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Arms control and disarmament in Southern Africa: An assessment of civil society and state responses in Mozambique 1995 – 2003

Thesis (MA (Political Science))--University of Stellenbosch, 2010. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This thesis aims to ascertain the level of success which civil society and state actors have had
in dealing with issues of arms control and disarmament in the SADC region during the post-
Cold War era. The main research question shall be divided into two key questions, the first
being: How successful have states been in managing arms control and disarmament in the
SADC region? The second question being: How successful has civil society been in managing
arms control and disarmament in the SADC region? The study is therefore an evaluative
study and shall be focused on the case study of Mozambique. Two arms control processes
shall be evaluated in this regard. First is the “Transforming weapons into Ploughshares” or
TAE project which is a civil society campaign aimed at minimizing the harsh impacts that
Small Arms and Light Weapons have on Mozambican society. The demarcated time period
for this project shall be 1995-2003. Second is state driven operation between South African
and Mozambican police aimed at locating and destroying arms caches responsible for fuelling
the illicit trade in light arms between the two countries. This project was known as Operation
Rachel and shall be evaluated from the period of 1995-2001.
Through evaluating these two projects, the study shall seek to make the point that in terms of
arms control in post-conflict developing states, there is a role for both state and civil societies.
The role of civil society organizations can be seen as one of identifying security threats,
raising public awareness and democratizing security issues such as arms control so that
society at large becomes active in negating the problem. The role of the state on the other
hand is to live up to its duties as the chief provider of security for the designated population
within the state’s territorial boundary. Arms control in Mozambique and in the SADC region
in general has been mediocre at best since as shall be demonstrated, states are far too weak to
offer any meaningful protection to citizens and secondly civil society organizations which
have taken it upon themselves to offer this kind of protection are just not well resourced
enough to undertake state responsibilities. Thus the key recommendation of this study is that
Southern African states invariably need to build up their capacities. Light weapons have
spread uncontrollably throughout the region because weak and fractured states could not
contain the problem and continue struggling to manage a multitude of security threats. It is
therefore up to civil society organizations to build strong societies which can demand
stronger state action. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie tesis se doel is om vas te stel tot watter mate die burgerlike samelewing en Staat
akteurs sukses behaal het in terme van wapenbeheer en ontwapening in die Suider-Afrikaanse
Ontwikkelings Gemeenskap (SAOG) streek na die koue oorlog. Die hoof navorsings vraag
sal in twee kern vrae verdeel word, Die eerste vraag is: Hoeveel sukses het die burgerlike
samelewing in die SAOG streek gehad met die bestuur van wapenbeheer en ontwapening?
Die tweede vraag is: hoeveel sukses het Staat akteurs in die SAOG streek gehad met die
bestuur van wapenbeheer en ontwapening? Hierdie studie is dus ʼn evaluerende studie en sal
op Mosambiek fokus as gevalle-studie. Twee wapenbeheer prosesse sal in hierdie tesis
evalueer word. Eerste, is die “Transforming Weapons into Ploughshares” of “TAE” projek
wat ʼn burgerlike samelewings veldtog is, wat hom ten doel gestel het om die negatiewe
impak van ligte-wapens op Mosambiekse samelewing te verminder. Die afgebakende
tydperk vir hierdie studie sal 1995-2003 wees. Die tweede proses is die staat-gedrewe
operasie tussen die Suid-Afrikaanse en Mosambiekse polisie. Die doel van hierdie projek was
om die wapen-opslagplekke wat verantwoordelik is vir die onwettige handel in wapens tussen
die twee lande te identifiseer en dienooreenkomstig te verwoes. Hierdie was bekend as
“Operation Rachel” en sal tussen 1995-2001 evalueer word.
Duur die evaluering van hierdie twee projekte sal die studie probeer om die punt te maak dat
daar ʼn rol is vir beide die burgerlike samelewing en die staat in terme van wapenbeheer in
post-konflik, ontwikkelende lande. Die rol van burgerlike samelewing organisasies kan
beskou word as die identifisering van bedreigings wat veiligheid en sekuriteit kan raak, om
bewustheid te kweek en die demokratisering van veiligheid en sekuriteit kwessies soos
wapenbeheer. Die rol van die staat is om hulle plig te vervul as die ‘hoof verskaffer’ van
sekuriteit vir die bevolking binne die staat se territoriale grense. Wapenbeheer in Mosambiek
en in die SAOG streek in die algemeen was totdusver minder suksesvol gewees, aangesien
state heeltemal te swak is om enige betekenisvolle beskerming aan hulle burgers te verleen.
Tweedens, het burgerlike samelewings organisasies wat die verantwoordelikheid aangeneem
het om beskerming te verleen net nie genoeg hulpbronne om die staat se verantwoordelikhede
te vervul nie. Dus, is die kern aanbeveling van hierdie tesis dat Suider-Afrikaanse state hulle
bekwaamheid en kapasiteit sal moet versterk. Ligte wapens het onbeheersd dwarsdeur die
streek versprei omdat swak state nie oor die kapasiteit beskik om veelvuldige veiligheids en
sekuriteits-bedreigings te kan hanteer nie. Dit hang dus van burgerlike samelewingsv
organisasies af om sterk samelewings te bou wat op hul beurt kan aandring op sterker staatsoptrede
om hierdie kwessies meer daadwerklik aan te spreek.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:sun/oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/4264
Date03 1900
CreatorsHenda, Mongi Stanley
ContributorsSwart, G. S., University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Political Science.
PublisherStellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch
Source SetsSouth African National ETD Portal
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageUnknown
TypeThesis
Formatxii, 117 p. : ill.
RightsUniversity of Stellenbosch

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