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Table of Contents :
Diplomacy of National Liberation’ - The Exiled PAC and the International Community, 1962-1990. DOI: https://doi.org/10.31920/2056-5658/2019/v6n1a1
Kwandiwe Kondlo11
The question is whether the Pan Africanist Congress of Azania (South Africa),
formed in 1959, banned in 1960, reconstituted in exile from 1962 to 1990 and
deeply consumed by internal squabbles in exile and even beyond, ever had an
international strategy for mobilizing international support, opinion and
resources, during the struggle for national liberation in South Africa. Hence the
notion of a ‗diplomacy of national liberation‘ in the PAC‘s exile history. The
PAC‘s competitor, the African National Congress, had a clear international
strategy and a well-oiled machinery to advance and implement its international
agenda. However, what emerges from existing literature and archival materials,
is that the PAC had several international connections and a world-wide
footprint. The poser then is if this was articulated into a coherent diplomatic
strategy of the organization. Of course, what has not been examined carefully
though, is whether the diplomacy of national liberation falls into the category of
formal grand schemes of strategic relations that have mutual significance and
benefits or if it is a question of leadership instincts, personal connections and
political relations by ‗other‘ means. Does the diplomacy of national liberation
differ from diplomacy as is known ordinarily or does it have specific and unique
constitutive elements? The paper begins by examining historical issues concerning the reconstitution of the PAC as an exile liberation movement,
especially during the first few years, i.e. 1960-1962 and how it crafted an
international strategy. The second part of the paper locates the evolution of the
PAC‘s diplomatic thinking within the context of generations of changing
leadership traditions in the organization. It concludes that the PAC‘s diplomacy
during the exile period was that of survival and not necessarily a diplomacy of
the real world politics of power. The paper is not a comparative study of the
ANC and PAC‘s diplomacy during the exile period. It does, however, throw
observations about the ANC‘s performance in this area, which far greatly
outpaced the PAC. The 4th pillar, 5th column, was in essence the basis of the
ANC‘s exile diplomacy and is eloquently elaborated in the work of Dale
Mckinley (1997).
This article explores the global reach and the diplomatic work of the Black
Consciousness Movement, one of the critical components of the broad South
African liberation movement. It discusses the spread of Black Consciousness to
various parts of Africa and the world, through its exiled membership. It also
discusses various meetings and conferences with critical role players, the
institutionalization of operations and the creation of important links. The paper
deals with Viva Frelimo rallies. These are events that took place inside South
Africa under the leadership of the Black Consciousness Movement following
the coming to power of Frelimo in Mozambique. It also deals with the crucial
invitation by the Jimmy Carter administration to the leadership of the Black
Consciousness Movement in the 1970s. Finally it explores the institutional
presence of the Black Consciousness Movement outside South Africa as well as
the lack of unity across the liberation components.
Land as a factor of production has remained a major source of conflict in many
African societies. Over the years, the Ezza people and their neighbours in their
new colonies have engaged in intermittent conflicts just like the Kwahu and
Ewe setting. The purpose of this qualitative study is to compare the dynamics
of both conflicts. The study reveals that the conflict was caused by the push and
pull effects of migration, economic interest, population growth, and quest for
expanded land as well as the influence of politics in the relations of the settler
communities with their landlords. The study traced the complex road to
reactive peace in the conflict settings. Consequently, the paper recommends
inter-communal driven peace initiatives to ensure sustainable and durable peace.
Although studies on the influx of refugees in South Africa have elicited
numerous works, no analysis adequately accounts for the views of Congolese
on the role of South Africa‘s peace building interventions in the Democratic
Republic of Congo (DRC). This is an empirical paper that systematically draws
on the insights and views of Congolese refugees in the South African cities of
Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban to develop an empirical discourse that explains an interface between refugees and conflict transformation. The
findings of this study reveal that while there is little discussion on the benefits
of South Africa‘s peace building intervention in the DRC‘s conflict, it should
not be taken to imply that its main aim is in the interest of the Congolese. What
was evident during the study is that there is a growing frustration by the South
African government with increasing influx of Congolese among other refugees
from other African states. Although the study established that South Africa‘s
interventions are motivated by the desire for sustainable peace on the continent,
South African peace building approaches in the DRC‘s conflict are fluctuating
from dialogue (with and among key opposition parties and the government) to
the deployment of SADF troops and the proclamation of war against rebels and
militant groups in the Eastern part of that country. The article recommends a
need for new theoretical and empirical thinking on how South Africa can gain
vital views, insights and perspectives on the dynamics of the DRC‘s war. The
article concludes that the knowledge of refugees on the root causes of war as
espoused by participants of this study can potentially contribute enormously to
South Africa‘s peace building mission in the DRC and on the continent.
