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The authorities who have examined the decisions made in Britain on the appeasement of Europe hardly consider the influence of United States and dominion opinion. Even in the 1960s the general works thought the dominions worth, at most, one or two lines. D.C. Watt implied dominion responsibility for the policy of the appeasement of Europe, but as Nicholas Mansergh has pointed out this is still an open question. Consideration of the influence of United States opinion on British policy has seemingly also been stunted by the European orientation of scholars. Several monographs do touch upon the subject. The usual verdict is that Chamberlain ignored United States opinion, cold shouldered any overture that Roosevelt made, and failed to assist in drawing the United States from isolationism. The purpose of this thesis is to reexamine the question in the light of the new evidence available in the papers of the committee of imperial defence, the cabinet, the cabinet committee on foreign policy, the dominions office, the foreign office, the papers for the prime minister, and the private collections of various participants such as Templewood, Inskip, Vansittart, Zetland, Samuel, Halifax, Simon, Colonel Arthur Murray and Lothian. Some account is attempted of the development of opinion in the United States, In the case of the dominions it was thought necessary to offer a fuller analysis of internal political developments which have not before been considered in relation to the influence of the doninions on British foreign policy. Newspaper reports, political speeches, and parliamentary debates which affected opinion and decisions at the time have been reexamined.

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Among the diverse citizenry that comprise Commonwealth countries are persons affected by disabilities and who remain vulnerable and under-represented. In light of the challenges of under-representation and the stigmatisation of persons with disabilities globally, the democratic principles of the Commonwealth of Nations have been placed under scrutiny. Thus the constitutionality and fairness of governmental policies and national legislation are criticised for their degree of reflection and representation of the social and political rights of persons with disabilities. This thesis will critically analyse the national legislative and policy frameworks affecting persons with disabilities in selected Commonwealth countries. Comparisons will be made between these selected countries, namely Canada, India, Kenya and South Africa. The Commonwealth and subscription to the United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities will serve as a standardised platform for comparisons. Comparisons of the legislative prescriptions of the respective countries will be instrumental highlighting the challenges in the representation of the rights and freedoms of persons with disabilities globally and in improving and strengthening legislative prescription affecting persons with disabilities. The varying levels of development amongst countries and the lack of appropriate infrastructure continue to be detrimental to the effective representation of persons with disabilities and the ability of national governments to develop strong and effective legislative and policy frameworks remains compromised. It is thus essential that attention is directed to the challenges facing countries so that appropriate actions and remediation can improve the vulnerabilities linked to persons with disabilities. This study adopts a theoretical and case law approach. It firstly provides a conceptual framework for disability. The conceptual framework comprises the perspectives on disability that have justified the approaches to persons with disabilities. Theories and values and the international legal framework relevant to persons with disabilities will be provided. The theories and values provide a traditional framework and play an instrumental role in guiding actions toward the effective development of public policy and prescription of legislation. The selected countries will be analysed as separate cases. The countries will be analysed individually prior to the comparative component to acknowledge the strengths, weaknesses and challenges facing each country in relation to its own structure and level of development. The findings are based on themes which emerge from the analysis of the legislation and policies affecting persons with disabilities in the selected countries. The findings are presented in a comparative format owing to the comparative nature of the study. Recommendations that flow from the comparative analysis and findings are proposed in the final chapter. The adoption of the proposed recommendations can strengthen legislative prescriptions affecting persons with disabilities both nationally and internationally and improve the representation of the rights and freedom of persons with disabilities in the global context.

