Faculty of Management Sciences

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Engaging high school students in the development of more peaceful communities : a case study in Honduras
(2024-05) von Eck, Vaughan Bruce; Harris, Geoffrey Thomas
Honduras is a country fraught by inequality and injustice, which has a detrimental effect an all spheres and socio-economic sectors of the population. According to the World Bank, Honduras has registered the second highest economic growth rates in Central America, only behind Panama, yet the country is still steeped in high levels of poverty and inequality. This is not helped by the high levels of criminal activity spearheaded by organized crime, gangs and aided by high levels of systemic corruption. This research is a participative approach with 10th and 11th grade students in order to evaluate the need for peacebuilding actions at a school level. A participative action research approach was used ensuring that the youth were fully involved in analysing the different aspects and levels of conflict and violence in their communities. The process involves using surveys, interviews and discussions in order to collect the necessary data. Although numerous events impeded the implementation of the experience gained there was an opportunity share some of which was learnt with students and observe a change in their outlook on conflict and violence and their appreciation for peacebuilding.
Post-war peacebuilding for development in Ganta City, Liberia
(2023) Yorlay, Teeko T.; Kaye, Sylvia Blanche; Harris, Geoffrey Thomas
Ganta City, with a population of about 62,000 and located approximately 200 miles from Monrovia, is a post-war multi-ethnic community entangled in inter-ethnic land disputes attributable to the roles played and the sides supported by the various ethnic groups during the Liberian civil wars from 1989 to 2003. These land disputes are about returning Mandingo refugees claiming that their parcels of land have been occupied by people from the Dan and Mah ethnic groups. This situation has undermined tranquillity and harmony in the city, fractured relationships, and is retarding progress and development. This situation needs to be resolved to ensure peace and tranquillity amongst the Dan, Mah, and Mandingo people, as well as the other residents in this major business hub outside Monrovia in Liberia. The Government of Liberia has applied two major efforts to resolve the issues. These efforts and the courts have resolved some of the issues, but they have not restored peace and improved the relationships among those ethnic groups. As a result, the peace in Ganta City is fragile, with underlying conflicts owing to the lack of genuine efforts to repair the broken relations. Based on the above, I used an action research approach and qualitative research methodology to collect qualitative data from eight focus groups, between twenty-five to fifty interviews, and at least ten observations. I analysed the same using thematic analysis, with the specific objectives of measuring the nature, extent, causes, and consequences of the land disputes in Ganta City. My research participants and I examined the issues around the inter-ethnic land conflict in the city, and I used the theoretical framework of conflict transformation including peacebuilding, indigenous knowledge, and the asset-based approach to community development to resolve the conflicts and improve the relationships among the three ethnic groups. I experimented with the local peace committee concept and formed an action committee that has implemented a peacebuilding intervention to resolve the local conflicts and promote peaceful coexistence. The overarching aim of my research has been to contribute to communal harmony, resulting in sustainable community development in the post-conflict multi-ethnic Ganta City. A locally driven peacebuilding mechanism has been used to contribute to the peacefulness of the city. The local peace structure that has been created has worked on improving the relationships among the three ethnic groups. The relationships have improved, and the foundation necessary for peace has been laid to address the conflictual issues surrounding the land disputes in Ganta City.
Peace education as a peacebuilding tool in the Western Sahara region
(2023) Bibee, Justin D.; Kaye, Sylvia Blanche; Harris, Geoffrey Thomas
Peacebuilding is a profound challenge in societies that experience decades-long protracted conflict. The Western Sahara Conflict is considered such a profound peacebuilding challenge. Located in the Maghreb region on the North-West coast of Africa, the Western Sahara is considered the Most Inaccessible Place on Earth, the Least Economically Integrated Region on Earth, and the Last Colonised Place on Earth. The conflict is known as Africa’s Longest Conflict, Africa’s Forgotten Conflict, and the World’s Oldest Conflict, and Western Sahara as the Most Heavily-Mined Place on Earth which has produced the Most Protracted Refugee Situation Worldwide. The Western Sahara has a long history of violent conflict. In 1991, Morocco and the Polisario agreed to a UN-brokered ceasefire for a future self-determination referendum, which has yet to take place. Morocco rejects a vote including independence as an option, considering Western Sahara integral to the kingdom. The ceasefire was broken in late 2020, resuming violent conflict. For 48 years, from 1975 to 2023, all peacebuilding efforts have failed. This protracted conflict has divided communities along a "berm," the second-largest man-made defensive barrier in history, leading to polarization, animosity, and negative attitudes between the groups. This study employs an action research approach and peace education as a key tool to implement a peacebuilding intervention in Laayoune, Western Sahara. The interdisciplinary methodology seeks to understand the complexities of relationships between Moroccans and Sahrawis in the region. Research findings show that peace education workshops effectively promote reconciliation and peacebuilding by providing a safe space for dialogue, fostering mutual understanding and empathy among participants, and facilitating transformative changes in relationships, trust, and cooperation, while also contributing to personal growth and development among participants. This study makes significant contributions to the field of peacebuilding by highlighting the often-overlooked effectiveness of peace education as an intervention in the Western Sahara Conflict and emphasizing the vital role of action research in ensuring the sustainability of peacebuilding efforts.
