Great Lakes Course 2014
Scope of the course The Great Lakes Course Course, held in Burundi from 28 June to 4 July, covered Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The Director of Studies was Jason Stearns. The 2014 course examined the ongoing violence in the Kivus in the wake of the defeat of the M23 […]
Customary power struggles in the Kivus: Looking beyond the local
Ce blog analyse les raisons pour lesquelles certains politiciens se donnent à s’ingérer dans les conflits autour du pouvoir coutumier, un phénomène en recrudescence dans les deux provinces du Kivu. Il soutient que les chefs coutumiers ne doivent pas être considérés comme des simples « autorités traditionnelles locales », mais qu’ils font partie intégrante des réseaux d’élites […]
This year in the Great Lakes
This blog post was written by Jason Stearns and Yolande Bouka, the Co-Directors of Studies for the Rift Valley Institute’s Great Lakes Field Course, which will be taking place in Entebbe, Uganda from 11–17 June 2016. Jason and Yolande will be joined by a team of regional and international specialists to explore the contemporary complexities […]
Le groupement de Waloaluanda : une « zone rouge » ? Comprendre un quotidien socio-sécuritaire complexe
This blog analyses the social and security situation in the groupement (local administrative unit) of Waloaluanda, located in the territory of Walikale in North Kivu province. It argues that the isolation of this area, which is partly a result of deficient road infrastructure, has fostered both underdevelopment and armed group presence. Today, no less than […]
« Polisi Siku Kwa Siku » Introduction au projet et sa série de blogs
Selon le premier World Internal Security Police Index (WISPI) de l’année 2016 publié cette année, un index qui classe les institutions policières du monde selon quatre critères (capacité, procédures, légitimité, résultats), la Police Nationale Congolaise (PNC) de la République démocratique du Congo (RDC) a pris l’avant dernière position sur une liste de 127 pays. Les […]
Sacred Causes
On 19 May 2015, the Rift Valley Institute Nairobi Forum, in collaboration with the Institut français de recherches en Afrique, hosted a discussion to launch the French edition of Philip Winter’s A Sacred Cause: The Inter Congolese Dialogue 2000-2003. The Inter Congolese Dialogue was the process of negotiations between the government in Kinshasa, opposition members, […]
Burundi at the crossroads
A deep malaise grips Burundi in this electoral season. President Pierre Nkurunziza’s April decision to seek a third term in contravention of what many Burundians consider the intent of the Constitution threw the country into weeks of political and popular turmoil, leaving scores dead. Despite ardent domestic and international calls for a postponement of the […]
Kukufa mu gratuité (Mourir pour rien) : Gagner sa vie au sein de la police de Bukavu
Ce blog fait partie d’un projet de recherche intitulé Polisi Siku Kwa Siku sur la vie quotidienne du policier à Bukavu, ville dans l’est de la République démocratique du Congo. Le projet, financé par le Knowledge Management Fund du KPSRL, explore comment les pratiques et expériences quotidiennes du policier peuvent être inclues de manière réfléchie dans la réforme […]
Banyamulenge
This Usalama report by Jason Stearns et al. examines the Banyamulenge, a Tutsi community in the Eastern DRC that has been stuck in a cycle of insurgency and exclusion for over 20 years. While the last major Banyamulenge insurgency came to an end in 2011, armed groups and foreign involvement remain a threat to the […]
Great Lakes Course 2015
The Great Lakes: Elections, institutional reform, deep history, by Jason Stearns The Great Lakes region remains tumultuous and crisis-prone, although the dynamics of conflict and instability seem to be slowly shifting from the battlefield to the electoral arena. The buzz of impending elections has gripped Burundi, Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), even […]