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This research transfigures in the field of “ postcolony ” (Achille Mbembe, 2001) ; an imperial situation that occurs in countries that were once destroyed by the ancient colonization and that keep its traces and bear its heritage. The novels of our study are as follows : Balbala (2002) by Abdourahman A. Waberi, Le bourreau (2004) by Séverin Cécile Abega, La grande mêlée (2011) by Michel Tremblay and Mãn (2013) by Kim Thúy. Indeed, we compare and would like to know why and how Africa, Canada and Vietnam may have a postcolony haloed by neo-colonialism. In addressing this issue, all the novels of our study converge to say that Colonizers succeeded to turn the suns of independence and decolonization into murderous suns, the vicious peppers into harmless flowers so as not to oppose the direction of the colonial fibres and transfer colonization to postcolony. Therefore, the fight remains perpetual between the postcolonial darkness and the anti-postcolonial light / Cette recherche transparaît dans « la postcolonie » (Achille Mbembe, 2001) ; une situation d’ordre impérial qui se vit dans les pays ravagés par l’ancienne colonisation, et qui gardent son héritage et portent ses traces. Voici les romans de notre étude : Balbala (2002) d’Abdourahman A. Waberi, Le bourreau (2004) de Séverin Cécile Abega, La grande mêlée (2011) de Michel Tremblay et Mãn (2013) de Kim Thúy. En effet, nous comparons et voulons savoir pourquoi et comment l’Afrique, le Canada et le Vietnam enfilent la postcolonie auréolée par le néo-colonialisme. Abordant cette problématique, tous les romans à l’étude convergent pour dire que les colonisateurs ont réussi à réifier les soleils des indépendances et de décolonisation en soleils assassins, les piments vicieux en fleurs inoffensives afin de ne pas contredire le sens des fibres coloniales et transférer la colonisation à la postcolonie. Dès lors, le combat reste donc perpétuel entre l’ombre postcoloniale et la lumière anti-postcoloniale / French Studies / M.A. (French)

This thesis provides a survey and an analysis of South Africa's relations with the British Commonwealth (Commonwealth of Nations) between the years 1945 and 1961. It outlines and explains the deterioration of this relationship in the context of the crisis in South Africa's foreign relations after World War II. Documentary evidence is produced to throw more light on the relationship with Britain and, to a lesser extent, other Commonwealth countries. This relationship is analysed in the context of political, economic and strategic imperatives which made it necessary for Britain to continue to seek South Africa's co-operation within the Commonwealth. This thesis also describes how the African and Asian influence began to be felt within the Commonwealth on racial issues. This influence was to become particularly important during the crucial period after the Sharpeville incident. The attitudes of Britain and other Commonwealth countries at the two crucial conferences of 1960 and 1961 are re-examined. The attitude of extra-parliamentary organisations in South Africa towards the Commonwealth connection is an important theme of this thesis in addition to the other themes mentioned above. It is demonstrated how Indian and African opinions became increasingly hostile towards what was seen as British and "white" Commonwealth "appeasement" of South Africa. These attitudes are surveyed in the context of an increasing radicalisation of black politics in South Africa. The movement by English and Afrikaans-speaking white South Africans toward a consensus on racial and foreign policy is also examined. Finally, the epilogue to this thesis discusses the return of South Africa to the Commonwealth in 1994. It includes a brief survey of developments in the Commonwealth attitude to South Africa since 1961. / History / D. Litt. et Phil. (History)

This thesis provides a survey and an analysis of South Africa's relations with the British Commonwealth (Commonwealth of Nations) between the years 1945 and 1961. It outlines and explains the deterioration of this relationship in the context of the crisis in South Africa's foreign relations after World War II. Documentary evidence is produced to throw more light on the relationship with Britain and, to a lesser extent, other Commonwealth countries. This relationship is analysed in the context of political, economic and strategic imperatives which made it necessary for Britain to continue to seek South Africa's co-operation within the Commonwealth. This thesis also describes how the African and Asian influence began to be felt within the Commonwealth on racial issues. This influence was to become particularly important during the crucial period after the Sharpeville incident. The attitudes of Britain and other Commonwealth countries at the two crucial conferences of 1960 and 1961 are re-examined. The attitude of extra-parliamentary organisations in South Africa towards the Commonwealth connection is an important theme of this thesis in addition to the other themes mentioned above. It is demonstrated how Indian and African opinions became increasingly hostile towards what was seen as British and "white" Commonwealth "appeasement" of South Africa. These attitudes are surveyed in the context of an increasing radicalisation of black politics in South Africa. The movement by English and Afrikaans-speaking white South Africans toward a consensus on racial and foreign policy is also examined. Finally, the epilogue to this thesis discusses the return of South Africa to the Commonwealth in 1994. It includes a brief survey of developments in the Commonwealth attitude to South Africa since 1961. / History / D. Litt. et Phil. (History)