I examine five international investment cases that embrace the neoliberal vision. This economic model provides a new, contested space between the construction of hegemonic globalisations from above and the contestation of these globalisations from below. The first objective is to describe this space. Each ends the same way: the exit of an unwanted foreign investor after intense social mobilisation. The second objective is to show that counter-hegemonic victories are difficult to achieve: the regime relegates the voice of the subaltern to an inconsequential role, limits public interest state projects that may interfere with investor rights, and often includes a compensatory promise to foreign investors irrespective of the host state’s fiscal capacity. The third objective is to demonstrate the ambivalent role of the state in promoting such neoliberal projects, which necessitate that it adopt a more active role in either policing investment or policing society.

I examine five international investment cases that embrace the neoliberal vision. This economic model provides a new, contested space between the construction of hegemonic globalisations from above and the contestation of these globalisations from below. The first objective is to describe this space. Each ends the same way: the exit of an unwanted foreign investor after intense social mobilisation. The second objective is to show that counter-hegemonic victories are difficult to achieve: the regime relegates the voice of the subaltern to an inconsequential role, limits public interest state projects that may interfere with investor rights, and often includes a compensatory promise to foreign investors irrespective of the host state’s fiscal capacity. The third objective is to demonstrate the ambivalent role of the state in promoting such neoliberal projects, which necessitate that it adopt a more active role in either policing investment or policing society.

This dissertation is about social mobilizations in rural Kyrgyzstan from 2010-2015. Following a constructivist approach, I aim to answer a puzzling question in regard to multiple but rarely sustainable protests in this global periphery: Under what conditions can provisional episodes of mobilization be transformed into sustained mobilization? In particularly, I consider Eric Hirsch’s insight that the commitment of participants of mobilization to the cause is formed within collective instances, i.e. ‘group processes’, and I employ it in the Kyrgyzstani context of generalized distrust and discredited corrupt politics. I explore the conditions in which participants of episodes of mobilization create trust in organizers and into the cause of mobilization. I investigate these conditions in two case studies: one concerns a fragmented labour force at a state-owned gas and oil company in which, in the course of four years, workers succeeded to empower themselves as a collective actor within the group processes of collective learning and collective decision-making. The second tells a story about a fragmented rural community that goes against mining operations but sees the decline of an initially successful mobilization within group processes of monitoring. These findings point to the presence of a specific ‘pre-condition’ for any lasting mobilization: trust between organizers and participants of episodes of mobilization must be established in the process of monitoring the commitment to collective interests. With this insight I contribute to the literature on social movements and mobilizations that tends to take commitment and trust as pre-established resources. Furthermore, this work intervenes in the ongoing discussion on social change in the former Soviet Union. First, my observations of the difficult formation of protest groups lead, surprisingly, to the conclusion that the weak state produces a weak society. Second, due to the fragmented and localized nature of these mobilizations, social and political change in Kyrgyzstan is most likely to occur at the local level.

The aim of this study is to explore the importance of community based social mobilisation strategies in advancing human rights, in particular, strategies that could be used advance exercise of the right to legal capacity for persons with psychosocial disabilities in the face of societal barriers in the African context. The results of the study are aimed at providing useful and practical considerations in addressing the gap that exist in human rights implementation, between the promises of the law and its impact in reality. To this end, secondary desk top data was collected from existing text on the CRPD, mental illness and social mobilisation strategies. The latter was based on an analysis of the mobilisation strategy employed by Tostan in West Africa to successfully challenge female genital mutilation/cutting. Primary data was obtained through focus groups held in Lusaka and at Nsadzu Mental Health Rehabilitation Centre in Chadiza, in rural Zambia. The significance of legal capacity in Zambia was established and three main categories of concern emerged as barriers to the exercise of legal capacity: a) lack of state and community based supports and social networks; b) inadequate training of health and justice system officials; and c) stigma of mental illness and stereotypes. The benefits of social mobilisation in addressing these barriers are manifold, as demonstrated through the Tostan model. / Mini Dissertation (MPhil)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Centre for Human Rights / MPhil / Unrestricted

