Judicial Activism and Development: Warning Signals from Zimbabwe

Abstract

In January, 1991 the Zimbabwe government was on the brink of enacting into law a fundamental amendment to the country’s constitution: the Eleventh Amendment1. This amendment would have the effect of denying the courts the power to declarers unconstitutional, on the basis that the compensation provided by that law is not fair, an enabling Act fixing the amount of compensation payable and the period within which it had to be paid, for land compulsorily acquired by the state from individuals2. There was disquiet in some quarters and quiet; expectation in others.