better than a case going to the justice system. We would prefer a judgment rooted in our customary law than to send someone before the legal system.”252 International law requires a “fair hearing” for any case involving a person’s “rights and obligations,” which would include a case over land rights.253 While traditional or administrative mechanisms established by law can be used to resolve such disputes, they must be “competent, independent, and impartial”254—including by giving fair treatment to women. Moreover, people should be able to appeal a decision to a court of law. “Continuous and Peaceful Existence” in the 1998 Land Law As described in the Background, the 1998 land law requires everyone to formalize customary rights by filing their property ownership with the state’s land registry, or cadastre. A person initially must take measures to obtain a land certificate (certificat foncier) and then, during a second stage, completes the registration with the cadastre. According to the 1998 law, anyone seeking to complete the first stage and acquire a land certificate must demonstrate the person or group’s “continuous and peaceful existence of customary rights” to the specific area of land.255 If interpreted in a certain way, authorities could abuse this clause to negate the “continuous existence” of customary rights of people displaced by either the 2002-2003 or the 2010-2011 conflicts. To ensure the land law is implemented in conformity with norms under international human rights law, the President or National Assembly should pass a decree or law, respectively, clarifying that displacement related to conflict or inter-communal violence does not interfere with a person’s ability to establish “continuous and peaceful existence of customary rights.” 252 Human Rights Watch interview with community leader on the Duékoué land committee, Duékoué, February 4, 2013. 253 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), adopted December 16, 1966, G.A. Res. 2200A (XXI), 21 U.N. GAOR Supp. (No. 16) at 52, U.N. Doc. A/6316 (1966), 999 U.N.T.S. 171, entered into force March 23, 1976, acceded to by Côte d’Ivoire on March 26, 1998, art. 14. 254 Ibid. 255 Loi nº 98-750 du 23 décembre 1998, art. 8. 83 HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH | OCTOBER 2013