Trade for Peace Not for Conflict: Harari Experience
Law, Social Justice & Global Development (An Electronic Law Journal) Trade For Peace Not For Conflict: Harari Experience Abdulmalik Abubaker Haramaya University, Currently studying PhD, Alabama University This is a refereed article published: 31st July 2013 Citation: Abubaker, A, ‘Trade for Peace not for Conflict: Harari Experience’, 2013(1), Law, Social Justice & Global Development Journal (LGD) Abubaker, A Trade for Peace not Conflict Abstract Harar and Hararis history is much related with trade. But little is said about the fact that they have been using trade as a means of securing and maintaining peace. To preserve Harar and extend trade beyond it they made trade concessions to the Oromos and allowed the Somalis to derive income by protecting caravans that went out from and came into Harar. They allowed their currencies to circulate beyond the city-state while at the same time permitting foreign currencies to be used in the city state. Thus, trade for Hararis was not a source of conflict; rather it was a means of achieving and maintaining peace. This article suggests that underlying the idea of peaceful trade were values such as righteousness, honesty, sincerity, diligence, trust, non-discrimination and fairness in the relations among traders. Legal rules among which the sanctity of property rights and of contract were paramount functioned to protect these values. Keywords Harar trade, ethical and legal values, export/import, tax, price, property rights, sanctity of contract, market, currency, peace, development LGD 2013(1) 2 Refereed article Abubaker, A Trade for Peace not Conflict 1. Introduction Many scholars and travelers (Abbas Ahmed, 1992, Ahmed Zekaria, 1997, Burton, 1966, Caulk, 1977, Muhammad Hassen, 1973 Pankhurst, 1968, Stitz, 1976 and Waldron, 1984 etc.) wrote about Harar trade history.
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