Department of Political Studies and Governance

Perspectives on African Peace and Security

 

One of the departmental highlights in 2015 was the hosting of a workshop entitled Perspectives on African Peace and Security.

The workshop covered themes ranging from South African politics to terrorism on the African continent, to big power involvement on the African continent. The workshop was jointly hosted by the Department of Political Studies and Governance of the UFS and the Southern African Centre for Collaboration on Peace and Security.

The event was funded by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science and brought together a number of academics from the Osaka School of International Public Policy at Osaka University (Japan) and across Southern Africa to examine the challenge of realising peace and security in the Southern African region and beyond.

A variety of research papers on different topics have been presented and this has extended the work done at regular workshops that were conducted since 2011 at Southern African universities.

Some of the speakers at the workshop were from left to right: Prof André Duvenhage (NWU), Prof Hussein Solomon (UFS), Ms Sayaka Kono (Osaka School of International Public Policy), Prof Virgil Hawkins (Osaka School of International Public Policy) and Prof Theo Neethling (UFS).

Dr Anneli Botes
Another highlight relates to the PhD thesis of Dr Anneli Botes from the Institute for Security Studies who was awarded the annual Terrorism Research Initiative Award for the 'Best Doctoral Thesis on Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism'. Her winning of the prestigious award was announced in the October 2015 issue of Perspectives on Terrorism, a globally-circulated online journal, co-published by the European-based Terrorism Research Initiative and the America-based Center for Terrorism and Security Studies.

Anneli Botha’s thesis, titled "Radicalisation to Terrorism in Kenya and Uganda: A Political Socialisation Perspective", examined East African militancy from an individualised perspective. Researchers in the past have neglected assessing details of the rebels’ childhoods. Anneli Botha interviewed about 285 militants and their families. These individuals declared themselves openly as members of movements such as al-Shabaab in Somalia, the Mombasa Republican Council in Kenya, the Allied Democratic Forces in Uganda, and the Lord’s Resistance Army in Uganda.

Recent research outputs and contributions

As far as the most significant research outputs for the previous year are concerned, the following were published by staff members and senior students since January 2015:

Articles in peer-reviewed scholarly journals

Theo Neethling, South Africa and AFRICOM: Reflections on a lukewarm relationship, South African Journal of International Affairs, Vol 22, No 1, 2015.

Theo Neethling, China’s peacekeeping contributions and the evolution of contemporary Chinese strategic considerations. Strategic Review for Southern Africa, Vol 37, no 2, November 2015.

Laetitia Olivier, Theo Neethling and Francois Vre?, Theoretical approaches in International Relations: The South African military as a foreign policy instrument, Scientia Militaria: South African Journal of Military Science, Vol 43, No 2, 2015.

Hussein Solomon, Critical terrorism studies and its implications for Africa, Politikon: South African Journal of Political Studies, Vol 42, No 2, 2015.

Hussein Solomon, African solutions to Africa’s problems? African approaches to peace, security and stability, Scientia Militaria: South African Journal of Military Science, Vol 43, No 1, 2015.

Hussein Solomon, Political Islam: An African perspective, Contemporary Review of the Middle East, Vol 2, No 1, 2015.

Hussein Solomon, Islam in Africa: From Sufi moderation to Islamist radlicalization, Journal of Contemporary History, Vol 40, No 2, 2015.

Khosi Mahlakeng and Hussein Solomon, Potential for conflict in the Nile River Basin: Homer-Dixon’s environmental scarcity theory, World Affairs: The Journal of International Issues, Vol 19, No 1, 2015.

Alta Vermeulen and Hussein Solomon, The origins, ideology and development of Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, Africa Review, Vol 7, No 2, July 2015.

Marina Magalhães B. L. da Silva. Kioku: As Memórias da Segunda Guerra no Japão (Kioku: The Memories of the World War II in Japan). Ed. Prismas. Curitiba.

Hussein Solomon, Terrorism and counter-terrorism in Africa: Fighting insurgency from Al Shabaab, Ansar Dine and Boko Haram. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Bukola Adeyemi Oyeniyi, Dress in the Making of the Identity of the Yoruba. New York: Cambria Press. New York.

Hussein Solomon, Terrorism and counter-terrorism in Africa: Fighting insurgency from Al Shabaab, Ansar Dine and Boko Haram. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Chapters in books

Virgil Hawkins, Peace and the absence of journalism. In Hoffmann, J and Hawkins, V. Communication and Peace: Mapping an Emerging Field. London: Routlledge. London.

Theo Neethling, South African in a complex, regional, continental and global order: Understanding the key issues and dynamics. In De Jager, N. (ed.), South African politics: An introduction. Cape Town: Oxford University Press (Southern Africa), 2015.

Papers delivered

Mamokhosi Choane, An analysis of the causes of Afrophobia in South Africa. 2015 Conference of the Southern African Folklore Society, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, 7-9 October 2015.

Eben Coetzee, Trust no one? Democratic peace theory meets 007. Regional colloquium of the South African Association of Political Studies, Vaal Triangle Campus of the North West University, 1 October 2015.

Tania Coetzee, Teaching strategy: From theory to practice. Regional colloquium of the South African Association of Political Studies, Vaal Triangle Campus of the North West University, 1 October 2015.

Marina da Silva, The challenges of African engagement with the United Nations Security Council. Regional colloquium of the South African Association of Political Studies, Vaal Triangle Campus of the North West University, 1 October 2015.

Ambrose du Plessis, China and India in the Sudans: Energy and peace. Workshop of the Southern African Centre for Collaboration on Peace and Security: Perspectives on African Peace and Security, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, 12 February 2015.

Theo Neethling, South Africa’s changing political economy: Perspectives on challenges, risks and silver linings. 2015 Opening ("Theological Day") of the Faculty of Theology, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, 2 February 2015.

Theo Neethling, South Africa’s political risk profile: Premier league or second division?, Workshop of the Southern African Centre for Collaboration on Peace and Security: Perspectives on African Peace and Security, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, 12 February 2015.

Theo Neethling, South Africa and the U.S. AFRICOM: The politics of a limited and tepid relationship. 9th General Conference of the European Consortium for Political Research, Université de Montréal, Canada, 26-29 August 2015.

South Africa’s relations with the U.S. AFRICOM. Regional colloquium of the South African Association of Political Studies, Vaal Triangle campus of the North West University, 1 October 2015.

Albert Schoeman, Hybrid political orders as an alternative to African Westphalian states. Workshop of the Southern African Centre for Collaboration on Peace and Security: Perspectives on African Peace and Security, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, 12 February 2015.

Hussein Solomon, Reflections on Islamic State: Origins and religious justifications. Paper presented to the South African National Defense Force’s Psychological Operations Management Committee, Pretoria, 9 October 2015.

Hussein Solomon, Islamic State and the looming global confrontation. Paper presented to a public lecture at the Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research, Pretoria, 8 October 2015.

Hussein Solomon, Exploring the tension between the global and the local: Exploring the nexus between terrorism and identity in Africa. Paper presented to the 2015 symposium of the South African Academy of Science and Arts / Suid-Afrikaanse Akademie vir Wetenskap en Kuns, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, 2 October 2015.

Hussein Solomon, Can the media improve tolerance and understanding among world religions?, Thinkfest 2015, Grahamstown, 5 July 2015.

Hussein Solomon, Exploring the nexus between terrorism, identity and insurgency in Africa. Interdisciplinary conference organised by the Department of Hispanic Studies, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland, 25 June 2015.

Hussein Solomon, Understanding terrorism in Africa: How much of a threat is ISIS? Presentation to the South African Institute of International Affairs, Cape Town, 6 May 2015.

Hussein Solomon, Trends and future trajectory of African Political Islam. Conference of the Society for Practical Theology, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, 22 January 2015.

Hussein Solomon, The African Union and counter-terrorism. Workshop of the Southern African Centre for Collaboration on Peace and Security: Perspectives on African Peace and Security, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, 12 February 2015.

Hussein Solomon, The human rights challenges that governments face responding to terrorist threats. Workshop on Conditions Conducive to the Spread of Terrorism and Respect for Human Rights and the Rule of Law in the Fight Against Terrorism, hosted by the UN Counter Terrorism Centre and the Southern African Development Community, Livingstone, Zambia, 24 March 2015.

Marno Swart, Actions speak louder than words: Liberal Internationalism, Offensive Realism and the Central Intelligence Agency. Regional colloquium of the South African Association of Political Studies, Vaal Triangle Campus of the North West University, 1 October 2015.

Alta Vermeulen, I am Charlie, but I am Baga too. Why are African lives deemed less newsworthy? Workshop of the Southern African Centre for Collaboration on Peace and Security: Perspectives on African Peace and Security, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, 12 February 2015.

Alta Vermeulen, Why African lives are deemed less newsworthy: A study of terrorism, its effects and the global perceptions thereof. Regional colloquium of the South African Association of Political Studies, Vaal Triangle Campus of the North West University, 1 October 2015.