University of Macau / Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities / Department of Government and Public Administration

Just as conflict is part of everyday life, mediation can and is practiced everyday and everywhere. It is a way of reaching decisions in a cooperative, non-hierarchical way, allowing for clear and open communication processes. Conflicts can be resolved in a formal manner through courts, arbitration, ombudspeople, diplomacy and mediation, or an informal manner through friends, colleagues, religious and community leaders, and dialogue. The way in which people resolve their disputes has an impact on how societies and institutions are governed. The war in Bakassi has taken its toll on the people of that area for several years now and has witnessed people from Bakassi facing some of the worst effects of armed conflict known to man. This study investigated the use of international mediation in the management of intractable conflict with a specific case study on the Bakassi peninsula conflict between Cameroon and Nigeria. It focused on the mediation process as a conflict management technique in relation to the international relations theories which has been used as a basis for conflict resolution practices. The researcher conducted a document review, content analysis on selected documents and this was supported by strategic interviews. The findings as well as the researcher‘s recommendations are discussed in the study in order to assist the future work of conflict management specialists and other stakeholders who have devoted their efforts to the recovery of areas emerging from conflict.

The occurrence of internal armed conflict in Africa has increased over the last two decades. As such, Africa continues to be viewed by many as a troubled continent. In an attempt to avoid further conflict in Africa, organisations such as the United Nations have implemented comprehensive tools and strategies to prevent further conflicts from occurring. However, the genocide in Rwanda and the on-going unrest in Sudan have shown that there is still a lot of work to be done. In both these cases, the conflicts took place or escalated even with UN presence on ground. This paper will thus examine the UN's legal role in the prevention of internal armed conflict and establish the type of lessons that could be learnt from Rwanda and Sudan. / Public, Constitutional, & International / LL.M.

The occurrence of internal armed conflict in Africa has increased over the last two decades. As such, Africa continues to be viewed by many as a troubled continent. In an attempt to avoid further conflict in Africa, organisations such as the United Nations have implemented comprehensive tools and strategies to prevent further conflicts from occurring. However, the genocide in Rwanda and the on-going unrest in Sudan have shown that there is still a lot of work to be done. In both these cases, the conflicts took place or escalated even with UN presence on ground. This paper will thus examine the UN's legal role in the prevention of internal armed conflict and establish the type of lessons that could be learnt from Rwanda and Sudan. / Public, Constitutional, and International / LL.M.

Thesis (MA) -- Stellenbosch University, 2006. / Includes bibliography / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The nature of conflict in Africa has changed from the Cold War to the post-cold War era. This is evident in the internal and external factors and actors involved within the conflict dynamics. During the Cold War era politics and the quest for control of the state formed the basis for conflicts in Africa, from anti-colonial wars of independence and liberation struggles to secessionist attempts. In the post-Cold War era with the loss of external superpower support, this has changed with the growing significance of identity politics, and conflicts based on the differences of ethnicity, religion and the quest for the control of resources and land, characterised by extreme violence and the rise of actors other than the state, within failed and collapsed states. These conflicts have thus presented challenges to the United Nations (UN) in relation to its traditional means of maintaining international peace and security, and the internal dynamics of the decision-making processes, political will and accompanying resources and financial factors within the organisation. The challenges faced by the UN in Africa therefore lie not only within the nature of conflict and the nature of the African state but also within the internal constraints inherent within the organisation itself. The conflicts in Mozambique and Rwanda respectively represent how the nature of conflict has changed in Africa from the Cold War to the post-Cold War era and both illustrate the challenges the UN has faced in light of the changing nature of African conflict. While Mozambique offers an example of a typical Cold War conflict, based on the quest for control of the state and exacerbated by superpower support, Rwanda represents an example of a typical post-Cold War internal conflict based on identity politics and extreme violence manifest as genocide. By comparing and contrasting these two conflicts, and the subsequent involvement of UN peace maintenance operations in these conflicts, this thesis offers a comparative study of "old" and "new" wars in Africa in order that a better understanding of the nature of conflict in Africa can be reached and to illustrate the challenges faced by the UN in light of this changing nature of conflict. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die aard van konflik in Afrika het vanaf die tydperk van die Koue Oorlog tot die na-Koue Oorlog tydperk aansienlik verander. Dit is in die innerlike en uiterlike faktore en akteurs wat by die konflik betrokke is waarneembaar. Gedurende die Koue Oorlog tydperk was interstaatlike konflik 'n hoofkenmerk. Dit was ook die fase van antikoloniale oorloë wat dikwels met eksterne steun geveg is. In die na-Koue Oorlog tydperk met die verlies van uiterlike supermoondheid ondersteuning, het interne konflik binne swak state dikwels oor die beheer van skaars hulpbronne, of oor identiteit en griewe gegaan. Die konflik het uitdagings aan die Verenigde Nasies (VN) gestel wie se vredesregime kwalik vir rebelle en kindersoldate voorsiening gemaak het. Dit het ook eise gestel aan die politieke wilskrag van lede van die Veiligheidsraad om in dergelike konflikte betrokke te raak. Die uitdaging vir die VN in Afrika lê dus nie net in die aard van konflik en die aard van die staat in Afrika wat verander het nie, maar ook in nuwe eise vir vrede. Die twee gevallestudies van die konflik in Mosambiek en Rwanda demonstreer hoe hierdie aard van konflik verander het, en hoe moeilik dit is om vrede te maak waar akteurs (rolspelers) kwalik binne konvensionele raamwerke hanteer kan word. Waar Mosambiek 'n voorbeeld van 'n tipiese Koue Oorlogse konflik was - stryd vir die beheer oor die staat en aangevuur deur supermoonhede, is Ruanda weer 'n meer eietydse voorbeeld van 'n tipiese na-Koue Oorlogse interne konflik, gebaseer op identiteitspolitiek wat met ekstreme geweld en volksmoord gepaard gegaan het. Hierdie tesis bied 'n vergelykende studie van sulke "ou" en "nuwe" oorloë in Afrika en bied moontlik 'n beter begrip van die aard en oplossing van sulke konflikte wat by uitstek nuwe uitdagings aan die tradisionele opvattings van die VN stel.

