Mediating identity: the West African diaspora, conflict and communication.

Migration has created many existential problems for societies and individuals, not least amongst them, questions of identity. Over time, migrants settle and form a diaspora in a new land but does their dislocation from that geographical space they once called ‘home’ inevitably erode or subvert their sense of self ? Can representation through the diasporic media mitigate this loss and perhaps offer the exile an enhanced vision of their country of origin as well as a bridge to their new home ? The African Union considers the diaspora the sixth region of Africa and the news media helps foster amongst exiles an ‘imagined diaspora’ (Anderson), connecting them to their country of origin. Increasingly in the social media age, this ‘diaspora of the Internet’ (Tettey) can be seen at work, often acting as a mirror for division and disharmony in the country of origin. Taking a case study approach of three countries in West Africa and interpreting conflict in its broadest senses, this article seeks to examine the ways in which the news-related media of the West African diaspora has influenced understandings of identity.  

The justice conundrum : Africa's turbulent relationship with the ICC

This article/blog is a response to the article 'Judicialization of Peace' in the Harvard International Law Journal Vol 59(2).The Colombia transitional peace model, as described in the article, offers an interesting prism through which to view the ICC's involvement in African conflicts which, hitherto, has served mainly to antagonize African leaders and achieved little in the way of transitional justice. This response looks critically at the role of the Office of the  Prosecutor under both Luis Moreno Ocampo and Fatou Bensouda ; examines some of the flaws in the Kenyatta/Ruto prosecution; and asks whether the 'shadow effect' of the ICC (pace the article) could help mediate meaningful peace moves on a continent whose institutions, in the main, are far less robust than Colombia's.  It also posits a philosophical gulf between African concepts of 'human rights', rooted in tribe and ethnic community, and the ICC's application of (Enlightenment) principles of individual liberties.

The International Criminal Court and Africa : a fractious relationship assessed

For many African states, the latest iteration of Western colonialism is the International Criminal Court. All the Court’s prosecutions have involved African conflicts, and the continent’s initially strong support for its creation has in recent years notably weakened. Leaders from Museveni to Kenyatta and Zuma to Bashir have excoriated the Court for its partiality, and only a change of government in The Gambia reversed a serious threat to quit its jurisdiction. Under pressure from Burundi and South Africa, the African Union has made increasingly militant noises about a mass withdrawal of member states. How should blame be apportioned for the turbulence of this relationship between the Court and the current generation of African leaders? Where does it leave a continent blighted by conflict, egregious human rights abuses and perceptions of the impunity of the ‘big man’ at the top? A research project, funded by the British Academy, has examined attitudes in civil society in Uganda and Kenya towards the ICC and asked whether human rights abuses could be effectively addressed by any other means. Researchers from three universities in Kenya, Uganda and the UK have interviewed judges, lawyers, NGOs, journalists and others about the ICC, domestic or regional forms of 'justice' (such as the putative African Court of Justice & Human Rights) and other transitional post-conflict mechanisms. The findings suggest that there is a high level of frustration with the performance of the ICC and, specifically, the Office of the Prosecutor. The article argues that although there is no one common denominator in the failed prosecutions, the ICC’s strategy has too often yielded the initiative to long-serving leaders adept at retaining power and that, while state parties see little hope of reforming the ICC and favour an ‘Africanist solution to African problems’, there is little agreement on what form that should take

Newspaper coverage of a Sierra Leone war crimes trial: a ‘continuation of conflict by other means’

The most controversial trial conducted by the Special Court for Sierra Leone convicted leaders of the Civil Defence Force of serious violations of international humanitarian law during the country’s 11-year civil war. Many in Sierra Leone thought the trial should never have been held, on the grounds that the CDF leadership were ‘heroes’ for coming to the aid of the government in the mid- 1990s. Critics argued that pressure for a prosecution came principally from outside the country, particularly the United States. Opinion in Sierra Leone tended to be shaped along ethnic and regional lines, and a research study, funded by the British Academy, has sought to establish whether domestic newspaper coverage of the trial mirrored this ethno-regional division. Borrowing a paradigm from a study of the Yugoslav wars of the 1990s, the authors conclude that in many respects, the reportage of the trial was ‘a continuation of conflict by other means’

Africa and the International Criminal Court: the road to divorce

Jon Silverman analyses the roots of African states’ dissatisfaction with the International Criminal Court

