In Search of Law's Residence: Towards the Creation of a Mosaic Health-Care State

The Legal Pluralism debate attempts to locate law beyond the traditional precincts of the nation-state. This essay is about locating law. The aim is to examine the extent to which legal pluralism can serve as a valid theory for grounding self-governance for indigenous/alternative medical systems. The paper proposes that the pursuit of legitimacy for indigenous health systems must begin from within the state system, understood as a malleable and contestable system of laws. Grounding law within two empirical realities, “associative power” and “legal hermeneutics,” the paper proceeds on the argument that the hegemony and centrality of the state can be deployed in fostering an integrated pluralistic healthcare system in which orthodox and indigenous health systems have equal recognition.