Thesis (MA)--University of Stellenbosch, 2002. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Since the early 1960s, when the majority of African countries gained independence from colonial powers, the continent has been in turmoil. Conflicts have been extensive, and detrimental to economic, political and above all, social development. Today, Africa is under more pressure than ever to find solutions for these conflicts. The situation is complicated by the complex and difficult challenges brought on by a rapidly globalising world. Also conflicts have often been characterised by internal, as well as regional proportions. Coupled with this, the threats facing Southern Africa are of such a nature that they transcend national boundaries, and have a tendency to effect entire regions as opposed to individual states. Thus threats no longer endanger states, but rather their people. fn view of this, conflict resolution requires a regional approach as well, in order to ensure a viable and lasting solution. This thesis attempts to evaluate the contribution of regional co-operation to conflict resolution in Southern Africa. Two concepts imperative to this evaluation are regionalism and security. Both are examined and juxtaposed. The author determines that the concepts have changed dramatically since the end of the Cold War period, and that new regionalism and new security approaches need to be considered in addressing conflicts, since traditional interpretations have become obsolete, particularly in the developing world. Furthermore, an examination of the international, regional and sub-regional organisations, concerned with conflict management on the continent, is carried out. The United Nations and the Southern African Development Community, together with their efforts in Southern Africa analysed. The author takes the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo as a case study, and concludes that the persisting conflict has ensued precisely because regional co-operation was inadequate. The states and leaders involved did not take into account the regional dimensions of the conflict, and also ignored threats to human security. Regional co-operation was at a minimal, and involvement has until now been predominantly unilateral and statist, marked by personal interests, and not those of the population. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Sedert die vroeë sestigerjare, toe die meerderheid Afrikalande onafhankliheid van koloniale magte verkry het, was die kontinent in onrus gehul. Dit was omvattende konflik - konflik wat nadelig was vir ekonomiese, politieke en veral sosiale ontwikkeling. Vandag, meer as ooit tevore, is Afrika onder druk om oplossings te vind vir hierdie konflikte. Die situasie word gekompliseer deur die uitdagings gestel deur 'n vinnig globaliserende wêreld. Die konflik word dikwels deur interne sowel as streeksafmetings gekenmerk. Hiermee saam is die bedreigings wat op Suidelike Afrika 'n invloed het van so 'n aard dat dit nasionale grense ignoreer en die geneigdheid het om totale streke, in teenstelling met individuele state, te beïnvloed. Hierdie bedreigings stel dus nie state in gevaar nie, maar eerder hul mense. Om 'n lewensvatbare en blywende effek te hê, benodig konflikoplossing dus ook 'n streeksbenadering aan te neem. Hierdie tesis poog om die bydrae van streekssamewerking, ten einde konflikoplossing in Suidelike Afrika te bewerkstellig, te evalueer. Beide word ondersoek en in verband gebring. Die skrywer bevind dat die konsepte drasties verander het sedert die einde van die Koue Oorlog tydperk, en dat nuwe regionalisme en nuwe sekuriteit benaderings oorweeg moet word, aangesien tradisionele interpretasies verouderd, veral in die ontwikkelende wêreld, is. Verder word internasionale, regionale en sub-regionale organisasies wat gemoeid is met konflikhantering op die kontinent, ook ondersoek. Die Verenigde Nasies en die Suidelike Afrika Ontwikkelings Gemeenskap (SADe), tesame met hul pogings in Suidelike Africa, word geanaliseer. Die skrywer maak gebruik van die konflik in die Demokratiese Republiek van die Kongo as gevallestudie, en kom tot die gevolgtrekking dat konflik ontstaan het juis omdat regionale samewerking nooit werklik gerealiseer het nie. Die betrokke state en leiers het nie die streeksdimensies van die konflik in ag geneem nie, en ook menslike sekuriteit bedreigings ignoreer. Regionale samewerking was beperk tot In minimum, en betrokkenheid was tot nou toe oorwegend eensydig en staats georienteerd, en gekenmerk deur persoonlike belange, en nie dié van die bevolking nie.