Promoting political tolerance among youth in Masvingo, Zimbabwe
(2023) Phillimon, Rumutsa; Harris, Geoffrey Thomas
This study aimed at promoting political tolerance via a dialogue initiative in Masvingo, Zimbabwe, where political broadmindedness, tolerance and trust are problematic. This research was underpinned by conflict transformation theory, complemented by intergroup contact theory. It was carried out with 16 participants from Mucheke, who participated in interviews and focus group discussions. The overall aim of this study was to promote political tolerance among youth in Mucheke in Masvingo, Zimbabwe, with the specific objectives being to explore the nature, extent, causes and consequences of youth involvement in political violence; to identify previous and current attempts in Mucheke to reduce this involvement and their effectiveness; to plan and implement interventions to reduce this involvement; and to evaluate the short-term outcomes of the intervention. The study established that political competition is the main cause of political violence in Masvingo. and that a dialogue initiative could be an effective strategy that can build relationships between political rivals. The study concluded that attitudes cannot change in a short period of time, a finding that calls for ongoing intervention to promote positive peace.
Utilising action research to build peace at Njobokazi village, Kwazulu-Natal
(2023-04) Shozi, Dizline Mfanozelwe; Harris, Geoffrey Thomas
The rural community of Njobokazi at the remote border of the EThekwini Metro has been the scene of violent conflict for decades. Many people have been killed and many houses and community assets destroyed. Much of the violence was driven by a conquest mentality, informed by ubunsizwa, an aggressive form of masculinity where the winning faction is not satisfied with defeating their opponents but instead would drive them out of the village altogether. Violence has seeped into every aspect of life and was the only way people knew to deal with any dispute or difference. Using an action research approach with strong participation from community members, my aim was to try to build peace in the community. The intervention involved training in conflict resolution skills and psychological support to handle trauma from past violence. People who used to fight before came together in groups; as a result, many relationships were repaired. A full evaluation conducted roughly a year later showed that the group training had a powerful effect in reducing violence in the community. A key factor in this was the contribution of women, who are a major resource for bringing peace.
