Since the democratic changes in South Africa in 1994, there have been great expectations of the role that South Africa can play in promoting peace and stability in Africa. South Africa cannot prosper in isolation on a continent which is not at peace with itself. It is in the country‘s national interest to play a role in the prevention of conflict. During my deployment to the Antarctic and in Africa, I asked why some people are better able to cope with deployment and isolation than others. Deployed chaplains provided spiritual, emotional and pastoral support. In their efforts to provide care, they are supported by Social Workers, Healthcare Professionals and Psychologists. For the purpose of this research, they are all referred to as Professional Caregivers. Under the term Caregivers I understand professionally trained people focusing on caring for other people as part of their work. “How do caregivers cope with deployment?” was the question answered by my Co-researchers. In obtaining this data the narrative research paradigm was used. Within the context of Peacekeeping Missions, aspects ranging from military discipline, alcohol misuse, how soldiers cope with the deployment stages, the role of Social Constructionism and how we create our own reality, is considered. Narrative research strives to listen to people‘s stories of how they explain their own understanding of how they coped with deployment. The aim of narrative research is not to bring about change, but to understand their stories. I was interested in learning about the caregivers‘ personal experiences through their own stories. These stories would be documented as part of personal interviews as shared by the caregivers in looking back at their deployment experiences. The term Co-researchers were used in the research process to explain the role and inputs made by the caregivers who shared their stories of coping. The role of faith combined with the knowledge gained from interdisciplinary inputs in coping with deployment is addressed. Caregivers expressed their opinions regarding the lack of support from management as well as possible solutions. Alternative interpretations and outcomes were made by the Co-researchers to explain how they were able to cope. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Practical Theology / unrestricted

This work is built on three pillars and seeks to contribute to the understanding of the right to development (RtD) especially from the perspective of human rights non-governmental organisations. First, the right to development, arguably one of the most recent and controversial rights in the architecture of international human rights, shapes the development paradigm in a manner that integrates civil, cultural, economic, social, political and environmental rights of both individuals and groups without distinction. Secondly, in general, social movements – including nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) – play a crucial role as agents for change in any democratic society. Africa, and within it Côte d’Ivoire, is no exception. Thirdly Côte d’Ivoire, an African country once heralded as a success story has been confronted with an internal conflict with impacts which continue to be felt in the form of increased poverty and insecurity. The country strives to resume peace, development and stability but does not appear to have reached the end of the tunnel. The issues confronting this country are similar to those identified by Former South African President, Thabo Mbeki, and others to justify the promotion of the African Renaissance as the vision to pursue. From the perspective of human rights law, these issues are largely covered by the RtD. Therefore, can NGOs in Côte d’Ivoire contribute meaningfully to addressing the challenges facing the country through the pursuit of the RtD? This is the question at the heart of the present work. This thesis establishes two main conclusions. First, in the current context of the Côte d’Ivoire, a shift in focus towards the RtD will enable NGOs be part of the solution to the multifaceted problems Côte d’Ivoire is seeking to overcome. Secondly, no NGO currently has the requisite experience in working on the RtD in Côte d’Ivoire. However, the structural reasons for this vacuum relate in the main to knowledge and capacity. These can be addressed and recommendations are formulated to this end. / Public, Constitutional, & International / LL.D.

