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11. Transitional justice and peacebuilding in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Author:
Shirambere Philippe Tunamsifu
Publication Date:
03-2015
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
African Journal on Conflict Resolution
Institution:
The African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes (ACCORD)
Abstract:
Almost two decades ago, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) was confronted with a vicious cycle of internationalised armed conflicts in which between six and ten million people are estimated to have been killed. Those conflicts were resolved through peace agreements between the leaders of the warring parties, leaving affected populations to their predicaments. From among the mechanisms during peace talks aimed at dealing with the past, the Congolese opted for an international ad hoc tribunal and a truth and reconciliation commission (TRC). Unfortunately, the United Nations was unwilling to establish such a tribunal in the DRC and the TRC put in place did not investigate a single case. Therefore, the DRC lost opportunities to hold accountable alleged perpetrators, establish the truth of the past, promote reconciliation, and prevent further violence. The subsequent resumption of conflict is the result of failing to address the past. After the stabilisation of the country, a combination of judicial and non-judicial mechanisms of transitional justice could respond to past abuses and contribute to the peacebuilding process in the DRC. Hence, this paper endorses as a judicial mechanism, in addition to the International Criminal Court (ICC), the establishment of a hybrid international tribunal to hold accountable those who bear the greatest responsibility for events since 1996. This paper also endorses the promotion of the non-judicial indigenous mechanism Barza intercommunautaire to help resolve low-level disputes and pave the way for a new TRC that could promote reconciliation, formulate recommendations on institutional reform, identify criteria for the lustration and vetting process, identify victims and recommend reparations.
Topic:
Transitional Justice, Peace, International Criminal Court (ICC), and Post-Conflict
Political Geography:
Africa and Democratic Republic of the Congo

12. Security regionalism and flaws of externally forged peace in Sudan: The IGAD peace process and its aftermath

Author:
Aleksi Ylönen
Publication Date:
07-2014
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
African Journal on Conflict Resolution
Institution:
The African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes (ACCORD)
Abstract:
During 1983-2005 Sudan hosted one of Africa’s longest insurgencies. Throughout the conflict a number of competing peace initiatives coincided, but a process under the mediation authority of the Inter-Governmental Authority for Development (IGAD) prevailed. However, although initiated in 1993, the IGAD process only accelerated after the September 2001 attacks on the United States (US) and was consequently finalised through the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in less than four years’ time. Although it was presented as IGAD’s success as a conflict resolution body, in reality the organisation’s role in the making of peace in Sudan was to a large extent conditioned by the involvement of a narrow selection of Western stakeholders. This article examines the IGAD peace process in Sudan, highlighting the dynamics and relative roles of the principal actors involved. It argues that although the negotiations were portrayed as inherently sub-regional, and adhering to the idea of ‘African solutions for African problems’, a closer analysis reveals that the peace process was dominated by external protagonists. This resulted in the interests of Western actors, particularly the US, playing a prominent role in the negotiated agreement, consequences of which are currently experienced both in Sudan and South Sudan.
Topic:
Security, Insurgency, Peace, Regionalism, and Post-Conflict
Political Geography:
Africa, Sudan, and South Sudan

13. Justice and peacebuilding in post-conflict situations

Author:
Lesley Connolly
Publication Date:
11-2012
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes (ACCORD)
Abstract:
After the 1991-2001 civil war, Sierra Leone employed a new model of transitional justice, concurrently utilising a Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) and a Special Court. Encouragingly, this process incorporated special gender considerations, by expanding the mandate of both the TRC and Special Court to address sexual violence and encourage women to come forward and testify without fear of retribution. Both these institutions have been praised for successfully fulfilling their specific mandates and for aiding the country’s transition to peace. However, some parts of Sierra Leone’s society were left largely untouched by the process, as evidenced by widespread discrimination and gender inequalities which still occur today. It is proposed that this is not just a fault of Sierra Leone’s approach, but that it is an inherent flaw of the transitional justice process as a whole as the process is not suitable for use in addressing the root causes of conflict. For this reason, it is argued that a new mechanism of transitional justice, one which incorporates a peacebuilding process, would better address the needs of a post-conflict society. This would be done by focusing on transformation and promoting a long-term sustainable peace.
Topic:
Transitional Justice, Peace, Justice, Reconciliation, Truth, and Post-Conflict
Political Geography:
Africa and Sierra Leone