Grassroots transitional justice framework : the role of mediation in Zimbabwe’s transitional justice processes
(2022) Mandikwaza, Edknowledge; Kaye, Sylvia Blanche; Harris, Geoffrey Thomas
This study investigated the role of mediation in grassroots transitional justice processes. The major aim of the study was to understand the role of mediation in transitional justice processes, ascertaining its effectiveness as a grassroots transitional justice mechanism and how its demand for use in transitional justice can be increased. The study was carried out using action research methodologies, with a mediation project carried out in the Makoni District of Manicaland in Zimbabwe. The mediation project involved community members addressing transitional-justice-related conflicts using mediation as a tool for conflict resolution. The mediators were provided with mediation skills through a training programme and their work was evaluated thrice to ascertain the role and impact of the mediation interventions on transitional-justicerelated conflicts. The project was termed Mediation for Everyday Transitional Justice because it was implemented in a natural community’s daily environment, by local people and for the local communities. The continuing failure of transitional justice mechanisms in Zimbabwe amid continued human rights violations justifies the undeniable value of this study. Zimbabwe’s past transitional justice efforts (since 1980, when the country became an independent republic) failed to build sustainable peace hence the country’s continued relapse into political and socio-economic turmoil. However, with appropriate transitional justice interventions that are built on grassroots-informed processes, sustainable peace is conceivable in Zimbabwe. Mediation, as an alternative dispute resolution process that is both persuasive and non-retributive, offers an interesting opportunity to the practice of transitional justice. The research concluded that the role of mediation in transitional justice is to facilitate truth telling, reparations, healing, and reconciliation among disputants without the need to use national-level transitional justice infrastructures. This means that, at the grassroots level, transitional justice processes can take place without waiting for the statist transitional justice approaches. However, in cases where the past human rights violations being addressed are tied to structural violence, driven from outside the community, local mediation processes may not be possible without the consent, cooperation, and willingness of those who sustain such conflicts. In addition, mediation cannot play any significant role in enabling prosecutorial justice, memorialisation, and institutional reforms at the grassroots level. Prosecutorial justice cannot be achieved because perpetrators can withdraw quickly when possibilities exist to be held criminally accountable for past human rights abuses. Institutional reforms also require changing governance policies and practices which are issues beyond the control of specific local communities. The study also observed that mediation is an effective tool for grassroots transitional justice issues because it is efficient, it saves time and financial resources, and it can be undertaken by local actors. To increase its demand and use in transitional justice processes at the grassroots level, these is a need to increase communities’ awareness of the importance of mediation in transitional justice, provide mediation-skills capacity-development interventions to potential mediators, and enhance the agency of various mediation actors at the grassroots levels.
The role of South Sudanese refugee and Ugandan women in peace and conflict transformation, Uganda
(2022) Dawa, Irene; Kaye, Sylvia Blanche
This study was guided by two research questions: (1) what explains the current participation or lack thereof of refugee and host community women in conflict transformation and peacebuilding in their communities? and (2) how can women and men be empowered to work together and what are the opportunities and limitations to their participation? The study adopted a mixed methodology approach. An exploratory and constructivism worldview orientation was employed to facilitate participation and understanding the meanings narrated by participants. Data pertaining to the study were collected from respondents comprising refugee and host community women and men through observations, individual interviews, focus group discussions, semi-structured questionnaires, and document analyses. The study revealed that women of Bidibidi refugee settlement played a major role in conflict prevention/transformation and peacebuilding through information sharing, motherhood and childcare, intermarriages between communities, social support psycho-social and spiritual healing to resolve and transform violent conflict. The study identified several findings: that the inclusion of men into women programs is beneficial as it facilitates relationship-building for sustainable peace; the positive impact of women participation in conflict transformation. The study further revealed that peacebuilding was being undermined by multiple factors including: a lack of resources for women including access to education, gender-insensitive infrastructure in the settlements, a lack of knowledge and skills, cultural barriers that restrict women’s participation in public lives, a general lack of focus on peacebuilding and conflict transformation, and an inadequate level of education/training for women. The study concluded that achievements by women in conflict transformation and peacebuilding at grassroots level received little to no attention as they continue to be side-lined by all actors including the humanitarian actors in peace processes in the settlement. The study therefore makes a deliberate call to stakeholders, especially the Government of Uganda and humanitarian actors, to utilise the untapped expertise of women and address these challenges for sustainable peace in the settlement and the country at large. Being a pioneer study in a refugee settlement in Uganda, further studies will need to be carried out to identify appropriate strategies through which these challenges can be addressed in order to achieve meaningful participation of women in peacebuilding and conflict transformation.
