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1967] LEGAL SYSTEMS
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The codes were carefully drafted with a view toward making the
necessary adaptations for Ethiopian society. The finished product was
a body of law distinctly Ethiopian in character which would form the
basis of the new legal order. Unlike practically all the other sub-
Saharan African countries, Ethiopia did not include a separate body
of customary law in its legal system. Rather, it took account of custom
and looked upon it as a source of some of the provisions of the codes.
The new law was designed to eliminate practices sanctioned under
the customary law and to establish legal norms suitable for a modern
society. After some experimentation, a satisfactory structure of courts
was established. In view of the importance of litigation in Ethiopia,
it was necessary to adopt a law of procedure along common-law lines.
At this point in Ethiopia's history a modern legal system can now be
said to have been established.
But this system must be administered by persons, and there is an
extreme shortage of persons qualified to do so. The new law can be
expected to meet substantial resistance in its application. The problems
in completely developing a legal system are awesome, and such
development requires a substantial period of time.
There is every confidence that full development will take place in
Ethiopia. Historically, there has been a deep-rooted respect for justice
among the Ethiopian people.23 Now it is necessary to transform the
respect for justice into respect for the law itself and to develop the
concept that all men are subject to the law. It is toward this goal that
the Ethiopians are striving, and those of us fortunate enough to be
part of a highly-developed legal system can only wish them well.
823 This has been pointed out by all those who have written about Ethiopia. See
generally the authorities cited in note 261 supra.