Eastern Congo’s recent troubles: who pulls the strings, what is at stake, and why do things happen?
Considered an overview, this piece combines a wide range of events, observations, and consequent thoughts on the current situation in the eastern DRC. Focussing on M23 rebels, DRC government, and the UN mission it will also take into account main other dynamics and actors. (This article originally appeared in African Arguments, http://africanarguments.org/2013/09/05/eastern-congos-recent-troubles-who-pulls-the-strings-what-is-at-stake-and-why-do-things-happen-by-christophe-vogel/) An accumulation of events … Continue reading
Tricky limbo in eastern Congo
Tough times for the MONUSCO Force Intervention Brigade. Put up by the UN Security council’s latest mandate almost half a year ago, this offensive arm of the largest peacekeeping mission worldwide is tasked to “neutralise” armed groups in eastern Congo. A daunting job, not least because the latter are at an estimated number of 50 … Continue reading
The drama of post-colonial governance in contemporary African politics
Today’s global discourses feature a large variety of thoughts relating to current governance in many places in the world. In an age of globalisation and concurrent modes of governance, statehood, administration, and society organisation have emerged. The African continent, despite its massive variety of political culture and governance modes, prominently shows up as a place … Continue reading
Writing experiment: Trying an everyone’s read of Congo…
… in less than 1500 words, reducing complexity as much as possible without skewing facts. All that, to favour readability with the aim of making the below essay comprehensible for whichever reader with or without preexisting Congo knowledge. Disclaimer: My last articles have sparked an interesting amount of critique, most of which was favourable from … Continue reading
Does Congo confusion transform into communication chaos?
Today has been marred by Congo coverage of its most confuse way. Time to wrap up things: Yesterday saw MONUSCO’s announcement of a security zone and the concomitant (possible) first deployment of the new Force Intervention Brigade (FIB) of UN peacekeeping mission MONUSCO. A few facts to clarify a profusion of information and disinformation: The security zone … Continue reading
Is MONUSCO’s intervention brigade up to show some teeth?
This noon, MONUSCO, under its new force commander Dos Santos Cruz, MONUSCO announced a countdown of 48 hours, to end Thursday, 1 August at 4pm Goma time, for all “individuals who are not members of the national security forces and who carries a firearm” (sic!). According to the MONUSCO communiqué, a currently defined “security zone” largely includes … Continue reading
When the big ones meet… – UN Security Council on the Congo
On 25 July 2013, the recently reopened UN Security Council chamber held one of its most high-profile attended meetings on the ongoing turmoil in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. (see here for the official wrap-up press release) Announced as a “ministerial meeting”, the Security Council’s 7011th session hosted US Secretary of State John Kerry … Continue reading
Precarious stalemate? M23 rumours, UN brigade tippy-toe, and yet another leak
Despite rumours unfolding on an hours-basis, M23 is unlikely to re-conquer Goma within the coming days. After a longer restructuration (and probably re-recruitment) period pursuant to February’s internecine showdown, leading to Ntaganda’s defeat and subsequent surrender in Kigali, M23 seems still weakened, or overstretched at least. Recent regular incursions by FDLR and Nyatura militia into … Continue reading
Local security dilemmas in eastern Congo
“La politique est formée dans les pensées des gens qui tiennent leur experience dans les mains.” (Raia Mutomboki combatant, April 2013) 2013 has so far been a period of relative calm around Bunyakiri, in South Kivu’s Kalehe territory. The locality, consisting roughly of three villages (Bulambika, Kando, and Kambali) had experienced increased levels of violence … Continue reading
The FDLR, a never ending curse in eastern Congo?
Discussing the Front pour la Libération du Rwanda, FDLR, is not an easy task. Not only that its history, activities, and ramifications are often opaque and controversial, also debates in academia and media usually spark fierce ideological drumming on all sides, social media being the best example. Still, many do it constantly. The recent rhetorical … Continue reading
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