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The Drum Wars: The Clash of Religious Groups in a Cosmopolitan City
Get PDFGhana has been lauded for its democratic credentials and stability since its successful implementation of multi-party democracy in 1992. In recent times, this image of stability has come under threat because of a conflict between the Ga traditionalists and some Pentecostal-Charismatic churches. Every year, the Ga Traditional Council impose a 30- day universal ban on drumming and all forms of noisemaking, in preparation for the Homowo, festival. On the one hand, the Ga traditionalists justify the noise ban as a timehonoured tradition and a constitutional right. On the other hand, Pentecostal- Charismatic churches generally refused to comply with the ban claiming it is an infringement on their right to freedom of worship. While both groups legitimise their claims with the national constitution, the disagreement between these two groups assumed violent proportions since 1998. The annual clashes have resulted in injuries to people and destruction to church property. Drawing on existing literature and ethnographic fieldwork in Accra and using Azar’s (1990) Protracted Social Conflict theory, the focus of this paper is to understand why this conflict has persisted despite attempts by various agents to resolve it. I argue that there are several underlying factors that converge to protract this conflict
The Unexplored Assets: Religious Approach for Peace Making Among the Siltie People in Southern Ethiopia
Get PDFThis article explores the roles that faith-based dispute settlement institutions play for peace making among the Siltie in southern Ethiopia. It looks into the intertwined and multifaceted roles of faith leaders as peace makers, religious figures as well as social actors. The article argues that the inefficiency of the state and Sharia courts worsened by an acute shortage of staff seems to render the courts irrelevant in the eyes of many local people, who often question their legitimacy and jurisdiction. It also argues that elders and local religious actors who are conversant with grass-root level conflicts are more important figures to end face to face disputes and foster efforts to promote reconciliation than state judges and Qadis. This is evidenced by the seemingly higher number of people who prefer taking their cases to faith-based and customary modes of dispute settlement rather than the Sharia and state courts. This indicates the existence of internal power contentions between plural intra-faith dispute settlement institutions on the one hand, and the state courts on the other. I have mainly employed a qualitative data gathering method to generate the data presented in this article
Reviewing South Africa’s Non-Proliferation Policy and Strategic Trade Controls
Get PDFThe prohibition of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMDs) in South Africa is governed through the implementation of an integrated and robust non-proliferation and arms control policy, legislative and regulatory framework, which has been revised and improved over time to address global developments; scientific and technological developments; and advancement of the threat landscape in terms of illicit trafficking of restricted goods and technologies as well as terrorism. Nonetheless, deficiencies in the regulatory framework and legislation became apparent over the years, especially after the infiltration of the South African industry by the A.Q. Khan nuclear smuggling network. Although some of these deficiencies have been addressed, others are more challenging and require further work to be concluded in order to improve regulatory processes and strengthen the non-proliferation system, and to ensure that the proliferation strategies of non-state actors can be combatted. It is also aimed at South Africa maintaining its image as a reliable and responsible supplier, recipient and end user of strategic goods and technologies, while contributing meaningfully to global efforts of disarmament and non-proliferation of WMDs as a responsible member of the international community, as an advocate for global disarmament, and as a leader in efforts to prevent the proliferation of WMDs, in general
The African Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone Treaty: A Reflection on the Role of Activism
Get PDFIt took 45 years between when the First Ordinary Session of the then Organisation of African Unity (OAU) [now the African Union] declared Africa a denuclearized zone in July 1964 and when the African Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone Treaty (Treaty of Pelindaba) entered-into-force on 15 July 2009. This article briefly describes the provisions of the Treaty and then provides some examples of how activism assisted this process, before concluding on the possible reasons for the long delay for the Treaty of Pelindaba to be inscribed into international law
‘Fission Chips’: An Activist’s View on Anti-Nuclear Activism in South Africa from the 1980s to the 21st Century