AbstractThis thesis critically examines the impact of print and social media in a social movement by using Bring Back Our Girls as a case study, which depicts the abduction of girls by warlords in Africa. Today, due to social inequality, activists do not possess the same budget as larger companies for advertising and mass communications. Social movement campaigners depend on media coverage to gain public attention so that their voice can be heard. This study explores the role of print and social media in a social movement - the case of Bring Back Our Girls in Nigeria. A digital signage prototype was designed and developed to solve the issue of digital divide experienced by the Bring Back Our Girls advocacy group during the campaign. However, the digital signage turns the four stages of conventional social movements, which are Emergence, Coalescence, Bureaucratisation, and Decline. For example, if the movement is on bureaucratisation and a new channel is added, people will go back to emergence stage. This prototype, when fully developed, could be used to create awareness and to reach people in rural areas. This study used two research paths, primary and secondary. Primary research is conducted using two main methods: interviews (focus group interview) and a questionnaire. The focus group consisted of fifteen people, fourteen males and one female, although many female activists were invited, only one attended the meeting because of the socio-economic factor in Nigeria and the focus questions were open-ended. In addition, a questionnaire was designed for the evaluation of the prototype. The focus group interview focused on the examination of the role played by the print and social media platforms during the BBOG campaign and the questionnaire focused on the digital signage. The study also examined how a prototype of digital signage is designed by using the Microsoft PowerPoint Application. Secondary research was conducted using literature, online material, articles, e-books, etc., to gain an in-depth understanding of the role of print media, social media, social movement, design science, prototype design, resource mobilisation theory (RMT), social mobilisation, and digital divide. Specific research methods were identified based on the theoretical perspective chosen by the author. Both quantitative and qualitative data gathered in this study suggest that print and social media have some positive impacts on social movement and some of the participants claimed that they had been informed of Boko Haram’s rampage and the abduction of the Chibok girls through print media, such as newspapers, magazines, roadside posters, and billboards.Moreover, some participants claimed that they became aware of the BBOG campaign through social media like Facebook, Twitter, etc. The focus group interviews led to identification of six key themes. These were, information and intelligence gathering, social and print media education, information sharing, religious or tribal sentiment, communication, and networking and advocacy. Also, there are a number of sub-themes, which are discussed at length within the analysis of the report. The general findings are that the BBOG campaign movement was first noticed on electronic media, but became viral and sporadic in print and social media. Despite the cultural and religious differences in Nigeria, the campaigners came together to solicit for the rescue of the Chibok Girls.

In 1995 the Swedish government launched the first area-based initiative Special initiatives in immigrant-dense neighbourhoods as a response to the current debate concerning the failings of the integration policy. The area-based policy and projects undertake the mission to reverse the trend in marginalized neighbourhoods in Sweden’s major cities from 1995 to 2014. The empirical material is from the projects Area-programs for a socially sustainable Malmö (2010-2015) and Lindängen towards the future (2012-2014), Malmö municipality. Adopting a social constructionist approach the study’s aim is to examine the projects’ assumptions concerning what – and who – should be changed and how.  Based on the policy´s claim to achieve structural change the study also examines if, and if so what, possibilities the projects have to create opportunities for structural change.   The study shows that the area-based projects cannot create opportunities for structural change but rather work to reduce the social consequences of structural deficiencies that are made visible through the reproduction of marginalised neighbourhoods. In the projects the social problem is constructed as consisting of four interrelated factors: long-term unemployment, foreign background, segregation and lack of social responsibility. The strategy is to mobilise public, private and civil sector actors so that they – despite society’s exclusion of people of foreign background in situations of long-term unemployment – take their social responsibility and make available resources to individual residents in order to prepare them for becoming active citizens. As they are not able to reduce poverty, promote inclusive political and economic processes or legitimate relationships between those in power and representatives of civil society with demands for changing conditions, their ability to create opportunities for structural change is found to be  limited. / 1995 implementeras det första områdesbaserade projektet Särskilda insatser i invandrartäta bostadsområden som svar på den pågående debatten rörande samhällsutvecklingen och den misslyckade integrationspolitiken. Den områdesbaserade politiken syftar till att vända utvecklingen i marginaliserade bostadsområden i Sveriges storstäder 1995-2014. Här studeras Malmö stads Områdesprogram för ett socialt hållbart Malmö (2010-2015) och Lindängen mot framtiden (2012-2014). Genom att anlägga en socialkonstruktionistisk ansats syftar studien till att undersöka föreställningar om vad - och vem - som bör förändras och hur. Med bakgrund i politikområdets anspråk om att uppnå strukturell förändring undersöker studien även om, och i så fall vilka, förutsättningar politikområdet och projekt i praktiken har att möjliggöra strukturell förändring.   Studien visar att de områdesbaserade projekten inte har möjlighet att verka strukturförändrande utan snarast arbetar för att minska de sociala konsekvenserna av strukturella brister som synliggörs genom reproduktionen av marginaliserade bostadsområden. Projekten konstruerar det sociala problemet som bestående av fyra interrelaterade faktorer: långvarig arbetslöshet, utländsk bakgrund, boendesegregation och bristande samhällsansvar. Deras strategi är att mobilisera offentliga, privata och civila sektorsaktörer för att de – trots samhällssystemets exkludering av människor med utländsk bakgrund i situationer av långvarig arbetslöshet – ska ta sitt samhällsansvar och tillgängliggöra resurser till enskilda invånare för att förbereda dem för att bli aktiva samhällsmedborgare. Projektens möjlighet att skapa strukturell förändring hindras av att de inte kan minska fattigdom, främja inkluderande politiska och ekonomiska processer, eller bidra till legitima relationer mellan makthavare och aktörer från det civila samhället med krav på förändrade villkor. / <p>QC 20161213</p>

