Many scholars perceive state sovereignty as absolute, inviolable, indivisible, final, binding and stagnant. That perception emanates from inter alia political, social, cultural and environmental contexts of the modern era. Most literature converge that the doctrine of sovereignty first received official codification at the Peace Treaty of Westphalia in 1648. Contemporary international norms, particularly the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) doctrine, are arguably an environment and culture of current global politics. With human rights and democracy having taken centre-stage in contemporary political discourses, sovereignty is affected and influenced by such developments in international politics. Hence the argument that globalisation, among others, has eroded, weakened and rendered the doctrine of sovereignty obsolete. This study, using Zimbabwe‟s Operation Murambatsvina as a case study, demonstrates that sovereignty is neither unitary in practice, nor sacrosanct; it is dynamic and evolves, thus, in need of constant reconfiguration. To this end, the study uses the qualitative research methodology. / Political Sciences / M. A. (International Politics)

MA (Political Science) / Department of Development Studies / This study focuses on the politics of conflict resolution, paying special attention to the role of the international community in resolving the political crisis in South Sudan. The current political crisis in South Sudan has historical connections that date back to the time when Sudan was granted independence by the British government in 1956.These historical antecedents paved the way for the current political crisis which started on December 2013. The study is guided by the International Society Theory or the English School of Thought. The wisdom of the International Society Theory affirms international obligations bestowed on the members of the international community. According to this theory response to crisis of humanitarian nature such as the South Sudanese political crisis is part of the broader debate. Qualitative methods were used in this study because the researcher because they enabled the researcher to gain deeper insights on the research problem. All guidelines regarding ethical considerations were followed in order to avoid being biased and misinterpretation of information. Data were obtained from primary and secondary sources what sources. The study concludes that despite the involvement of many external actors, the conflict is still raging on due to a numbers of reasons such as, mistrust between the conflicting parties and lack of political will to resolve the conflict. Key words: Humanitarian intervention, Conflict, Nation-Building, Coup d’état, Conflict resolution, Horn of Africa, State formation, Responsibility to protect (R2P) / NRF

This thesis explores the pressing need for reform within the United Nations Security Council, a key organization in global governance, in the form of a case study. The main purpose of the research is to understand how its reform could enhance its legitimacy while attending to the possible opposition from the USA, China, and Russia. It encompasses historical information, from the League of Nations to the reform proposals throughout history, culminating in the present debates, as well as useful theoretical approaches for the analysis. Through the Syrian Civil War, it describes the Council struggle to handle contemporary geopolitical issues. The insights of the Intergovernmental Negotiations Framework and the Elements Paper are crucial to research the current reform debates, and other literature from scholars, International Organizations and media are also employed. The analysis investigates the research question and hypothesis, and the conclusion helps summarize the findings. The thesis serves as a call for a better articulated Security Council that can better confront the complexities of our multipolar world with effectivity and effectiveness.