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Citation |
Craig D. Afr. Secur. 2011; 4(3): 171-194. |
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Copyright |
(Copyright © 2011, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group) |
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DOI |
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PMID |
unavailable |
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Abstract |
The changing role of nonstate actors in world politics is of considerable theoretical and practical interest. In this paper I propose using wars in independent Africa as a rich source of data on such actors, in particular the role of insurgent group(s) in complex conflicts. I examine three groups, UNITA, RENAMO, and 32/201 Battalions during South Africa's Border Wars (1961?1988/2002), to propose specific features that make these groups amenable to successful or unsuccessful demobilization. I argue that in a changed world, the new wars against nonstates may require less concern over how to exclude nonstates from territory and more on how to exclude them from transnational and global sources of power. The paper is concluded by emphasizing that changes in the spatial dimensions of power-brokering institutions compels renewed attention to central concepts and the nature and focus of strategic interventions. |