Modelling peace support operations is a growing area of research in the defence sector. Extensive development has been done in the area of combat models but they are not always sufficient when modelling operations other than war. The DIAMOND model is a large scale peace support model capable of mod- elling entire countries. Taking an agent-based approach, we have created a model that has the potential to be used in conjunction with DIAMOND, providing the detail the larger model lacks. Improvements need to be made before this is pos- sible but our model provides a strong starting point. Self-organised criticality is an area of complexity theory that is, in part, iden- tified by a fractal frequency-size ‘avalanche’ distributions. Previous research has shown a link between self-organised criticality and combat modelling. We looked for power-law behaviour in a variety of peacekeeping scenarios. Using our agent-based model we devised a set of scenarios, each one more complex than the previous one. Taking the conflict between the peacekeepers and local insurgents, we used two different measures of such to represent the ‘avalanches’. The results showed no real evidence of power law relationships but more experimentation and analysis is needed.

The following will argue that the development of the concept of Global Governance has had a dramatic impact on the discourse of United Nations Peacekeeping and has increased the gap between the official rhetoric of the organisation and what occurs on the ground in peacekeeping operations. It will investigate the connection between the development of the norms associated with the concept of global governance and the increased demand being made for UN mandated peacekeeping operations. The thesis investigates how the development of these norms can be directly connected to the increased demands being placed on UN mandated peacekeeping operations and the way in which these norms, which are directly associated with the concept of Global Governance have become integrated into United Nations Peacekeeping Operations. It also argues that the integration of these norms is having a detrimental impact on the gap between the rhetoric and reality of peacekeeping operations. A detrimental impact which will be analysed using six key criteria including access to resources, fulfilment of mandates, perceived legitimacy both local and global, challenges faced during the operation from both state and non-state actors, and issues of command and control within the operation including organization and integration with other actors. In doing so the thesis offers a new and original assessment of the relationship between the development of global governance and peacekeeping operation by drawing on the unique data created in the fieldwork interviews, the analysis of mission mandates and the secondary literature.

Within an aid discourse which emphasises the importance of civil society and Non- Governmental Organisations (NGOs) to development and a renewed focus by the international community on civil conflicts in the developing world, conflict-resolution NGOs (CROs) have come to assume a greater role in peace negotiations. Conceptions of peace as a process of making society more just and harmonious (cf. Lederach, 1997) overlap with holistic conceptions of development, such as human development, that seek to expand people's meaningful choices and freedom (Sen, 1999), allowing for the controversial merging of development and security agendas (Duffield, 2001). This study investigates the role and implications of CROs, which as civil society actors using NGO forms and development techniques to further peace, embody this new hybrid field. It centres around two longitudinal case studies of CRO interventions initiated in the mid-1990s, in northern Ghana and Sierra Leone, capturing change in the role and nature of CROs through a dual historical and contemporary focus. The thesis argues for the importance of path dependency (North, 1990). It shows how in the Ghanaian case a CRO affected outcomes by influencing starting points and steering talks, through choices of which actors to portray as the relevant participants and the language and goals of the mediation process. Conversely, in the Sierra Leonean case study the initiating CRO was unable to chart a path out of violence. It argues that discourses are an important form of CRO practice and develops the term 'conflict narratives' proposed by Varshney (2002) to conceptualise how they can be used to build support for certain outcomes. While refuting the assumption that sponsoring peacebuilding work is harmless (cf. Dolan, 2000) this study argues that the merging of development and security provides a conceptual arena in which lessons from CRO practice may provide inclusive and innovative ways forward.

South Africa's peacekeeping role emerged within the context of a changed landscape in Africa. The colonial legacy, the struggles against colonial rule and its subsequent replacement with post-colonial independent governments, shadowed by a global Cold War, ended in the early 1990s. These internal conflicts manifested themselves in violent armed rebellion between governments and opposition or militia groups. The roles and responsibilities of the police during peace-mission operations evolved from merely monitoring host nation police agencies, to reforming, restructuring and rebuilding police forces destroyed by war. United Nations police have assumed primary responsibility for maintaining law and order across all missions, where they play diverse and critical roles in the effort to re-establish the rule of law in states attempting to transition from war to a peace that produces safe and stable societies. The face of peacekeeping has changed from what was commonly known as traditional peacekeeping to being multidimensional in nature. The reason for this change is because the conflict that is taking place currently is no longer that of one country against another country, but is mostly an intra-state situation. The mandate for peacekeeping emanates from the United Nations continental body, i.e. the African Union, Regional Economic Communities, as well as the South African national legal framework. This research was conducted with the purpose of determining the extent of the challenges that the South African Police Service members are faced with during peace missions. The researcher recommends that further research be undertaken to focus on the following aspects: the role of South African Police Service members in Election Observer Mission and the challenges experienced during that kind of mission. Further research should also be conducted into the prevention of conflict before it even starts, especially in Africa. / Police Practice / D. Litt. et Phil. (Police Science)