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Nine contributors offer pioneering work on the scope and nature of electoral violence in Africa; investigate the forms electoral violence takes; and analyze the factors that precipitate, reduce, and prevent violence. The book breaks new ground with findings from the only known dataset of electoral violence in sub-Saharan Africa, spanning 1990 to 2008. Specific case studies of electoral violence in countries such as Ghana, Kenya, and Nigeria provide the context to further understanding the circumstances under which electoral violence takes place, recedes, or recurs.
Multiparty elections have become the bellwether by which all democracies are judged, and the spread of these systems across Africa has been widely hailed as a sign of the continent’s progress towards stability and prosperity. But such elections bring their own challenges, particularly the often intense internecine violence following disputed results. While the consequences of such violence can be profound, undermining the legitimacy of the democratic process and in some cases plunging countries into civil war or renewed dictatorship, little is known about the causes. By mapping, analysing and comparing instances of election violence in different localities across Africa – including Kenya, Ivory Coast and Uganda – this collection of detailed case studies sheds light on the underlying dynamics and sub-national causes behind electoral conflicts, revealing them to be the result of a complex interplay between democratisation and the older, patronage-based system of ‘Big Man’ politics. Essential for scholars and policymakers across the social sciences and humanities interested in democratization, peace-keeping and peace studies, Violence in African Elections provides important insights into why some communities prove more prone to electoral violence than others, offering practical suggestions for preventing violence through improved electoral monitoring, voter education, and international assistance.
Essays and speeches discussing how to prevent electoral violence in Africa collected during the March 2010 Conference on Preventing Electoral Violence and Instituting Good Governance in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Multiparty elections have become the bellwether by which all democracies are judged, and the spread of these systems across Africa has been widely hailed as a sign of the continent's progress towards stability and prosperity. But such elections bring their own challenges, particularly the often intense internecine violence following disputed results. While the consequences of such violence can be profound, undermining the legitimacy of the democratic process and in some cases plunging countries into civil war or renewed dictatorship, little is known about the causes. By mapping, analysing and comparing instances of election violence in different localities across Africa – including Kenya, Ivory Coast and Uganda – this collection of detailed case studies sheds light on the underlying dynamics and sub-national causes behind electoral conflicts, revealing them to be the result of a complex interplay between democratisation and the older, patronage-based system of 'Big Man' politics. Essential for scholars and policymakers across the social sciences and humanities interested in democratization, peace-keeping and peace studies, Violence in African Elections provides important insights into why some communities prove more prone to electoral violence than others, offering practical suggestions for preventing violence through improved electoral monitoring, voter education, and international assistance.
Elections have emerged as one of the most important, and most contentious, features of political life on the African continent. In the first half of this decade, there were more than 20 national elections, serving largely as capstones of peace processes or transitions to democracies. The outcomes of these and more recent elections have been remarkably varied, and the relationship between elections and conflict management is widely debated throughout Africa and among international observers. Elections can either help reduce tensions by reconstituting legitimate government, or they can exacerbate them by further polarizing highly conflictual societies. This timely volume examines the relationship between elections, especially electoral systems, and conflict management in Africa, while also serving as an important reference for other regions. The book brings together for the first time the latest thinking on the many different roles elections can play in democratization and conflict management.
Master's Thesis from the year 2017 in the subject Politics - International Politics - Topic: Peace and Conflict Studies, Security, grade: 3.00, , course: Msc Defence and International Politics, language: English, abstract: This study examines the causes of electoral conflicts in Ghana and Africa, and the role and challenges of the National Peace Council in resolving election-related conflicts. In many African countries, both the economic and political authorities are confiscated and held in the hands of some corrupt leaders who through the use of force control the destiny of their countries. Since the adoption of multiparty systems in some African countries, most elections have been tarnished by violence and by political antagonists who continue to question not only the fairness and the transparency of elections but also the validity of the electoral systems of their countries. Ghana’s elections for some time now have become violent resulting in disputes. A typical case of this situation was the 2012 elections which ended up in the Supreme Court as a dispute. In all of these conflicts, the role of the National Peace Council cannot be over-emphasized. The Council played an important role before, during and after elections. This contributed in the peace that the Ghana experienced during and after elections. In the light of the key role of the Council played in ensuring peace before, during and after elections, there are a number of challenges that confronted the Council. This study examines the specific role played by the National Peace Council (NPC) in ensuring peace in elections. The study discussed the challenges that affected the work of the Council such as limited funding to initiate activities and inadequate staff to help carry out its functions. The methodology adopted in this study is the qualitative case study approach which enabled the study to analyze the findings by relying mostly on secondary data to make its findings. Literatures from secondary data were reviewed to answer research questions. The findings of this study confirm that, the role played by the National Peace Council (NPC) yielded positive results in ensuring the peace of the country throughout the electoral period which other Africa countries can emulate to prevent election-related conflicts.
"Whereas elections have become commonplace in Africa over the past 20 years, several recent examples have shown that they can also crystallise tensions and cause violence (as happened in Kenya, Cô̂te d'Ivoire and Zimbabwe), and can fail to legitimise power. In Africa, the stakes are high, with access to resources through electoral victory a major aspect of elections. This explains why elections are often the object of fraught competition. Elections thus constitute a critical moment for fragile political regimes. An understanding of the issue of power and the associated resource sharing is fundamental to limiting the risk of elections triggering instability. This issue requires political dialogue at all levels that should be extended to civil society actors. Elections should not be seen only as a technical exercise; it is also vital to understand their power dynamics and the stakes at play. In addition to making sure that all the actors taking part in elections have ownership of the electoral process, an electoral administration that is credible and recognised by all is essential for lessening risks and tensions. However, in many African countries election management bodies do not have sufficient capacity to fulfill their functions and assert their independence. In this context, the credibility of elections requires legitimate observation systems, which are generally promoted locally by civil society organisations. Lastly, priority must be given to preventing electoral violence through inclusive early warning mechanisms and mediation systems. Multi-stakeholder conflict management, which brings together various types of actors and supports social diversity, is fundamental to promoting peaceful electoral processes"--Publisher's web site.
Presenting the first database of constitutional design in all African countries, and seven original case studies, Constitutions and Conflict Management in Africa explores the types of domestic political institutions that can buffer societies from destabilizing changes that otherwise increase the risk of violence.