POLITICS 356 : Ethno-Political Violence: Hate Crimes to Genocide

Arts

2023 Semester One (1233) (15 POINTS)

Course Prescription

Examines the causes and prevention of ethno-political violence. Forms of violence examined include: hate crimes; ethnic and religious conflict; revolution, insurgency and civil war; mass killings and genocide. Students will become familiar with the main theories and explanations of this violence, numerous case studies and policies for their prevention.

Course Overview

This course offers a theoretical and practical introduction to the causes and prevention of violent conflict. It examines the leading explanations of six forms of collective violence – hate crimes, ethnic riots, communal conflict, civil war, separatist insurgency and genocide. It examines why some places face these forms of conflict and mass killing and others don’t. It also considers how individuals can come to commit the most heinous acts against others. The course considers the role of religion, ethnonationalism, economic competition, political power, racism and privilege in motivating people to kill people from other ethnic groups and religions. We look at a number of historic and current cases of each form of conflict, explaining these events and testing the utility of the relevant theories. Cases examined include: religious riots and ethno-separatism in India, Indonesia, Myanmar and elsewhere; communal war in the Solomon Islands, Indonesia and Kenya; civil war in Syria separatist rebellion in Bougainville, Thailand and the Philippines; genocide in Rwanda, Indonesia and the Holocaust. A later module introduces some of the main concepts and policies of conflict prevention, including those currently used by international development agencies and national governments.
By the end of the course you will:
Have a good understanding of many of the main theories of conflict onset and of policies of conflict prevention
Be familiar with a range of cases of ethnic, religious and political conflict in our region and beyond
Be skilled at the methodology of structured comparison, including the formulation and testing of hypotheses
Be able to analyse theory and case studies
Have developed the ability to present nuanced and informed arguments (in oral and written form) on the onset and prevention of violent conflict

Course Requirements

Prerequisite: 30 points at Stage II in Politics and International Relations, or POLITICS 106 and 30 points at Stage II in Global Politics and Human Rights

Capabilities Developed in this Course

Capability 1: Disciplinary Knowledge and Practice
Capability 2: Critical Thinking
Capability 3: Solution Seeking
Capability 4: Communication and Engagement
Graduate Profile: Bachelor of Arts

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course, students will be able to:
  1. Apply Theory to case studies. (Capability 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 3.1, 3.2, 4.1 and 4.2)
  2. Analyse Be able to evaluate theories and analyse cases through comparative analysis (Capability 1.1 and 1.2)
  3. Demonstrate an understanding of of political violence. (Capability 1.1)

Assessments

Assessment Type Percentage Classification
Essay 30% Individual Coursework
Essay 30% Individual Coursework
Essay 40% Individual Coursework

Workload Expectations

This course is a standard 15 point course and students are expected to spend 10 hours per week involved in each 15 point course that they are enrolled in.

For this course, you can expect 2 hours of lectures, a one-hour discussion session, 3 hours of reading and thinking about the content and 4 hours of work on assignments.

Delivery Mode

Campus Experience

This course is not available for delivery to students studying remotely outside NZ in 2023.

Attendance is required at scheduled activities to receive credit for components of the course.

 Lectures will be available as recordings.

This course will not include live online events.

The activities for the course are scheduled as a standard weekly timetable.

Learning Resources

Course materials are made available in a learning and collaboration tool called Canvas which also includes reading lists and lecture recordings (where available).

Please remember that the recording of any class on a personal device requires the permission of the instructor.

Student Feedback

At the end of every semester students will be invited to give feedback on the course and teaching through a tool called SET or Qualtrics. The lecturers and course co-ordinators will consider all feedback and respond with summaries and actions.

Your feedback helps teachers to improve the course and its delivery for future students.

Class Representatives in each class can take feedback to the department and faculty staff-student consultative committees.

The lecturer will upload lecture slides and assignment-related information earlier than in previous years.

Academic Integrity

The University of Auckland will not tolerate cheating, or assisting others to cheat, and views cheating in coursework as a serious academic offence. The work that a student submits for grading must be the student's own work, reflecting their learning. Where work from other sources is used, it must be properly acknowledged and referenced. This requirement also applies to sources on the internet. A student's assessed work may be reviewed against online source material using computerised detection mechanisms.

Class Representatives

Class representatives are students tasked with representing student issues to departments, faculties, and the wider university. If you have a complaint about this course, please contact your class rep who will know how to raise it in the right channels. See your departmental noticeboard for contact details for your class reps.

Inclusive Learning

All students are asked to discuss any impairment related requirements privately, face to face and/or in written form with the course coordinator, lecturer or tutor.

Student Disability Services also provides support for students with a wide range of impairments, both visible and invisible, to succeed and excel at the University. For more information and contact details, please visit the Student Disability Services’ website http://disability.auckland.ac.nz

Well-being always comes first
We all go through tough times during the semester, or see our friends struggling. There is lots of help out there - for more information, look at this Canvas page https://canvas.auckland.ac.nz/courses/33894, which has links to various support services in the University and the wider community.

Special Circumstances

If your ability to complete assessed coursework is affected by illness or other personal circumstances outside of your control, contact a member of teaching staff as soon as possible before the assessment is due.

If your personal circumstances significantly affect your performance, or preparation, for an exam or eligible written test, refer to the University’s aegrotat or compassionate consideration page https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/academic-information/exams-and-final-results/during-exams/aegrotat-and-compassionate-consideration.html.

This should be done as soon as possible and no later than seven days after the affected test or exam date.

Learning Continuity

In the event of an unexpected disruption, we undertake to maintain the continuity and standard of teaching and learning in all your courses throughout the year. If there are unexpected disruptions the University has contingency plans to ensure that access to your course continues and course assessment continues to meet the principles of the University’s assessment policy. Some adjustments may need to be made in emergencies. You will be kept fully informed by your course co-ordinator/director, and if disruption occurs you should refer to the university website for information about how to proceed.

Student Charter and Responsibilities

The Student Charter assumes and acknowledges that students are active participants in the learning process and that they have responsibilities to the institution and the international community of scholars. The University expects that students will act at all times in a way that demonstrates respect for the rights of other students and staff so that the learning environment is both safe and productive. For further information visit Student Charter https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/forms-policies-and-guidelines/student-policies-and-guidelines/student-charter.html.

Disclaimer

Elements of this outline may be subject to change. The latest information about the course will be available for enrolled students in Canvas.

In this course students may be asked to submit coursework assessments digitally. The University reserves the right to conduct scheduled tests and examinations for this course online or through the use of computers or other electronic devices. Where tests or examinations are conducted online remote invigilation arrangements may be used. In exceptional circumstances changes to elements of this course may be necessary at short notice. Students enrolled in this course will be informed of any such changes and the reasons for them, as soon as possible, through Canvas.

Published on 26/10/2022 11:01 a.m.