Examining the Prospects of Consociational Power-Sharing as a Conflict Resolution Strategy in South Sudan
Main Article Content
Keywords
South Sudan, Sustainable Peace, Consociationalism power-sharing
Abstract
South Sudan has not escaped the world’s attention even after the signing of the infamous Revitalized Peace Agreement in September 2018 that for the 12th time brought the two antagonists –Kiir and Dr. Machar to the negotiation table since the conflict began in 2013. Even with the aura of a shaky peace, the main question is whether the new agreement will stand the test of time going by the history of the failed implementation of peace agreements. This paper recognizes the vital nature of the prevailing peace and questions about whether consociational democracy can be propped up during this period of relative peace. Discussions are hinged on the consociationalism theory that contains a broad array of principles, including power sharing, requisite for consociational democracy. It argues that although South Sudan’s context could favor consociational democracy, there are several barriers characterizing Sudan’s social and political spheres that should be alleviated. We elucidate on the barriers and suggest in broad strokes the need for strong independent institutions and vibrant civil society amongst others. We also recognize that overreliance on individuals in resolving the conflict is detrimental to the young nation, and there is a need for a citizen-centered approach that entrenches consociational principles in South Sudan’s political sphere.
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References
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Collier, P. (2000). Rebellion as a quasi-criminal activity. Journal of Conflict resolution, 44(6), 839-853. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022002700044006008
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Deng, F. M. (1996). Identity in Africa’s internal conflicts. American Behavioral Scientist, 40(1), 46-65. https://doi.org/10.1177/0002764296040001007
Ganesan, N. (1997). Cultural pluralism and the unifying potential of democracy in south east Asia. In: M. Smiegelow (Ed.), Democracy in Asia (pp. 195-214). New York: St. Martin’s press.
Harbom, L., Högbladh, S., & Wallensteen, P. (2006). Armed conflict and peace agreements. Journal of Peace Research, 43(5), 617-631. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022343306067613
Hartzell, C. & Hoddie, M. (2003). Institutionalising peace: Power sharing and post-civil war conflict management. American Journal of Political Science, 47, 318–332. https://doi.org/10.1111/1540-5907.00022
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Munive, J. (2013). Context matters: The conventional DDR template is challenged in South Sudan. International Peacekeeping, 20(5), 585-599. https://doi.org/10.1080/13533312.2013.853962
Nyadera, I. N. (2018). South Sudan conflict from 2013 to 2018: Rethinking the causes, situation and solutions. African Journal on Conflict Resolution, 18(2), 59-86.
Okiech, A. Pa’gan (2016). The civil wars in South Sudan: An historical political commentary. The Applied Anthropologist, 36 (1–2), pp. 7–11.
Osinubi, T. S., & Osinubi, O. S. (2006). Ethnic conflicts in contemporary Africa: The Nigerian experience. Journal of Social Sciences, 12(2), 101-114. https://doi.org/10.1080/09718923.2006.11978376
Phayal, A., Khadka, P. B., & Thyne, C. L. (2015). What makes an ex-combatant happy? A micro-analysis of disarmament, demobilisation, and reintegration in South Sudan. International studies quarterly, 59(4), 654-668. https://doi.org/10.1111/isqu.12186
Pinaud, C. (2014). South Sudan: Civil war, predation and the making of a military aristocracy. African Affairs, 113(451), 192-211. https://doi.org/10.1093/afraf/adu019
Radon, J., & Logan, S. (2014). South Sudan: Governance arrangements, war, and peace. Journal of International Affairs, 68(1), 149.
Raleigh, C. (2010). Political marginalisation, climate change, and conflict in African Sahel states. International Studies Review, 12(1), 69–86. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2486.2009.00913.x
Rolandsen Ø. H., (2015). Small and Far Between: Peacekeeping Economies in South Sudan. Journal of Intervention and State building, 9(3). https://doi.org/10.1080/17502977.2015.1070024
Roque, P. C., & Miamingi, R. (2016). Beyond ARCISS: New fault lines in South Sudan. East Africa Report, 9, pp. 1–28.
Shaka, J. (2011). The Referendum in South Sudan: Is it Peace or Conflict Ahead? An Interview with Ambassador Daniel Rachuonyo Mboya. Journal of Conflictology, 2(1).
