Join Tom Ginsburg and Richard McAdams for a lively discussion of Ginsburg’s “An Economic Interpretation of the Pashtunwalli.”

This free lecture/lunch is the first in a series sponsored by the Institute for Law and Economics.

Pashtunwalli is the ethical code and traditional lifestyle which the indigenous Pashtun people from Afghanistan and Pakistan follow. Pashtun customs are distinctive both for their persistence and harshness.

The norms of the Pashtunwalli provide an illustration of the logic of retaliation in private legal systems as well as an institutional solution–the jigra–to minimize the threat of escalation. The paper considers two normative problems associated with the Pashtunwalli, gender inequities and relatively high levels of violence, and presents a simple strategy to improve the situation—the expansion of literacy.

If you have any questions, please contact Marjorie Holme at mholme@uchicago.edu. 

Lunch will be provided.

Economic Interpretation of the Pashtunwalli