2 research outputs found
Voluntary child soldiering : a case-study of the anti-apartheid struggle
In this thesis, I
present a
theoretical framework in
which children's voluntary
participation
in
armed conflict
becomes
a reasonable act within
their
social
environment.
I
argue that in
order to gain a more analytical understanding of why
children volunteer, social scientists require an
in-depth knowledge
of
the
political,
social and economic conditions
in
which
they join
up
And
of
the
meanings
that
children attach to those situations and their
reactions. Prior
quantitative
data
on the
social
distribution
of child volunteering
have
often
been used
to
proclaim that `the
most vulnerable of
the
vulnerable' are recruited. On
the
basis of a
discourse analysis
of
UNHCR's
policies and activities
in
relation to under-age recruitment,
I illustrate
my claim
that dominant Euro-American
conceptualisations of childhood
have
primarily shaped research and
humanitarian
aid regarding child soldiering and
resulted in the portrayal of child soldiers as
innocent
victims who are corrupted by
adult wars.
I
subsequently go on to show
how
a new paradigm
for
the study of childhood can
enhance contemporary
knowledge
on
the
social processes and
factors that lead
children
to consider and eventually
join
a military group or opt
for
an alternative
mode of action
to
cope with
their dire
situation.
In
my qualitative case-study of child
soldiering in the
anti-apartheid struggle, I found that in joining
a political organisation
and subsequently
its
military wing, young
South Africans
sought
to
assert
their
(political)
agency within the structural and cultural
features that
shaped their
social
environment. Within the context of changing peer and
intergenerational relationships,
these
children carved out more powerful
identities for them to
address the social
injustices that had affected their personal and collective lives
Voluntary child soldiering : a case-study of the anti-apartheid struggle
In this thesis, I present a theoretical framework in which children's voluntary participation in armed conflict becomes a reasonable act within their social environment. I argue that in order to gain a more analytical understanding of why children volunteer, social scientists require an in-depth knowledge of the political, social and economic conditions in which they join up And of the meanings that children attach to those situations and their reactions. Prior quantitative data on the social distribution of child volunteering have often been used to proclaim that `the most vulnerable of the vulnerable' are recruited. On the basis of a discourse analysis of UNHCR's policies and activities in relation to under-age recruitment, I illustrate my claim that dominant Euro-American conceptualisations of childhood have primarily shaped research and humanitarian aid regarding child soldiering and resulted in the portrayal of child soldiers as innocent victims who are corrupted by adult wars. I subsequently go on to show how a new paradigm for the study of childhood can enhance contemporary knowledge on the social processes and factors that lead children to consider and eventually join a military group or opt for an alternative mode of action to cope with their dire situation. In my qualitative case-study of child soldiering in the anti-apartheid struggle, I found that in joining a political organisation and subsequently its military wing, young South Africans sought to assert their (political) agency within the structural and cultural features that shaped their social environment. Within the context of changing peer and intergenerational relationships, these children carved out more powerful identities for them to address the social injustices that had affected their personal and collective lives.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo