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conflicts

Dammed divinities : the water powers at Bujagali Falls, Uganda

Upphovsperson: Oestigaard, Terje
Utgivare: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet, Agrarian Change, Property and Resources | Uppsala
År: 2015
Ämnesord: Uganda, Nile river, Dams, Water power, conflicts, Traditional religion, Cultural heritage, Belief, rituals
The damming of Bujagali Falls, located only 8 kilometers north of the historic source of the White Nile or the outlet of Lake Victoria, has been seen as one of the most controversial dams in modern times. In 2012, the dam was eventually inaugurated after years of anti-dam opposition and delays. A unique aspect of the controversies was the river spirit Budhagaali living in the falls blocking the dam and opposing the destruction of the waterfalls. This spirits embodies a particular healer – Jaja Bujagali, but he was bypassed by another healer who conducted no less than three grandiose appeasement and relocation ceremonies for the Budhagaali spirit clearing the way for the dam. Why has this particular dam been so controversial? How can a water spirit block a nearly billion dollar dam? What was the ritual drama behind the construction of the dam and is it possible to move a spirit? And what happened to Budhagaali and the indigenous religion after the falls were flooded and can a river spirit be drowned in its own element – water?

African Regional Organizations, Peace Operations and the UN : Legitimacy and Disengagement

Upphovsperson: Gelot, Linnéa
Utgivare: | Nordiska Afrikainstitutet, Conflict, Displacement and Transformation | Göteborgs universitet | Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon ; New York, NY
År: 2015
Ämnesord: United Nations, Regional organizations, Peacemaking, War, Armed Conflict, Peacekeeping, conflicts, Peace and conflict research, Freds- och konfliktforskning
This book analyses the new and difficult roles of regional organizations in peacemaking after the end of the Cold War and how they relate to the United Nations (UN). Regional organizations have taken an increasingly prominent role in international efforts to deal with international security. The book highlights the complex interaction between the regional and sub-regional organizations, on the one hand, and their relations with the United Nations, on the other. Thus, the general issues of UN and its authority are scrutinized from legal, practical and geopolitical perspectives. Taking on a broad geographical focus on Africa, the Arab world and Europe, the book also provides an extensive range of case studies, with detailed analysis of particular situations, organizations and armed conflicts. The authors scrutinise the heterogeneous relationship between the different organizations as well as the challenges to them: political resources, legal standing, financial assets, capabilities and organizational set up. Moreover, they investigate whether regional organizations, as compared to the UN, are better suited to deal with today’s intra-state conflicts. The book also aims to dissect the evolution of these institutions historically – in relation to Chapter VIII of the UN Charter which mentions the resort to 'regional arrangements’ for conflict management – as well as more generally in relation to the principles of international law and UN principles of peacemaking. This book, written by a mixture of established scholars, diplomats and high-level policymakers, will be of great interest to students as well as practitioners in the field of peace and conflict studies, regional security, international organisations, conflict management and IR in general.

Who needs to reconcile with whom? : the conflict’s complexity in northern Mali calls for tailored solutions

Upphovsperson: Gaasholt, Ole Martin
Utgivare: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet, Conflict, Displacement and Transformation |
År: 2015
Ämnesord: Mali, Tuaregs, conflicts, political development, Political islam, Regional security, Political science, Statsvetenskap, Peace and conflict research, Freds- och konfliktforskning
While negotiations are taking place in Algiers, some observers insist on the need for reconciliation between Northern Mali and the rest of the country and particularly between Tuareg and other Malians. But the Tuareg are a minority in Northern Mali and most of them did not support the rebels. So who needs to be reconciled with whom? And what economic solutions will counteract conflict? This Policy Note argues that not only exclusion underlies the conflict, but also a lack of economic opportunities.

Sexual Violence as a Weapon of War? : Perceptions, Prescriptions, Problems in the Congo and Beyond

Upphovspersoner: Eriksson Baaz, Maria | Stern, Maria
Utgivare: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet, Conflict, Displacement and Transformation | Nordiska Afrikainstitutet; Zed Books
År: 2013
Ämnesord: Congo DR, conflicts, Violence against women, sexual abuse, Rape, gender relations, victims, War crimes, Humanitarian assistance, International cooperation, Human rights violations
All too often in conflict situations, rape is referred to as a 'weapon of war', a term presented as self-explanatory through its implied storyline of gender and warring. In this provocative but much-needed book, Eriksson Baaz and Stern challenge the dominant understandings of sexual violence in conflict and post-conflict settings. Reading with and against feminist analyses of the interconnections between gender, warring, violence and militarization, the authors address many of the thorny issues inherent in the arrival of sexual violence on the global security agenda. Based on original fieldwork in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, as well as research material from other conflict zones, Sexual Violence as a Weapon of War? challenges the recent prominence given to sexual violence, bravely highlighting various problems with isolating sexual violence from other violence in war. A much-anticipated book by two acknowledged experts in the field, on an issue that has become an increasingly important security, legal and gender topic.

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