The internal dynamics of rebel groups: politics of material viability and organisational capacity in the RUF of Sierra Leone
<p>This thesis examines the internal dynamics of the Revolutionary United Front of Sierra Leone over the course of the civil war waged from 1991-2002. It does so in two parts, looking first at the RUF’s organizational capacity—its ability to emerge and survive as a group; and second, at its ma...
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
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2013
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| _version_ | 1811139401549348864 |
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| author | Marks, ZEZ |
| author2 | Anderson, D |
| author_facet | Anderson, D Marks, ZEZ |
| author_sort | Marks, ZEZ |
| collection | OXFORD |
| description | <p>This thesis examines the internal dynamics of the Revolutionary United Front of Sierra Leone over the course of the civil war waged from 1991-2002. It does so in two parts, looking first at the RUF’s organizational capacity—its ability to emerge and survive as a group; and second, at its material viability—the logistics and procurement of food, weapons, and other resources required to sustain war.</p> <p>The RUF has become a paradigmatic case for the study of war and rebel groups in Africa. Although much has been written on the group and its violence, comparatively little is known about the inner-workings of the organization and how a largely forcibly recruited group of ill-equipped thousands managed to pose a viable threat to the state for over a decade. Through a fine-grained, case-based analysis, this study applies research on the microdynamics of violence in civil war to the structural and logistical mechanics that underpin it. Doing so contextualizes debates about resource wars, collective violence, and mobilization and onset within the RUF’s own strategies for controlling these aspects of war- making.</p> <p>New primary material, including rebel archive documents, describes the extensive military and civilian governance structures through which order and cohesion were established and enforced. Tracking the success and failure of these mechanisms helps explain the disconnect between rebel rhetoric and behaviour. A detailed examination of the RUF’s material capacity applies this organizational analysis to the group’s strategic priorities for survival. It reorients the resource war debate toward what actually fuels fighting on the ground. Food has long been overlooked as the primary requirement for group survival, and ammunition the basic element of military viability. These ‘low politics’ of survival explain the nature of the war and underscore the importance of shifting factors, such as territorial control, in shaping rebel behaviour. Finally, the ‘high politics’ of international arms trades and global diamond markets illumine changes in the RUF’s firepower and personalization of power, returning to the organizational failings that ultimately led to the group’s dissolution.</p> |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T01:50:02Z |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oxford-uuid:99c334c8-132d-41b7-8d9b-3ed52147dac8 |
| institution | University of Oxford |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-09-25T04:05:30Z |
| publishDate | 2013 |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | oxford-uuid:99c334c8-132d-41b7-8d9b-3ed52147dac82024-05-28T13:04:49ZThe internal dynamics of rebel groups: politics of material viability and organisational capacity in the RUF of Sierra LeoneThesishttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_db06uuid:99c334c8-132d-41b7-8d9b-3ed52147dac8Political scienceGenderSocial SciencesHistory of AfricaGovernance in AfricaWar (politics)International studiesEnglishOxford University Research Archive - Valet2013Marks, ZEZAnderson, D<p>This thesis examines the internal dynamics of the Revolutionary United Front of Sierra Leone over the course of the civil war waged from 1991-2002. It does so in two parts, looking first at the RUF’s organizational capacity—its ability to emerge and survive as a group; and second, at its material viability—the logistics and procurement of food, weapons, and other resources required to sustain war.</p> <p>The RUF has become a paradigmatic case for the study of war and rebel groups in Africa. Although much has been written on the group and its violence, comparatively little is known about the inner-workings of the organization and how a largely forcibly recruited group of ill-equipped thousands managed to pose a viable threat to the state for over a decade. Through a fine-grained, case-based analysis, this study applies research on the microdynamics of violence in civil war to the structural and logistical mechanics that underpin it. Doing so contextualizes debates about resource wars, collective violence, and mobilization and onset within the RUF’s own strategies for controlling these aspects of war- making.</p> <p>New primary material, including rebel archive documents, describes the extensive military and civilian governance structures through which order and cohesion were established and enforced. Tracking the success and failure of these mechanisms helps explain the disconnect between rebel rhetoric and behaviour. A detailed examination of the RUF’s material capacity applies this organizational analysis to the group’s strategic priorities for survival. It reorients the resource war debate toward what actually fuels fighting on the ground. Food has long been overlooked as the primary requirement for group survival, and ammunition the basic element of military viability. These ‘low politics’ of survival explain the nature of the war and underscore the importance of shifting factors, such as territorial control, in shaping rebel behaviour. Finally, the ‘high politics’ of international arms trades and global diamond markets illumine changes in the RUF’s firepower and personalization of power, returning to the organizational failings that ultimately led to the group’s dissolution.</p> |
| spellingShingle | Political science Gender Social Sciences History of Africa Governance in Africa War (politics) International studies Marks, ZEZ The internal dynamics of rebel groups: politics of material viability and organisational capacity in the RUF of Sierra Leone |
| title | The internal dynamics of rebel groups: politics of material viability and organisational capacity in the RUF of Sierra Leone |
| title_full | The internal dynamics of rebel groups: politics of material viability and organisational capacity in the RUF of Sierra Leone |
| title_fullStr | The internal dynamics of rebel groups: politics of material viability and organisational capacity in the RUF of Sierra Leone |
| title_full_unstemmed | The internal dynamics of rebel groups: politics of material viability and organisational capacity in the RUF of Sierra Leone |
| title_short | The internal dynamics of rebel groups: politics of material viability and organisational capacity in the RUF of Sierra Leone |
| title_sort | internal dynamics of rebel groups politics of material viability and organisational capacity in the ruf of sierra leone |
| topic | Political science Gender Social Sciences History of Africa Governance in Africa War (politics) International studies |
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