Organized crime within and across the Southern Africa borders constitute a
threat to regional peace, security and governance in the region. Organized crime
such as drug trafficking, human trafficking/smuggling, stolen vehicle
trafficking, illegal weapons trade, money laundering, illicit exploitation of
natural resources, trafficking in counterfeit medication and cigarettes, and
cybercrime continue to exact a high cost in terms of national and transnational
security and governance as a result of the strong link between political and sector corruption. This paper provides an in-depth analysis of the nature and
impact of organized crime on regional peace and security and governance
within the southern Africa region, and offers several recommendations such as
effective policing across borders, enthronement of good governance and
democratic principles and strengthening the capacity of legal instruments and
agencies to control organized crimes within the region.
For South Africa to rebuild and transform the economy after several years of
apartheid regime, economic isolation and financial sanctions enforced by the
international community, the African National Congress (ANC) put forward
the Reconstruction and Development Program (RDP) as its essential financial
program as it campaigned in the run-up to the 1994 election (ANC, 1994).
There were various strategies expected to address and review the acquired gross
imbalances caused by apartheid rule, socially, financially and spatially. The RDP
program was introduced to alleviate poverty, but when confronted with the
imperatives, the government presented a macroeconomic approach structure
called the Growth, Employment and Redistribution (GEAR) system in 1996 for
quicker monetary development which was required to create assets to meet
social project needs. Furthermore, Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for
South Africa (AsgiSA) was introduced to expand on the gains of the RDP
objectives of building a unified, vote-based, non-sexist and non-racial society,
and a solitary incorporated economy. It was noted that the South African
government has introduced various policy initiatives in recent times which have
formed the basis of industrial policy in the country since 2010. Findings show that, with the end of apartheid rule in 1994 and the subsequent acceptance into
the SADC, the South African economy has achieved both social and economic
development. We adopted a qualitative method analysis in this study.
Created ―to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war‖ (UN
Charter, Art. 1), the United Nations (UN) is incontrovertibly the most
sophisticated diplomatic edifice ever designed by humanity for the maintenance
of international peace and security. Because of its primary role in the sustenance
of global peace and security, scholars contend that the United Nations Security
Council (UNSC) is the engine room and the most important organ of the world
body. However, membership and structure of the UN Security Council remains
one of the most contentious and endless questions debated by member-states
since the establishment of the organization in 1945. Accordingly, countries have
unanimously agreed on the need to democratise and restructure the organ,
especially its permanent seats to reflect the current global realities.
Consequently, Nigeria has variously indicated its desire to occupy either the sole
permanent chair or one of the permanent chairs earmarked for Africa on an
enlarged Council. Drawing on insights from the realist theory, which asserts
that Nigeria‘s leadership pretension in Africa can mainly be assessed based on
how responsive the leadership of the country is to the plight of her citizens at home and abroad, this study explores the country‘s chances of achieving the
objective. Similarly, based on the research questions, the qualitative research
method was used to collect and evaluate the data through textual criticism and
descriptive-historical analysis. Given the realities on ground, this corpus
contends that it will be easier for a camel to squeeze through the eye of a needle than for
Nigeria to occupy one of the proposed seats. This is because the country‘s
domestic factors, coupled with its worsening image problem, cast serious doubt
on its claim of Pax-Nigeriana. For this reason, the study recommends that
Nigeria‘s Afrocentric foreign policy thrust must be pursued with immense
consideration for the worsening economic conditions of the country and its
domestic interest.
The paper explores the rationale behind the migration of Nigerians to the
United States of America (USA). It posits that the quest for career development
through the acquisition of Western education is the most dominant motive
behind Nigerians‘ migration. This quest, combined with a desire for relevance,
plays a dominant role in the decision to leave the country for the USA.
However, it is necessary to point out this is not a new phenomenon nor one born of desperation. Humankind have for several millennia left their home in
search of knowledge and the Nigerian experience is no exception. In view of
this, this study set out to examine the reasons for Nigerians‘ migration to the
U.S. from an economic perspective, including its impact on career development.
It highlights, in detail, the economic drive and other attractions behind the
migration of Nigerians to the U.S. In collation, interpretation and analysis of
data, the study makes use of documents from the U.S. Census Bureau, in
addition to those from the internet, international bodies involved in migration
issues, and oral interviews.
Power is at the core of International Relations. It reverberates in any discussion
on this subject – both at a theoretical level and from a practical perspective
when countries forge relations or interact with one another. Power dynamics
present themselves in IR writings. This sees certain geographical spaces and
racial groupings being privileged over others. Therefore, publications on IR are
replete with examples of these power relations. For example, Africa does not
feature in IR writings in the same manner that other continents do. Moreover,
when countries forge relations, some have a louder voice and dictate the terms
of engagement than others. Against this backdrop, the present paper
demonstrates how power dynamics play themselves out in IR thinking and
practice. This is done through an analysis of IR writings and by citing examples
where certain countries bully others in the process of forging international
relations. The paper questions the extent to which states‘ political sovereignty
takes center-stage when countries discuss areas of cooperation. Using realism as
a theoretical framework, the paper concludes that any discussion on IR which excludes power as the rallying theme would be deficient. It then proposes that
power should be part of any IR thinking and analysis.
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