The effort to promote local scholars and local scholarship is important, but a question like this assumes a free society where local scholars can safely speak. This is not the case everywhere. In violent or authoritarian states, outside scholars have an important role.
When I was in Eastern Congo in 2000 during the civil war, people literally lined up at my hotel door to provide information about the atrocities underway. They told me I had a responsibility to publicize what was happening since they could not.
From 2001-2003, I had a MacArthur grant to develop local research capacity in Rwanda. I trained and worked with some amazing Rwandan researchers and co-wrote with them. Problem? Nearly all have since been forced into exile.
Western scholars need to not take advantage of local scholars and to treat them as equals. But, no, local authors should not be an absolute requirement. To make it so would limit the focus of publications to peaceful, democratic countries and non-controversial topics.