Les grilles de lecture classiques sur la trajectoire sociopolitique du continent africain sont souvent pessimistes. Elles semblent avoir de beaux jours devant elles puisque l’histoire contemporaine montre une Afrique perpétuellement instable politiquement, traversée par des guerres civiles et des démocraties émergentes sous tension à l’approche des élections.Ce travail invite à une réflexion et une perspective scientifique alternatives, autour d’un pays comme le Bénin. Depuis son indépendance, il n’a pas connu la violence létale, facteur d’un état social « chaotique et pathologique » entraînant un gros volume de destructions et de catastrophes, pour les biens comme pour les individus. Cette thèse relie et articule plusieurs points : l’imaginaire collectif, la relation à l’autre, l’idée que les habitants ont de l’appartenance à un ensemble nommé Bénin, les symboles à l’actif du pays, le travail de socialisation à une communauté de sens et le processus de pacification. Les tensions d’un niveau infra-létal existent mais restent jusqu’à présent contenues. Elles sont les contingences de la construction d’une société politique et traversent certaines étapes de son histoire sociopolitique.Notre démarche théorique favorise une réflexion globale autour de l’interaction entre la double altérité ‒ on est toujours un "autre" pour "l'autre" ‒ et la question de la paix, principalement à l’intérieur d’un pays comme le Bénin. Les profils identitaires ne sont jamais les mêmes à travers le temps et l’espace. Mais au-delà des écarts différentiels, le fait qu’un espace favorise l’émergence des identités collectivement partagées rend probable tout processus de pacification. Dans la mise en œuvre de celui-ci, l’idée du Bénin devient ainsi plus forte que le Bénin lui-même, entité d’abord voire surtout substantielle. Les Béninois ne sont pas en paix parce qu’ils auraient nécessairement la même couleur de peau, la même histoire, une langue commune. Pour nous, même en l’absence de ces trois critères, la paix reste accessible. Pour le démontrer, trois années sur le « terrain » (2007-2010) ont constitué le temps fort de la recherche empirique. Nous avons mené une centaine d’entretiens et réalisé des focus group au sein des communautés où la question de l’identité partagée est mise à l’épreuve quotidiennement. Cette étude doctorale est ainsi un compte rendu des résultats obtenus et des analyses proposées. / Classical perspectives on the socio-political trajectory of the African continent are often pessimist. They will mostly remain so for some time to as contemporary history reveals a continent continually riddled with political instability and wracked by civil wars, whilst emerging democracies are subjected to tensions at the onset of elections. This work offers a reflection and an alternative scientific perspective by focusing on Benin. Since its Independence, Benin has not experienced lethal violence or pathological social chaos causing immense destruction and disaster. This thesis addresses and links several issues: a collective memory, relationships to other people, the idea that residents belong to a unity called Benin; the existence of symbols that benefit national consciousness; socialization aimed at achieving a sense of community; and a peace process. Tensions were at low lethality levels were present and still exist but have so far been limited. They characterize the contingent stages of a political society and its political history.Our theoretical approach privileges a general reflection on: the interaction between duality and otherness – there is always on “other” for an “other” – and the issue of peace; here (within a country), and elsewhere (abroad). Identity profiles are never the same across time and space. But beyond various differences, the fact that space promotes the emergence of collectively shared identities possibly contributes to the peace process. During the implementation of the peace process, the idea of Benin becomes stronger than Benin itself; an entity which is, first of all, substantive in nature. The Beninese are not in peace just because they have the same skin colour, the same history or a common language. Three years of field research (2007 – 2010) constituted the most important period of the empirical research that was used to demonstrate this. About a hundred interviews were conducted and focus group discussions were held within communities where the issue of shared identity was a daily problem. This doctoral study is therefore an account of results obtained and proposed analyses.

This work is built on three pillars and seeks to contribute to the understanding of the right to development (RtD) especially from the perspective of human rights non-governmental organisations. First, the right to development, arguably one of the most recent and controversial rights in the architecture of international human rights, shapes the development paradigm in a manner that integrates civil, cultural, economic, social, political and environmental rights of both individuals and groups without distinction. Secondly, in general, social movements – including nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) – play a crucial role as agents for change in any democratic society. Africa, and within it Côte d’Ivoire, is no exception. Thirdly Côte d’Ivoire, an African country once heralded as a success story has been confronted with an internal conflict with impacts which continue to be felt in the form of increased poverty and insecurity. The country strives to resume peace, development and stability but does not appear to have reached the end of the tunnel. The issues confronting this country are similar to those identified by Former South African President, Thabo Mbeki, and others to justify the promotion of the African Renaissance as the vision to pursue. From the perspective of human rights law, these issues are largely covered by the RtD. Therefore, can NGOs in Côte d’Ivoire contribute meaningfully to addressing the challenges facing the country through the pursuit of the RtD? This is the question at the heart of the present work. This thesis establishes two main conclusions. First, in the current context of the Côte d’Ivoire, a shift in focus towards the RtD will enable NGOs be part of the solution to the multifaceted problems Côte d’Ivoire is seeking to overcome. Secondly, no NGO currently has the requisite experience in working on the RtD in Côte d’Ivoire. However, the structural reasons for this vacuum relate in the main to knowledge and capacity. These can be addressed and recommendations are formulated to this end. / Public, Constitutional, and International / LL.D.