Sense about science - making sense of crime

Booklet 'Making Sense of Crime' published by registered charity 'Sense About Science'There’s always heated debate about crime in the media and a lot of political argument about how we should respond to it. But these arguments rarely provide insight into what actually causes crime, what lies behind trends over time and in different places, and how best to go about reducing it. Values inform how a society decides to deal with crime. We may decide that rehabilitation is a better principle than punishment, and this will influence how we decide what is most effective. However, we also expect these choices to be disciplined by sound evidence, because if crime policy ignores what works and what doesn’t, there are likely to be bad social consequences. And with over £10bn spent annually on tackling crime through the police, prisons, probation and courts, unless we look at evidence we can’t see how effective any of it is. Crime policy usually has twin aims – to prevent crime, and to seek justice by punishing those who commit offences. Research shows there’s only a loose link, if any, between the way offenders are punished and the number of offences committed. There is no reliable evidence for example, that capital punishment reduces serious crimes as its supporters claim. Yet politicians and commentators regularly claim that more punishments are a way to cut crime. Academic, government and community organisations have all said crime policies need to be based more on evidence, but much of the evidence available at the moment is poor or unclear. Debates about crime rarely reflect how strong the evidence behind opposing policies is, and even when politicians honestly believe they’re following the evidence, they tend to select evidence that supports their political views. This guide looks at some of the key things we do know and why it has been so difficult to make sense of crime policy. An important point throughout is that policymakers sometimes have to make decisions when things are not clear-cut. They have a better chance of making effective policies if they admit to this uncertainty – and conduct robust research to find out more. In the following pages we have shared insights from experts in violent crime, policing, crime science, psychology and the media’s influence on the crime debate. They don’t have all the answers, but we hope they leave you better-placed to hold policymakers and commentators to account and promote a more useful discussion about crime

SN 2015U: A Rapidly Evolving and Luminous Type Ibn Supernova

Supernova (SN) 2015U (also known as PSN J07285387+3349106) was discovered in NGC 2388 on 2015 Feb. 11. A rapidly evolving and luminous event, it showed effectively hydrogen-free spectra dominated by relatively narrow helium P-Cygni spectral features and it was classified as a SN Ibn. In this paper we present photometric, spectroscopic, and spectropolarimetric observations of SN 2015U, including a Keck/DEIMOS spectrum (resolution $\approx$ 5000) which fully resolves the optical emission and absorption features. We find that SN 2015U is best understood via models of shock breakout from extended and dense circumstellar material (CSM), likely created by a history of mass loss from the progenitor with an extreme outburst within $\sim$1-2 yr of core collapse (but we do not detect any outburst in our archival imaging of NGC 2388). We argue that the high luminosity of SN 2015U was powered not through $^{56}$Ni decay but via the deposition of kinetic energy into the ejecta/CSM shock interface. Though our analysis is hampered by strong host-galaxy dust obscuration (which likely exhibits multiple components), our dataset makes SN 2015U one of the best-studied Type Ibn supernovae and provides a bridge of understanding to other rapidly fading transients, both luminous and relatively faint.Comment: 20 pages, 15 figures, 4 table

Sports review: A content analysis of the International Review for the Sociology of Sport, the Journal of Sport and Social Issues and the Sociology of Sport Journal across 25 years

The International Review for the Sociology of Sport, the Journal of Sport and Social Issues and Sociology of Sport Journal have individually and collectively been subject to a systematic content analysis. By focusing on substantive research papers published in these three journals over a 25-year time period it is possible to identify the topics that have featured within the sociology of sport. The purpose of the study was to identify the dominant themes, sports, countries, methodological frameworks and theoretical perspectives that have appeared in the research papers published in these three journals. Using the terms, identified by the author(s), that appear in the paper’s title, abstract and/or listed as a key word, subject term or geographical term, a baseline is established to reflect on the development of the sub-discipline as represented by the content of these three journals. It is suggested that the findings illustrate what many of the more experienced practitioners in the field may have felt subjectively. On the basis of this systematic, empirical study it is now possible to identify those areas have received extensive coverage and those which are under-researched within the sociology of sport. The findings are used to inform a discussion of the role of academic journals and the recent contributions made by Michael Silk, David Andrews, Michael Atkinson and Dominic Malcolm on the past, present and future of the ‘sociology of sport’

Spectropolarimetry of SN 2011dh in M51: geometric insights on a Type IIb supernova progenitor and explosion

We present seven epochs of spectropolarimetry of the Type IIb supernova (SN) 2011dh in M51, spanning 86 days of its evolution. The first epoch was obtained 9 days after the explosion, when the photosphere was still in the depleted hydrogen layer of the stripped-envelope progenitor. Continuum polarization is securely detected at the level of P~0.5% through day 14 and appears to diminish by day 30, which is different from the prevailing trends suggested by studies of other core-collapse SNe. Time-variable modulations in P and position angle are detected across P-Cygni line features. H-alpha and HeI polarization peak after 30 days and exhibit position angles roughly aligned with the earlier continuum, while OI and CaII appear to be geometrically distinct. We discuss several possibilities to explain the evolution of the continuum and line polarization, including the potential effects of a tidally deformed progenitor star, aspherical radioactive heating by fast-rising plumes of Ni-56 from the core, oblique shock breakout, or scattering by circumstellar material. While these possibilities are plausible and guided by theoretical expectations, they are not unique solutions to the data. The construction of more detailed hydrodynamic and radiative-transfer models that incorporate complex aspherical geometries will be required to further elucidate the nature of the polarized radiation from SN 2011dh and other Type IIb supernovae.Comment: Post-proof edit. Accepted to MNRAS 2015 Aug 1