14. The Complexity of Applying UN Resolution 1325 in Post Conflict Reintegration Processes: The case of Northern Uganda

Author:
Grace Maina
Publication Date:
05-2011
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes (ACCORD)
Abstract:
The United Nations (UN) Security Council Resolution 1325 calls on all actors involved to address the special needs of women and girls during rehabilitation, reintegration and post-conflict reconstruction. This study endeavours to analyse the reintegration experience of women and girls in post-conflict Uganda. In this country, the recruitment of combatants by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) has been characterised by the forcible abduction of young boys and girls, and the eventual deployment of child soldiers. The government of Uganda, in its attempt to defeat the LRA and in recognition of the fact that the LRA forcibly conscripted children to wage their cause, offered amnesties to all individuals who returned or were rescued from the LRA. This process has had consequences for the general female population of the Acholi community in northern Uganda. There has been scant research done on the long-term impact of the LRA war on the Acholi community, and more especially on those who were abducted. While little is known about the war’s impact on the male population, even less is known about the female children abducted and forced to become servants and “wives” of LRA male combatants. It is vital to note that the experiences of abduction, violence and even return for women and girls have been different to that of men and boys. This paper explores these issues.
Topic:
United Nations, Women, Conflict, Abductions, Girls, and Post-Conflict
Political Geography:
Uganda and Africa

15. Social Inclusion and Service Delivery in a Fragile and Post-conflict Environment in Africa

Author:
Joseph R. A. Ayee
Publication Date:
01-2011
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF)
Abstract:
The post-colonial state in Africa has attracted great interest from scholars and development partners because of the recognition that no development can take place without a proper functioning state. The state is expected to provide and deliver goods and services to its citizens in order to promote its legitimacy before its citizens. However, in fragile or post-conflict states, the capacity of the state to deliver services to all citizens is not possible because of weak infrastructure, weak public service delivery and weak state institutions which lack the capacity to deliver service and thereby become illegitimate. This has led to the increasing recognition that service delivery interventions or initiatives in fragile states should aim to ameliorate the negative effects of social exclusion of marginalized and vulnerable groups. Against this backdrop, this paper discusses how social inclusion can be promoted and improved by service delivery in fragile states in Africa in the light of the fact that their different contextual variables (such as history, politics, culture and geographical location) affect their ability to develop their capacity to deliver services to their citizens. In other words, why is social exclusion in service delivery in fragile states challenging and what are the reasons for it? The paper shows that a combination of the inability of fragile states to perform their governance functions as a result of their peculiar circumstances and the adoption of the “one-size-fits-all” strategies to deliver services have largely contributed to social exclusion in service delivery. It ends with some policy recommendations.
Topic:
Governance, State, Legitimacy, Inclusion, Post-Conflict, Fragility, Capacity Building, and Service Delivery
Political Geography:
Africa

16. Capacity Building in Post-Conflict Countries in Africa: A Summary of Lessons of Experience from Mozambique, Rwanda, Sierra Leone and Uganda

Author:
The African Capacity Building Foundation
Publication Date:
01-2004
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF)
Abstract:
The paper presents a Summary of a Report of a Study on Reconstruction and Capacity Building efforts in four Post-Conflict African Countries, namely, Mozambique, Rwanda, Sierra Leone and Uganda. The main objective of the study is to draw lessons that could provide a guide to policies, strategies and instruments for post-conflict capacity-building initiatives by the Foundation. The four country studies highlighted the fact that the root causes of conflicts are different in different countries at different times and that they require context-specific approaches to bring countries back onto the path of peace and development.
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, Security, Reconstruction, Peace, Post-Conflict, and Capacity Building
Political Geography:
Uganda, Africa, Mozambique, Sierra Leone, and Rwanda

17. Africa: Major Development Challenges and their Capacity Building Dimensions

Author:
Soumana Sako
Publication Date:
01-2002
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF)
Abstract:
The paper examines eleven major development challenges, which face the African continent in its bid to achieve sustained growth and development in the 21st Century. Addressing these challenges is vital for achieving the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (UM MDGs) in Africa and thus, the laudable objectives of the New partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD).
Topic:
HIV/AIDS, Civil Society, Development, Poverty, Millennium Development Goals, Capacity, Private Sector, and Post-Conflict
Political Geography:
Africa