In 1991, Colombia crafted a new Constitution that, after decades of ignorance, recognized the existence of ethnic minorities within the country. Special rights were given to the indigenous population while disregarding the even larger minority, afro-descendants. This thesis aims to identify how indigenous peoples and afro-descendants in Colombia are framed, with the argument that the use and effect of certain frames affect the groups’ mobilisation success. Material produced by the groups themselves as well as other actors within the context is analysed to identify frames, which are then put into the social and historical context of the groups to discuss how and why the specific frames are used. In the result, it was evident that the ethnicities are framed in similar ways, but due to their historical and social contexts, the frames have distinct effects, which can explain the groups’ unequal level of political representation in the country.

The focus of this study is on language maintenance and shift in Maale, a minority language spoken in Ethiopia. The main aims of the study are to give an account of the underlying social factors that have contributed to language maintenance in the Maale speech community, and to investigate whether the mother-tongue literacy programme in the Maale region is going to facilitate language maintenance or contribute to language shift. The findings suggest that regional nationalism, which corresponds to ethnic nationalism in Paulston's theory of social mobilisation, is the reason why the Maale language has been maintained as a viable language in spite of centuries of political repression. The findings also indicate that the mother-tongue literacy programme currently contributes to language maintenance but it is a stepping stone to further education, which favours the learning of a second language, which could lead to possible attrition of the mother tongue. / Linguistics / M.A. (Sociolinguistics)

This study examines the role of Community Based-Organisations (CBOs) in the response to HIV/AIDS as a development challenge drawing examples from the Gabane Community Home-Based Care CBO in Botswana. The study adopted qualitative methods of research and used group discussions, relative unstructured interviews, direct observation and literature review as methods of data collection. The study found out that HIV/AIDS is indeed a development problem and that it can be dealt with using some existing development approaches such as the sustainable livelihoods approaches. The study further identified specific roles that CBOs play in the response to HIV/AIDS. It also revealed the potential that CBOs have in achieving development. In addition, the study identified and outlined challenges that CBOs face in responding to HIV/AIDS. Key recommendations are that CBOs must integrate poverty reduction interventions in their activities. They must also form coalitions and strengthen their capacity to sustain their activities and manage partnerships. / Development Studies

The focus of this study is on language maintenance and shift in Maale, a minority language spoken in Ethiopia. The main aims of the study are to give an account of the underlying social factors that have contributed to language maintenance in the Maale speech community, and to investigate whether the mother-tongue literacy programme in the Maale region is going to facilitate language maintenance or contribute to language shift. The findings suggest that regional nationalism, which corresponds to ethnic nationalism in Paulston's theory of social mobilisation, is the reason why the Maale language has been maintained as a viable language in spite of centuries of political repression. The findings also indicate that the mother-tongue literacy programme currently contributes to language maintenance but it is a stepping stone to further education, which favours the learning of a second language, which could lead to possible attrition of the mother tongue. / Linguistics and Modern Languages / M.A. (Sociolinguistics)