Spears, I. S. (2002). Africa: the limits of power-sharing. Journal of Democracy, 13(3), 123-136. https://doi.org/10.1353/jod.2002.0057
U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), “South Sudan Crisis: Situation Report as of December 26 2013,” Report Number 4, December 26, 2013.
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Young, J. C., Searle, K., Butler, A., Simmons, P., Watt, A. D., & Jordan, A. (2016). The role of trust in the resolution of conservation conflicts. Biological Conservation, 195, 196-202. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2015.12.030
Zambakari, C. (2012). Post-referendum Sudan: the nation-building project and its challenges. Rutgers JL & Pub. Pol’y, 9, 505. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2950870
Zambakari, C. (2012). South Sudan: institutional legacy of colonialism and the making of a new state. The Journal of North African Studies, 17(3), 515-532. https://doi.org/10.1080/13629387.2012.671996
African Union, (2014). Final Report of the African Union Commission of Inquiry on South Sudan. Retrieved from: http://www.au.int/en/auciss
Alier, A. (1990). Southern Sudan: Too many agreements dishonoured. Exeter: Ithaca Press
Barry, B. (1975). Political accommodation and consociational democracy. British Journal of Political Science, 5(4), 477-505. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007123400008322
Bates, R. H., Coatsworth, J. H., & Williamson, J. G. (2007). Lost decades: postindependence performance in Latin America and Africa. The Journal of Economic History, 67(4), 917-943. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0022050707000447
Berg, E. (2007). Examining power-sharing in persistent conflicts: De facto pseudo-statehood versus de jure quasi-federalism. Global society, 21(2), 199-217. https://doi.org/10.1080/13600820701201806
Brancati, D. (2006). Decentralisation: Fueling the fire or dampening the flames of ethnic conflict and secessionism? International Organization, 60(3), 651–685. https://doi.org/10.1017/S002081830606019X
Brown, G. K. (2008). Decentralisation and conflict: Introduction and overview. Conflict, Security & Development, 8(4), 387–392. https://doi.org/10.1080/14678800802539283
Cammett, M., & Malesky, E. (2012). Power sharing in postconflict societies: Implications for peace and governance. Journal of Conflict Resolution, 56(6), 982-1016. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022002711421593
Collier, P. (2000). Rebellion as a quasi-criminal activity. Journal of Conflict resolution, 44(6), 839-853. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022002700044006008
De Waal, A. (2014). When kleptocracy becomes insolvent: Brute causes of the civil war in South Sudan. African Affairs, 113(452), 347-369. https://doi.org/10.1093/afraf/adu028
Deng, F. M. (1996). Identity in Africa’s internal conflicts. American Behavioral Scientist, 40(1), 46-65. https://doi.org/10.1177/0002764296040001007
Ganesan, N. (1997). Cultural pluralism and the unifying potential of democracy in south east Asia. In: M. Smiegelow (Ed.), Democracy in Asia (pp. 195-214). New York: St. Martin’s press.
Harbom, L., Högbladh, S., & Wallensteen, P. (2006). Armed conflict and peace agreements. Journal of Peace Research, 43(5), 617-631. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022343306067613
Hartzell, C. & Hoddie, M. (2003). Institutionalising peace: Power sharing and post-civil war conflict management. American Journal of Political Science, 47, 318–332. https://doi.org/10.1111/1540-5907.00022
Horowitz, D. L. (2014). Ethnic power sharing: Three big problems. Journal of democracy, 25(2), 5-20. https://doi.org/10.1353/jod.2014.0020
Johnson, D. H. (2014). Briefing: the crisis in South Sudan. African Affairs, 113(451), 300-309. https://doi.org/10.1093/afraf/adu020
Jok, J. M., & Hutchinson, S. E. (1999). Sudan’s prolonged second civil war and the militarisation of Nuer and Dinka ethnic identities. African Studies Review, 42(2), 125-145. https://doi.org/10.2307/525368
Krasner, S. D. (1999) Sovereignty: Organized Hypocrisy. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400823260
Kuol, B. L. (2016). South Sudan’s prospects for peace and security. Paper presented to the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs, Subcommittee on Africa, global health and human rights. Washington, D.C., April 2016.
Lijphart, A. (1977). Democracy in plural societies: A comparative exploration. London: Yale University Press. https://doi.org/10.2307/421902
Lijphart, A. (1981). Consociational theory: Problems and Prospects. A reply. Comparative Politics, 13(3), 355-360.