Get PDFIn the following article, based partly on the excellent work of Dr David Fig, South Africa’s energy policy is examined from the euphoriaof the Reconstruction and Development Plan (RDP) to the nadir of the Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa (ASGISA). We further review the successive infiltration by the global nuclear industry from the German Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR) through the French company AREVA to the advent of the Russian VVER. Evidence of the decisive role played by Eskom is presented, while we show how energy policy became implacably skewed in favour of nuclear power by means of a ‘policy-adjusted’ IRP2010, which became the unchallenged justification for the nuclear fleet. While much has been made of ‘State Capture’ andthe alliance between the South African Presidency and the Gupta family through Oakbay Resources’ interest in uranium1, we will not include it here because it has been so well rehearsed in other publications. What we consider far more important to grasp is that ‘State Capture’ is not an entirely new phenomenon since what we call the ‘Putsch of Polokwane’ in 2007. From the time of General JanSmuts to PW Botha, from Mandela to Zuma, the insidious relationship among international arms dealers, globe-trotting Mafiosi, and beneficiaries of the military-industrial global nexus, has remained a constant refrain: only names and places have been changed. As we see, parliamentary democracy is a very fragile bird, and it remains to pay tribute to a very rare, courageous, and determined SouthAfrican civil society that can hold their elected leaders to account
The Role of the United States in the Formation of BRICS: Exploring Responsibility and Influence
Get PDFThis article critically examines the formation of the BRICS alliance, comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, with a specific focus on the pivotal role played by the United States in shaping this strategic partnership. It explores the extent of US influence and the accompanying responsibilities it assumes within the alliance. The article highlights the proactive efforts of Brazil, Russia, and China to expand their global influence while concurrently aiming to reduce US interference. Brazil, in particular, seeks partnerships with Russia and China as a means to attain autonomy and foster development. Simultaneously, Russia and China strive to challenge US global dominance and solidify their own spheres of influence. The article concludes by emphasising the importance of critically evaluating Europe\u27s military support to Ukraine, suggesting that such support may primarily serve US interests. Additionally, it underscores Europe\u27s potential to promote peace and stability by pursuing independent and principled foreign policies
Modern Diplomacy and the Changing Nature of International Politics in the 21st Century
Get PDFInternational politics have become more complex since the end of the Cold War in the late 1980s, and consequently, it confuses traditional diplomats.[i] This intricacy is because the post-Cold War international era requires diplomacy to move from being foremost about high politics such as security, military and geopolitical issues to incorporating a wider and growing scope of issues outside of a state’s national borders like migration, gender, global warming, desertification and diseases. Not only are these novel policy themes an indication of how diplomacy’s agenda is growing, but they also indicate that an increasing number of participating stakeholders must be included in contemporary diplomatic practice.[ii] To further scrutinise the phenomena driving change and influencing modern diplomacy, the research utilises specific and relevant international political issues such as post-Cold War international politics, the hegemonic decline of the US, the rise of China, the problems in the Middle East, nuclear disarmament, climate change, Globalisation, the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), the COVID-19 pandemic and diplomatic inflation.
1) Haynes 2011, 5-6, 8; Stern 2015; Spies 2019a, 42-43.
[ii]) Haynes 2011, 8; Sharp 1999, 33; Spies 2019a, 42-43
Black Women’s Radical Religious Epistemologies in Mahogany and Steepled Towers
Get PDFThe essays in this issue explore the diverse ways in which Black women’s religious epistemologies challenge conventional theological narratives. From the African spiritualities of Nigeria and Jamaica to the anti-colonial politics of Senegal, Sudan, and South Africa, the contributors offer a rich tapestry of perspectives highlighting the radical nature of Black women’s religious knowledge production. Weaving an eclectic spectrum of spiritual practices and beliefs, these essays offer the basis of radical religious epistemologies that enable Black women living under a range of circumstances, in several regions of the world, to find a pathway through the virulence they inhabit within their everyday lives
Lived Poverty and the Fate of African Democracies
Get PDFIn comparative politics, economic development is a requisite to democracy (Lipset, 1959). Democracy is deemed to fail in less developed countries as poverty has proven to be detrimental to democratic performance. This study offers a perspective on the effects of poverty on the fate of democracy in Africa. Models are estimated for the Poverty-Democracy linkages using variables derived from merged Afrobarometer survey data (2002-2018). The results indicate that poverty in Africa has a mixed effect on democracy more generally. In particular, the analysis indicates that the experience of poverty, which we have termed ‘lived poverty’, has a negative effect on demand and supply of democracy as well as on a number of attributes of political participation. The fact that the poor demand democracy less than the well-to-do while at the same time perceiving limited supply of democracy, in our view explains why more African regimes are consolidating as hybrid regimes instead of moving towards democratic consolidatio