of domination and legitimising inequality, and that, second, this constitutive relationship between law and colonialism did not end with formal decolonisation, but its legacies continue to inform contemporary legal frameworks: While colonialism may have ended, coloniality in legal systems persists.

Bringing together contributions from diverse disciplinary and geographical perspectives, with a particular emphasis on voices from the Global South(s), the volume captures current debates and emerging research trends in areas such as criminal law, international law and transitional justice. It pays special attention to African contexts, featuring dedicated sections on Namibia, Cameroon, Tanzania, Rwanda, and Togo.

Foreword

Contributors

1 Unearthing colonial legacies and their contemporary implications: Introduction to a North-South conversation on law
Florian Jeßberger

Part I: General perspectives

2 Between legal regimes and legal realities: A critical insight into German colonial criminal law and its practice
Merle Iffert

3 Anti-Black racism in German colonial criminal law
Menina Ugwuoke

Part II: The case of Namibia

4 Taxation and penal sanctions as instruments of exploitation in the colony of German South West Africa
Sophie Petry

5 A truth commission on German colonial rule in Namibia?
Johannes Socher

Part III: The case of Cameroon

6 The colonial administration in Cameroon: An analysis of the legal and social evolution of German domination and its impact on traditional power structures in Northern Cameroon
Alexis Armélien Gasisou

7 Legal analysis of German colonisation based on non-compliance with the German-Cameroon pre-treaty
Calvin Patrick Bandah Panga