This thesis investigates both substantive and procedural issues pertaining to allegations of crimes committed by UN peacekeepers in three African countries, Somalia, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Under the current UN Model Status-of-Forces Agreements, criminal jurisdiction over peacekeepers rests with their sending States. However, although the UN has no criminal jurisdiction, it has been the Office of Internal Oversight Services that has conducted investigations. It is argued that every Status of Force Agreement and every Memorandum of Understanding should contain specific clauses obligating Troop-Contributing Countries to prosecute and the UN to follow-up. If rape, murder, assault, and any other crimes by UN peacekeepers go unpunished, the message sent to the victims is that peacekeepers are above the law. Rape is the most commonly committed crime by peacekeepers, but is usually considered as an isolated act. The procedural issue of prosecuting peacekeepers is investigated in order to establish whether troops can be caught under the ambits of the criminal law of the Host State to hold UN troops criminally accountable for their acts. The laws relative to the elements of each crime and the possible available defences under the three Host States, and the criminal law of South Africa as a Troop-Contributing Country, are discussed. The apparent lack of prosecution is investigated and existing cases of prosecution discussed. Alternatives to the unwillingness by States with criminal jurisdiction under the Status of Forces Agreement or under the Memorandum of Understanding are considered. Considering the current rules related to crimes committed by peacekeepers, the argument put forward is that crimes by peacekeepers must be dealt with completely and transparently though a Convention aiming at barring Troop-Contributing Countries who do not meet their obligations under international law from participating in future operations of peace. This thesis, furthermore, suggests a tripartite court mechanism to fill the lacunae in the law relating to the prosecution of peacekeepers. It considers the issues of reserving jurisdiction over peacekeepers to the Troop-Contributing Countries which are reluctant to prosecute repatriated alleged perpetrators. The victims’ importance in criminal proceedings and their their right to a remedy are highlighted. / Criminal & Procedural Law / LL.D.

This thesis investigates both substantive and procedural issues pertaining to allegations of crimes committed by UN peacekeepers in three African countries, Somalia, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Under the current UN Model Status-of-Forces Agreements, criminal jurisdiction over peacekeepers rests with their sending States. However, although the UN has no criminal jurisdiction, it has been the Office of Internal Oversight Services that has conducted investigations. It is argued that every Status of Force Agreement and every Memorandum of Understanding should contain specific clauses obligating Troop-Contributing Countries to prosecute and the UN to follow-up. If rape, murder, assault, and any other crimes by UN peacekeepers go unpunished, the message sent to the victims is that peacekeepers are above the law. Rape is the most commonly committed crime by peacekeepers, but is usually considered as an isolated act. The procedural issue of prosecuting peacekeepers is investigated in order to establish whether troops can be caught under the ambits of the criminal law of the Host State to hold UN troops criminally accountable for their acts. The laws relative to the elements of each crime and the possible available defences under the three Host States, and the criminal law of South Africa as a Troop-Contributing Country, are discussed. The apparent lack of prosecution is investigated and existing cases of prosecution discussed. Alternatives to the unwillingness by States with criminal jurisdiction under the Status of Forces Agreement or under the Memorandum of Understanding are considered. Considering the current rules related to crimes committed by peacekeepers, the argument put forward is that crimes by peacekeepers must be dealt with completely and transparently though a Convention aiming at barring Troop-Contributing Countries who do not meet their obligations under international law from participating in future operations of peace. This thesis, furthermore, suggests a tripartite court mechanism to fill the lacunae in the law relating to the prosecution of peacekeepers. It considers the issues of reserving jurisdiction over peacekeepers to the Troop-Contributing Countries which are reluctant to prosecute repatriated alleged perpetrators. The victims’ importance in criminal proceedings and their their right to a remedy are highlighted. / Criminal and Procedural Law / LL.D.