Professor Andreas Velthuizen is a National Research Foundation (NRF) rated researcher in the School of Thabo Mbeki, at the University of South Africa (Unisa). His primary academic interest is to teach and develop new theory for peace, conflict resolution and security in Africa, informed by the African way of knowing (epistemology), following a trans-disciplinary approach.
The article examines spiritual knowledge derived from military landscapes. The paper draws on the... more The article examines spiritual knowledge derived from military landscapes. The paper draws on the ways in which the !Kun (also called ‘San’ or ‘Bushmen’) soldiers during the so-called Cold War in Namibia and Angola experienced the landscape in which they operated. The article asserts that in the context of war, spirituality is a human experience where spiritual knowledge can be discovered in military landscapes. The author found that spiritual practice is an important part of a soldier’s knowledge, used to understand the complexity and uncertainty of their situation. The author demonstrates how the spirituality of soldiers can enhance their ability to develop situational awareness. The article relied on the lived experiences of the author when participating with !Kun soldiers in military operations as a young military commander, as well as critical reflection on available data on how the spirituality of !Kun soldiers enabled them to understand their military landscape.
Decolonizing Knowledge for African Renewal: Vuyisile Msila (ed.) Examining African Perspectives and Philosophies. , 2017
‘What is an appropriate research paradigm that can be applied to conflict studies in African con... more ‘What is an appropriate research paradigm that can be applied to conflict studies in African contexts?’ This chapter aims to identify specific variables that could be an integral part of a new grounded or engaged theory for conflict studies in Africa. This aim will be achieved by investigating conflict studies in Africa from the perspective of phenomenology as a philosophy, a transdisciplinary research approach and a research methodology that is participatory and engaged, discovering the lived experiences and consciousness of involved engagement with communities in Africa that are involved in violent conflict or recovering from it. The chapter starts with explaining African phenomenology as a philosophical framework for research, trans-disciplinarity as an approach to research, and community-engaged participatory research. The research activities of trust-building, knowledge-discovery and complementary interpretation are presented, illustrating how these activities were applied during the author's research with the San of South Africa. From the conceptual framework and case study, variables are identified that informs a new research paradigm for conflict studies in Africa and the possible impact thereof for new engaged theory for conflict studies in general.
The paper is presented against a background of many wicked problems that confront us in the world... more The paper is presented against a background of many wicked problems that confront us in the world today such as violent crime, conflict that emanates from political power seeking, contests for scarce resources, the increasing reaction all over the world to the deterioration of socio-economic conditions and the devastation caused by natural disasters. This article will argue that the challenge of violent conflict requires an innovative approach to research and problem solving and proposes a research methodology that follows a transdisciplinary approach. The argument is informed by field research during 2006 on the management of knowledge in the Great Lakes region of Africa, including research on how knowledge on the 1994 genocide in Rwanda is managed. The paper will make recommendations on how transdisciplinary research is required to determine the causes of violent conflict in an African context and how practitioners and academics should engage in transdisciplinarity. It was found t...
International Journal of African Renaissance Studies - Multi-, Inter- and Transdisciplinarity, 2013
The article is presented against the background of the need for African military forces to deal w... more The article is presented against the background of the need for African military forces to deal with the complexities that come with leading and participating in multinational military operations in Africa. The research problem that guided this research is: What should the doctrine of military forces in Africa be to enable them to work together as part of the multinational forces while serving African interests? The aim is to investigate the possibility of a military doctrine that would serve African interests in the context of the reality of a multinational approach to military intervention. This aim has been achieved by offering theoretical assumptions on military doctrine, multinational military intervention and humanistic values in Africa to form a theoretical framework for deploying the argument. An in-depth discussion of African military practice prior to colonialism, the multinational and humanistic nature of military operations since the end of the previous century, as well critical reflections on the quest for a military doctrine that reflect the humanistic values of Africa resulted in some important findings. The main finding is that the people of Africa have accumulated a wealth of military knowledge over many centuries that is sufficient to develop an endogenous (home grown) military doctrine that can serve the African people. An endogenous military doctrine would be based on the principles of people-centredness; flexibility; collectiveness; affordability and institutionalisation to place African humanistic values and continental policies at the forefront in strategic decision-making and implementation. Taking into consideration the above-mentioned principles some practical measures are recommended.
