64 AFRICA INSIGHT VOL 35 NO 3 | SEPTEMBER 2005 Euclides Gonçalves: Finding the Chiefs: Political Decentralisation and Traditional Authority in Mocumbi, Southern Mozambique Introduction F inding the chief was the priority in the process of estab- lishing indirect rule in colonial Africa. Where chiefs were not found they had to be invented. The position of chiefs declined somewhat after independence as they were gen- erally treated as a colonial relic. In 1978, three years after indepen- dence, Mozambique abolished traditional authority via a law designed to reform the colonial administrative system. 1 Almost thirty years later, after a prolonged civil war and retreat from Marxism, the government is repeating the colonial formula of ‘finding chiefs’ but this time in the name of democracy and decen- tralisation. Even as academics remain sceptical about how tradi- tional authority could be better incorporated into local administra- tion, 2 in 2002 the Mozambican government began to hold formal ceremonies in which community leaders were recognised. 3 A legit- imating process in which communities were asked to identify their legitimate leaders preceded these recognition ceremonies. This paper discusses local power dynamics in the context of the recognition of traditional authorities and investigates the extent to which the recognition of traditional authority has transformed local government and promoted democracy and development in rural Mozambique.The paper draws on fieldwork conducted in the administrative post of Mocumbi, Southern Mozambique and seeks to contribute to the Mozambican debate on the issue, which is largely based on the experience from the Central and Northern provinces. 4 The main contention of this article is that the decentralisation debate in the rural areas has to go beyond the current focus on chiefs and community leaders. Both critics and supporters of tra- ditional authority have exaggerated the relevance of the institution for local government. While detractors’ critique that chiefs have been irrevocably alienated by colonial rule is not historically accu- rate, the introduction and recognition of community leaders is shown to promote power disputes over succession to the office within traditional ruling elites rather than promoting democracy and development as predicted by the apologists of the incorpora- tion of chiefs in local government. Alternatively, the article suggests that scholars and policy mak- ers dealing with decentralisation should consider alternative forms of traditional authority. In areas like Mocumbi, where traditional chiefs have not enjoyed significant popular legitimacy since the end of colonial period, attention should turn to more eminent and effective figures of authority such as influential family elders. The following section briefly discusses FRELIMO’s Marxist- inspired view on traditional authority by the time of independence in 1975. It also analyses how FRELIMO changed its hostile policy Finding the Chief: Political Decentralisation and Traditional Authority in Mocumbi, Southern Mozambique Euclides Gonçalves University of Cape Town This paper uses the colonial-era phrase, ‘finding the chief’, to launch an investigation into the posi- tion of traditional authorities in Mozambique. In 1978, three years after independence, Mozambique abolished traditional authority via a law designed to reform the colonial administrative system. Almost thirty years later, after a prolonged civil war, the government is repeating the colonial formula of ‘finding chiefs’ but this time in the name of democracy and decentralisation. This paper dis- cusses local power dynamics in the context of the recognition of traditional authorities and investi- gates the extent to which the recognition of tradi- tional authority has transformed local government and promoted democracy and development in rural Mozambique. The paper draws on fieldwork con- ducted in the administrative post of Mocumbi, Southern Mozambique. The main contention of this article is that the relevance of the institution for local government has been exaggerated. © AISA 2005