This paper seeks to introduce the idea of forming alternative defence structures in the wake of the violence unleashed against citizens by security forces, vigilante groups and hit squads in the 1990s.
This paper discusses the role of the South African Police during instances of civil unrest. It first provides a definition of violence and then proceeds to call for a definition of the term "violence" which is not restricted to instances of physical harm. State-supported violence is then defined. The issue as to whether the police should be seen as managers of conflict or whether they are party to the conflict is then discussed with particular reference to the South African situation.
The purpose of this paper is to contextualise the emerging of a violent gang culture (jackroll) in the period following the township unrest of the mid-80s. The paper argues that the rise of youth gangs and wanton youth violence is equally intricately connected to the crisis of capitalism.
The Black Sash and its rural project, the Transvaal Rural Action Committee (TRAC), approached the Project for the Study of Violence to undertake this research. It serves as a warning against the belief that the scrapping of the Land Acts will put an end to the varying forms of violence on the farms.
This paper, which contains excerpts from interviews with hostel dwellers, seeks to unveil some of the reasons behind their participation, and so presents the 'human face of violence.' It attempts to contextualise direct questions about the violence within, first, the broader historical conditions that have characterised the hostel community and, second, the broader political processes that have had an impact on the lives of hostel dwellers.
Dramatic developments in South African politics since mid-1991 put the spotlight on the critical role of the security forces in a transitional period of reform. Previous issues include media revelations of collusion between the security establishment and the lnkatha Freedom Party, biased policing of the violence and the reshuffle of the key Law & Order and Defence portfolios. To complement Clifford Shearing's review of the draft Peace Accord unveiled in August 1991, Janine Rauch evaluates previous institutional reforms within the South African Police.