From Conflict to Consensus: Land Courts or Village Courts? A Case Study among the Enga of Papua New Guinea

Abstract

The Enga treasure their land as the foundation of subsistence, independence, identity, and pride. Although customary rules for landownership and inheritance exist, historical traditions indicate that land disputes have long arisen between clans, subclans, and even families. Prior to contact with Europeans and colonisation, many disputes were resolved with the guidance of local leaders, while others resulted in wars and migrations. From the late 1940s, the colonial administration explored a variety of ways to tackle land matters but with little success; the challenge persists to this day. After a brief look at the history of land issues, we will address the above question posed by Allen and Giddings by drawing on data from 236 land cases in village courts collected between 2010 and 2025.