Building a culture of peace and nonviolence : enhancing Shona Traditional Court Systems
(2022-03) Makore, Brian Tazvitya; Kaye, Sylvia Blanche; Harris, Geoffrey Thomas
In traditional Shona culture, as in other Ubuntu societies, gender roles are given and traditional leaders have no other way of knowing than hegemonic discourses which draw on dominant cultural, traditional and religious value systems which produce patriarchal norms and rules of behavior that are internalized as beliefs and customs. Without conscientisation, Shona traditional leaders remain bonded to the hegemonic construction of traditional masculinities and contrary to their peacebuilding role, they may unconsciously participate in the oppression of women and other vulnerable groups who may not belong to the dominant cultural groups. The problem forms the major motivation behind the study which aimed to train a critical mass of Shona traditional leaders in Ward 3 and Ward 11 of Murehwa District under Chief Mangwende in Mashonaland East Province of Zimbabwe for transformation into gendersensitive active nonviolent role models. Through a participatory action research design, Kemmis et al. (2014), the thesis developed and tested an integrated framework for the analysis and design of a discursive intervention in oppressive gender relations. The analytical framework was informed theoretically by Connell and Messerschmidt’s (2005) concept of hegemonic masculinities and Bell’s (2013) four I’s of oppression and methodologically by Fairclough’s (2013) dialectical relational approach. The action framework was informed theoretically by Bajaj’s (2019) critical peace education (CPE) and methodologically Freire’s (1964, 2005) transformative learning. At the philosophical level, the study combined Bhaskar’s (1979, 2016) transformational model of social activity, (TMSA) and applied this to European Commission’s (2013) definition of gender education (GE) to develop a transformational model of peace education (TMPE) which I shall term, gender transformative education (GTE) Furthermore, the study combined Connell and Messerschmidt’s (2005) concept of hegemonic masculinities, Freire’s (2005) transformative learning and Kolb’s (1983) learning cycle to develop the attendant learning cycle which I shall term critical masculinities learning cycle (CMLC). The models explicitly identified conditions in which traditional Shona masculinities were not be compatible with peace and justice and, simultaneously, the possibility for transforming gender relations in traditional Shona culture. As regards peace research, a key innovation of the study was to critique some of the premises and the constructs underpinning mainstream studies in gender, violence and peacebuilding and the need of these sub-disciplines to constantly reflect on issues of hegemony and ideology in a historically and dynamically informed manner, while at the same time insisting on action to transform asymmetrical gender power relations. A gender training manual has been produced from the findings of the study: it is intended to serve as a template for traditional leaders to acquire gender transformative values and knowledge and to develop gender transformative skills and attitudes that are necessary conditions to live in harmony with themselves, others and their environments.
Using dialogue to transform youth involvement in political conflict in Zambia
(2021) Mukunto, Kabale Ignatius; Harris, Geoffrey Thomas; Kaye, Sylvia Blanche
Reducing school violence : a peace education project amongst stakeholders in Umlazi
(2018-09-01) Ngidi, Lucia Zithobile; Kaye, Sylvia Blanche; Harris, Geoffrey Thomas
Violence occurring within South African schools is a concern for all stakeholders. Violence takes various forms including bullying, theft of property, robberies and vandalism, sexual violence, harassment and rape, gang related violence, violence related to drugs and alcohol abuse, physical violence, shooting, stabbing and murder, violence through student protest and racially motivated violence. Every form of violence has devastating effects on the school system such as physical and psychological effects, educational damage and societal breakdown. The aim of this study was to explore school violence in the South African high school context, review existing strategies that seek to minimise it and thereafter devise and incorporate more effective strategies to prevent this scourge from increasing. There are numerous services currently in place to support abused victims and perpetrators, including, school level support plans and specialised support services, however, the problem persists. The study was built on the foundation of three related theories; firstly, the social learning theory, which states that the behaviour of an individual is learned from their surrounding environment through the process of observational learning; secondly, the restorative justice theory, which supports the use of healing approaches instead of punitive measures; and lastly, the Cure Violence model, which includes visualising and treating violence as if it were an infectious disease that spreads from one person to another. For the purpose of the study, a qualitative research approach was chosen to employ a case study research design. Institutions involved in the study were two secondary schools in the Umlazi district, Durban. Semi-structured interviews, open-ended questionnaires and focus groups discussions were used in a triangulation approach to enhance validity and reliability. I also wrote field notes while doing interviews and conducting focus group discussions to document participants’ responses and other observations which transpired in the process. Action research, premised on the Cure Violence model, utilising the information obtained from data collection was planned, implemented and evaluated in one school. Specialised groups – the We Care (WC) group and the School Peer Educators (SPEs) were trained and empowered to be agents of peace in this context. Participants’ responses on what they thought were the causes of violence were grouped into the following themes: environmental factors; resistance to parents; lack of awareness; influence of poverty; peer influence; love relationships; culture and religion. The WC and SPE groups were imparted with invaluable knowledge during this study, knowledge which is intended for use in years to come in the school and in the surrounding communities. The WC group reported to be very functional in dealing with cases involving parents when I returned for follow-up visits and reflection.

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