Martell, P. (2016). South Sudan Is Dying, and Nobody Is Counting. Agency France Press. Retrieved from: https://news.yahoo.com/south-sudan-dying-nobody-counting-045835407.html
Mednick, S. (2019) Aid workers warn against repeating South Sudan peace deal mistakes. Devex. Retrieved from: https://www.devex.com/news/aid-workers-warn-against-repeating-south-sudan-peace-deal-mistakes-94725
Mercy Corps (2018), Quick facts: What you need to know about the South Sudan crisis. Retrieved from: https://www.mercycorps.org/articles/south-sudan/quick-facts-what-you-need-know-about-south-sudan-crisis
Montalvo, J. G., & Reynal-Querol, M. (2005). Ethnic polarisation, potential conflict, and civil wars. American economic review, 95(3), 796-816. https://doi.org/10.1257/0002828054201468
Munive, J. (2013). Context matters: The conventional DDR template is challenged in South Sudan. International Peacekeeping, 20(5), 585-599. https://doi.org/10.1080/13533312.2013.853962
Nyadera, I. N. (2018). South Sudan conflict from 2013 to 2018: Rethinking the causes, situation and solutions. African Journal on Conflict Resolution, 18(2), 59-86.
Okiech, A. Pa’gan (2016). The civil wars in South Sudan: An historical political commentary. The Applied Anthropologist, 36 (1–2), pp. 7–11.
Osinubi, T. S., & Osinubi, O. S. (2006). Ethnic conflicts in contemporary Africa: The Nigerian experience. Journal of Social Sciences, 12(2), 101-114. https://doi.org/10.1080/09718923.2006.11978376
Phayal, A., Khadka, P. B., & Thyne, C. L. (2015). What makes an ex-combatant happy? A micro-analysis of disarmament, demobilisation, and reintegration in South Sudan. International studies quarterly, 59(4), 654-668. https://doi.org/10.1111/isqu.12186
Pinaud, C. (2014). South Sudan: Civil war, predation and the making of a military aristocracy. African Affairs, 113(451), 192-211. https://doi.org/10.1093/afraf/adu019
Radon, J., & Logan, S. (2014). South Sudan: Governance arrangements, war, and peace. Journal of International Affairs, 68(1), 149.
Raleigh, C. (2010). Political marginalisation, climate change, and conflict in African Sahel states. International Studies Review, 12(1), 69–86. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2486.2009.00913.x
Rolandsen Ø. H., (2015). Small and Far Between: Peacekeeping Economies in South Sudan. Journal of Intervention and State building, 9(3). https://doi.org/10.1080/17502977.2015.1070024
Roque, P. C., & Miamingi, R. (2016). Beyond ARCISS: New fault lines in South Sudan. East Africa Report, 9, pp. 1–28.
Shaka, J. (2011). The Referendum in South Sudan: Is it Peace or Conflict Ahead? An Interview with Ambassador Daniel Rachuonyo Mboya. Journal of Conflictology, 2(1).
Spears, I. S. (2002). Africa: the limits of power-sharing. Journal of Democracy, 13(3), 123-136. https://doi.org/10.1353/jod.2002.0057
U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), “South Sudan Crisis: Situation Report as of December 26 2013,” Report Number 4, December 26, 2013.
U.N. Security Council, Security Council resolution 2132 (2013) South Sudan and Sudan, December 24 2013, S/RES/2132 (2013)
Young, J. C., Searle, K., Butler, A., Simmons, P., Watt, A. D., & Jordan, A. (2016). The role of trust in the resolution of conservation conflicts. Biological Conservation, 195, 196-202. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2015.12.030
Zambakari, C. (2012). Post-referendum Sudan: the nation-building project and its challenges. Rutgers JL & Pub. Pol’y, 9, 505. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2950870
Zambakari, C. (2012). South Sudan: institutional legacy of colonialism and the making of a new state. The Journal of North African Studies, 17(3), 515-532. https://doi.org/10.1080/13629387.2012.671996
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Jun 1, 2022
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Examining the Prospects of Consociational Power-Sharing as a Conflict Resolution Strategy in South Sudan. (2022). African Journal of Political Science, 10(1), 107-116. https://doi.org/10.36615/ajpsrasp.v10i1.1192
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Examining the Prospects of Consociational Power-Sharing as a Conflict Resolution Strategy in South Sudan. (2022). African Journal of Political Science, 10(1), 107-116. https://doi.org/10.36615/ajpsrasp.v10i1.1192