A search for an integrated peace framework for Angola : the case of Kuito-Bié and Viana.

Abstract

The 2002 ceasefire agreement in Angola represented an unprecedented achievement as far as building peace is concerned. With the belligerents able to talk, the country had a great opportunity to embark on a full reconciliation process. However, the situation in the country is in the status of unresolvedness. The peace is still negative. There are no avenues for open dialogue for positive change. This thesis presents the various phases of the Angolan peace process, its shortcomings and success. Further, a suggestion for a full framework for Angola based on John Paul Lederach´s Integrated Framework for peacebuilding is given for the Angolan grassroots to embark on peace process starting from the bottom. The researcher selected 200 hundred respondents with experience of the war. One hundred from Kuito- Bié and the other hundred from Viana. Through snowball and purposive sampling participants were identified. Furthermore, the researcher interviewed with one member of MPLA, one from UNITA, one from the civil society and one from the Catholic Church. The results showed that the civil society is not satisfied with the current peace, and urges for a new era. Thus, Lederach´s peace structural framework fits well in Angola.