This thesis examines recent doctrinal developments regarding the aboriginal and treaty rights which are recognised and affirmed in s.35(l) of the Constitution Act, 1982. Specifically, it explores how the meaning of such rights is being constituted by diverse relations of power operating within specific 'cites' of struggle. Chapter I is a brief introduction to recent transformations in the legal discourse of the Supreme Court and an overview of the methodologies being employed in this thesis. In this regard, the author undertakes an interdisciplinary approach to discourse analysis. Chapter II draws upon the writings of Michel Foucault to make the argument for the analytical framework being utilised; namely, the study of 'law' within a 'sovereign- discipline- government' society. Chapter III examines the relationship between the productive power of the disciplines and the legal discourse constituting the content of aboriginal rights; the purpose being to explore to what extent law 'operates as a norm' within this area. Additionally, it provides a lead into the discussion of 'government' by outlining the rationality underpinning the test for the justified governmental infringement of aboriginal and treaty rights. Chapter IV, examines the relationship between the regulatory power of 'government' and the legal discourse around current treaty negotiations. Specifically, it explores the inter-dependency between rationalities of self-government and the governmental technologies associated with 'advanced' liberalism. In doing so, it focuses on an emerging treaty from British Columbia to assess the extent to which law is being used as 'a tactic of government'. Chapter V, examines the relationship between the deductive power of 'sovereignty' and the legal discourse constituting the content of Aboriginal title. It argues that recent developments require the Court to deal with the issue of legal pluralism. And to do so, in a way that lays a more successful foundation in law for the legitimate reconciling of the pre-existence of First Nations societies and the sovereignty of the Crown. Chapter VI provides some concluding comments about the insights gained from the proceeding analysis. In doing so, it offers a brief discussion of how the proceeding specific analysis may relate to some recent work in post-colonial studies.

As Colin Calloway has noted, American Indians have been accorded a “minimal and negative role” in historical memories of the American Revolution because – according to popular mythology – they “chose the wrong side and lost.”1 Such memories are, I argue, at least partially the result of the failure of United States Indian policies and diplomacy during the war. An examination of the Journals of the Continental Congress reveals that these policies were predicated upon the racialized notion that Indians were ‘savages’ that should be ‘civilized’ and assimilated into American society. Such policies were, I argue, the product of processes of national identity formation. In the early years of the war, American leaders eager to form a new national identity separate from that of their British ‘oppressors’ began to identify themselves with Indians as natives of the same land and thus sought to bring them into the fold of the new nation. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Indians’ attempts to preserve their own culture and independence in the face of these policies were met largely with resentment by American leaders. By doing so Indians had, American leaders believed, rejected ‘civilization.’ They were thus ‘unworthy’ of inclusion in the American nation. The removal policies that arose in the wake of the Revolution were, I argue, partially an outgrowth of this belief. By removing Indians westward, American leaders could push them out of both sight and mind while conveniently forgetting their own diplomatic failures during the war. In the process, they positioned Indians in popular American memories of the Revolutionary War as ‘savages’ that ‘chose the wrong side and lost.’ / Introduction : the wrong side : a historiography of Indians' involvement in the American Revolution -- We may become one people : the evolution of Congressional Indian policies -- The same island is our common mother : diplomacy on the Revolutionary frontier -- Civilization or death to all savages : Congress's war on the frontier -- By the aid of the full blooded natives : Indians' war for independence -- Epilogue : a civilized people : a digital analysis of the Indian Removal Act's Revolutionary inheritances. / Department of History

The ending of apartheid and the transformation process in South Africa, the transition to democracy brought with them fundamental changes to the form and function of the State. In particular, they bring a restructuring of co-operative governance and intergovernmental relations. The responsibilities, functions and powers of the three spheres of government (national, provincial and local) were changed and streamlined as stated in the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa Act, 108 of 1996. The system of intergovernmental relations delineated in the Constitution differs significantly from that of the previous dispensation, particularly in its ambitions to advance democracy and to improve service delivery to all South Africans. Of particular significance is the respect in the fact that instead of the inherently conflicting intergovernmental relations that characterises most modern states, the Constitution actively promotes co-operation between different levels of government. The Intergovernmental Relations Framework Act, 13 of 2005 was promulgated on 15 August 2005. The Act provides for an institutional framework for the three spheres of government to facilitate coherent government, effective provision of services, monitoring the implementation of policy and legislation, and realisation of developmental goals of government as a whole. All spheres of government must provide effective, efficient, transparent, accountable and coherent government in order to ensure the progressive realisation of constitutional rights. One of the most pervasive challenges facing the country as a developmental state is the need for government to redress poverty, underdevelopment, marginalisation of people and communities and other legacies of apartheid and discrimination. This challenge can only be addressed through a concerted effort by government in all spheres to work together and integrate as far as possible their actions in the provision of service, alleviation of poverty and development of the communities. Co-operation and integration of actions in government depends on a stable and effective system of intergovernmental relations, one in which each of the spheres respect the relative autonomy of the other whilst appreciating the interrelatedness and interdependence of the three spheres. The study elaborated on the research as well as the research problem. In so doing, it further looked at the historical overview of the transition to a democratic South Africa which brought a significant change in the reconfiguration of the state. The studies further deals with a critique of co-operative governance and intergovernmental relations in the Eastern Cape and discuss the perspective on service delivery. In order to critically evaluate the notion of co-operative governance and intergovernmental relations in South Africa with specific reference to Eastern Cape, the study recommended that intergovernmental planning and budgeting, management of change, support and capacity building, communication and stakeholder engagement and institutional arrangement interventions be embarked upon. / Thesis (MBA)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2012.

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