The article examines spiritual knowledge derived from military landscapes. The paper draws on the... more The article examines spiritual knowledge derived from military landscapes. The paper draws on the ways in which the !Kun (also called ‘San’ or ‘Bushmen’) soldiers during the so-called Cold War in Namibia and Angola experienced the landscape in which they operated. The article asserts that in the context of war, spirituality is a human experience where spiritual knowledge can be discovered in military landscapes. The author found that spiritual practice is an important part of a soldier’s knowledge, used to understand the complexity and uncertainty of their situation. The author demonstrates how the spirituality of soldiers can enhance their ability to develop situational awareness. The article relied on the lived experiences of the author when participating with !Kun soldiers in military operations as a young military commander, as well as critical reflection on available data on how the spirituality of !Kun soldiers enabled them to understand their military landscape.
Decolonizing Knowledge for African Renewal: Vuyisile Msila (ed.) Examining African Perspectives and Philosophies. , 2017
‘What is an appropriate research paradigm that can be applied to conflict studies in African con... more ‘What is an appropriate research paradigm that can be applied to conflict studies in African contexts?’ This chapter aims to identify specific variables that could be an integral part of a new grounded or engaged theory for conflict studies in Africa. This aim will be achieved by investigating conflict studies in Africa from the perspective of phenomenology as a philosophy, a transdisciplinary research approach and a research methodology that is participatory and engaged, discovering the lived experiences and consciousness of involved engagement with communities in Africa that are involved in violent conflict or recovering from it. The chapter starts with explaining African phenomenology as a philosophical framework for research, trans-disciplinarity as an approach to research, and community-engaged participatory research. The research activities of trust-building, knowledge-discovery and complementary interpretation are presented, illustrating how these activities were applied during the author's research with the San of South Africa. From the conceptual framework and case study, variables are identified that informs a new research paradigm for conflict studies in Africa and the possible impact thereof for new engaged theory for conflict studies in general.
The paper is presented against a background of many wicked problems that confront us in the world... more The paper is presented against a background of many wicked problems that confront us in the world today such as violent crime, conflict that emanates from political power seeking, contests for scarce resources, the increasing reaction all over the world to the deterioration of socio-economic conditions and the devastation caused by natural disasters. This article will argue that the challenge of violent conflict requires an innovative approach to research and problem solving and proposes a research methodology that follows a transdisciplinary approach. The argument is informed by field research during 2006 on the management of knowledge in the Great Lakes region of Africa, including research on how knowledge on the 1994 genocide in Rwanda is managed. The paper will make recommendations on how transdisciplinary research is required to determine the causes of violent conflict in an African context and how practitioners and academics should engage in transdisciplinarity. It was found t...
International Journal of African Renaissance Studies - Multi-, Inter- and Transdisciplinarity, 2013
The article is presented against the background of the need for African military forces to deal w... more The article is presented against the background of the need for African military forces to deal with the complexities that come with leading and participating in multinational military operations in Africa. The research problem that guided this research is: What should the doctrine of military forces in Africa be to enable them to work together as part of the multinational forces while serving African interests? The aim is to investigate the possibility of a military doctrine that would serve African interests in the context of the reality of a multinational approach to military intervention. This aim has been achieved by offering theoretical assumptions on military doctrine, multinational military intervention and humanistic values in Africa to form a theoretical framework for deploying the argument. An in-depth discussion of African military practice prior to colonialism, the multinational and humanistic nature of military operations since the end of the previous century, as well critical reflections on the quest for a military doctrine that reflect the humanistic values of Africa resulted in some important findings. The main finding is that the people of Africa have accumulated a wealth of military knowledge over many centuries that is sufficient to develop an endogenous (home grown) military doctrine that can serve the African people. An endogenous military doctrine would be based on the principles of people-centredness; flexibility; collectiveness; affordability and institutionalisation to place African humanistic values and continental policies at the forefront in strategic decision-making and implementation. Taking into consideration the above-mentioned principles some practical measures are recommended.
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Papers by Andreas Velthuizen
important part of a soldier’s knowledge, used to understand the complexity and uncertainty of their situation. The author demonstrates how the spirituality of soldiers can enhance their ability to develop situational awareness. The article relied on the lived experiences of the author when participating with !Kun soldiers in military operations as a young military commander, as well as critical reflection on available data on how the spirituality of !Kun soldiers enabled them to understand their military landscape.
important part of a soldier’s knowledge, used to understand the complexity and uncertainty of their situation. The author demonstrates how the spirituality of soldiers can enhance their ability to develop situational awareness. The article relied on the lived experiences of the author when participating with !Kun soldiers in military operations as a young military commander, as well as critical reflection on available data on how the spirituality of !Kun soldiers enabled them to understand their military landscape.