Conflict Resolution and Organization of Security in Africa.

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Date
1982
Authors
Ojike, N.M
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
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Publisher
University of Lagos
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to help fill a gap in the study of African conflict phenomenon: the crucial role of the domestic environment. It provides alternative interpretations to the existing ones about conflicts and security arrangements in Africa. This research set out to accomplish two things (1) To detect and understand the forces that determine political relations among African nations and comprehend the ways in which these forces act upon one another and the Organization of African Unity (OAU). (2) It explores appropriate security mechanisms for the African Sub-region, and goes beyond the military aspects of security to examine the social and economic sources and the political and moral implications of the use and existence of armed forces on the African content. It is concerned with keeping African states at peace among themselves and avoiding the grosser kinds of strife within states. The work will argue that apart from conflicts which arise from attempts to rectify colonial contours, most conflicts in Africa emanate from domestic settings, assuming international proportions as other African actors seek to influence the outcome owing to ethno-political considerations or out of sheer economic necessity. The purpose here is to disentangle the interlocking factors, to explain and evaluate them and to demonstrate their influence on the course and resolution of the conflicts. Therefore, the focus is primarily on why the principal units or actors behaved as they did and what happened as intervening states interacted with the billigerents and what role the Organization of African Unity played. The other themes will deal with relational analyses and proposals or framework for security. Four case-studies have been chosen. The analyses of the cases are woven around four factors. The first delineates the domestic and international settings of the conflict since understanding the twists and turns of attitude and policy on both sides is impossible without establishing the background from which they arose. The second discusses the motivations of outsider. The third considers the nature and scope - military and diplomatic of their involvement (including the OAU). The fourth attempts to outline the consequences, proposals or framework for security. A peace-keeping machinery is drawn up based on the lessons and inferences from the various experiences and analyses.
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Keywords
Conflict Resolution , Security
Citation
Ojike,N.M (1986) Conflict Resolution and Organization of Security in Africa.University of Lagos School of Postgraduate Studies Phd Thesis and Dissertation Abstracts