African Journals Online
African Journal on Conflict Resolution

Volume 3, Number 1, 2003
ABSTRACTS

Dynamics of the Zimbabwe crisis in the 21st century

Ndlovu-Gatsheni, Sabelo J.

Abstract: Zimbabwe is experiencing one of its worst crises since the attainment of independence in 1980. The official explanation of this crisis is biased towards external forces at the expense of internal dynamics. The crisis is blamed on the minority group of white settlers, the British, and the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), which is officially depicted as a front for Western interests. This article seeks to provide an alternative explanation for the crisis affecting Zimbabwe at the present moment. This explanation is predicated on the critique of the dominant nationalist position represented by the Zimbabwe African National Union Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF). The article proceeds to present the Zimbabwe crisis as a consequence of blocked democratic transition at the turn of the century. The significance of this contribution lies in the fact that the Zimbabwe crisis has crucial lessons for Southern Africa. It has shaken peace and security in the region. As such it deserves to be fully understood by all those who are pre-occupied with the stability of the region.

Regional organisations and international mediation: the effectiveness of insider mediators

Elgstrom, Ole; Bercovitch, Jacob; Skau, Carl

Abstract: During the last two decades of the 20th century, the world witnessed an increasing number of regional conflict management efforts undertaken by regional intergovernmental organisations. There are therefore strong reasons to study the advantages and disadvantages of mediation efforts by regional organisations, and compare these with initiatives taken by the United Nations (UN). In this article, we argue that regional organisations have certain characteristics that in principle make them effective mediators. They are 'insiders', closely connected to the conflict at hand, with an intimate knowledge about local conditions, and a stake in the outcome. This article builds on experience from ECOWAS (the Economic Community of West African States) interventions in West Africa to analyse the pros and cons of regional mediation. We find that the interventions did indeed produce beneficial results, but that ECOWAS mediation efforts were disturbed by the fact that its activities were seen as highly partial. We recommend regional mediators to be 'impartial insiders', paying special attention to creating relations of trust with all actors involved.

The conflict dimension of environmental degradation and the case of Lesotho

Sibanda, Henry M.

Abstract: This article highlights the consequences of conflicts on the environment and its management. Environmental conflicts fall under public disputes, which have been observed to be a result of human needs. This observation is based on the fact that environmental degradation is more a result of social conflicts than of bio-physical conditions, and hence eludes attempts to control it. Numerous international examples of conflicts that have resulted in environmental degradation are highlighted to reinforce this theory. The case for Lesotho's environmental degradation is traced from a historic perspective to present day problems and their manifestations. It concludes by examining the experiences of the National Environmental Youth Corps (NEYC) project and the recognition for the first time of the conflict dimension to the environmental degradation. It reviews the mitigation measures put in place by this project and the first positive signs towards the solution of the environmental degradation that has ravaged this country for years. It closes by advocating the equipping of natural resource and land-use planners with conflict analysis skills if the environment is to be conserved effectively.

The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda: a distorting mirror; casting doubt on its actor - oriented approach in addressing the Rwandan genocide

Maogoto, Jackson Nyamuya

Abstract: The traditional approach to criminal justice faces the challenge of balancing multiple goals - usually expressed as deterrence, incapacitation, rehabilitation, and retribution - which focus on crime control. A restorative approach seems needed in all societies that have suffered massive and collective victimisation, and must be kept in mind in Rwanda by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) as it implements its overall strategy. The ICTR's almost exclusive focus on an actor-orientated perspective, viewing the individual as a building block of the genocidal reality, distorts and obscures a structure-orientated perspective on the ethno-centric social reality that converted tens of thousands of Hutus into a mass of killers, turning on their friends, neighbours and colleagues. The main focus for the punishment of war criminals must remain at the national level, although the existence of an international tribunal legitimises the criminalisation of internal atrocities. The ugliness of internal strife and the political reality of the ethnic hatred cannot be isolated in an international courtroom for resolution.