Tracing the deadlock in dismantling FDLR
Imminent military operations against FDLR stir controversy in DRC On January 2nd, a six-months deadline set by regional political bodies SADC and ICGLR together with the Congolese government and MONUSCO for the self-demobilisation of the Forces Démocratiques pour la Libération du Rwanda (FDLR) run out. However, it did not trigger substantial results and the long-standing … Continue reading
A Chameleon army? Coherence, performance, discipline in Congo’s FARDC
Today, the New York Times Magazine published an online photo series of the late Sergeant Madot, a female FARDC member, one of the few holding an officer grade in the Congolese military’s elite units. Accompanying the great picture essay of Michael Christopher Brown, a photographer who spent considerably time in Eastern Congo lately, the magazine’s … Continue reading
Rift Valley Institute Field Courses 2015
Having worked for the Rift Valley Institute’s Usalama Project as a Fellow in 2013, I am happy to share their announcement of this year’s field courses, covering three key areas of political competition and violent conflict in East and Central Africa. While my own little experience is limited to the Great Lakes only, it can … Continue reading
Amidst impending FDLR operations, insecurity is on the rise in North Kivu
It has been over two weeks ago, the concrete announcement of anti-FDLR operations by the Congolese army FARDC (with a still unclear role as to MONUSCO support) has raised waves of media comments, fears, and expectations. In the slipstream of this announcement, a number of difficulties seem to delay the actual start of the offensive and … Continue reading
Ayiti. A thought and a retrospective.
Today marks the fifth anniversary of the disastrous earthquake that countless people and hopes in Haiti, a country that has not had an easy stand even before it was struck by such unthinkable catastrophe. It has been almost five years too, that I have not been there myself, so I am not going to give … Continue reading
A dead deadline? January 2015 and the FDLR are still around
Roughly a week ago a much debated disarmament deadline passed for the Forces Démocratiques pour la Libération du Rwanda (FDLR), the infamous rebel outfit that regroups the remnants of certain Rwandan genocide culprits that ventured into eastern Congo as ex-FAR and interahamwe two decades ago. While political rhetoric has been strong and the internet-based propaganda … Continue reading
AMANI ITAKUYA II – Call for Submissions
After 25 diverse and rich contributions last year, the Amani Itakuya essay series embarks on her second edition. Here is to the call for submissions in English and French. Please share widely and participate! NEW DEADLINE – 20 January 2015 (version française ci-dessous) AMANI ITAKUYA II – Call for Submissions With Eyes Wide Open & … Continue reading
Kinois Crystal Balls: Elections, Census, and Constitution
With about two years left until the end of President Kabila’s current mandate, pre-electoral rumblings in Kinshasa, DRC in general, and the outside world have gained extraordinary momentum in the past couple of months. Jason Stearns (on census and on constitution), Manya Riche & Kris Berwouts recently published a couple of very helpful and illuminating … Continue reading
Towards a Genealogy of Armed Actors in eastern Congo
Is it possible to establish a genealogy of the armed actors that have been roving around eastern Congo over the past two decades? The first, immediate answer is – no. The spatio-temporal topography and evolution of myriad militias and other groups already appears confusing and complex when looking just at a simple, fixed point in … Continue reading
Misinformation and Misdirection in Beni’s ADF Attacks
Anonymous guest blog On the morning of November 6, a petrol bomb was thrown in a residential quarter of Beni town, North Kivu. The bomb injured no one, and from a military perspective was a small and ineffective deployment of violence. Senior UN military analysts dismissed it accordingly. However, the bombing, which forms part of … Continue reading
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