[‘amani itakuya’; Kiswahili (Kiingwana): peace will come]

The Amani Itakuya Essay Series is a project to create ideas, to discuss challenges and opportunities, and to engage constructive debates on peacebuilding in Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and its surroundings.

Bringing together a range of local and international people – academics, journalists, activists, and practitioners – Amani Itakuya aims at enlarging the spectrum of a debate which is often led in closed and/or within proximate circles among peers. This essay series will attempt at putting some of the ongoing debates and their participants onto one single platform – this website – in order to deepen existing dialogues on peace in the Congo.

Amani Itakuya is neither journalism nor an academic endeavour, although several contributions will certainly match the respective quality criteria or just be a blend of both. While contributors to a wide extents come from these areas, the focus of Amani Itakuya lies in stimulating debate and exchanging opinions.

The essay series is thus supposed to go beyond day to day journalism in terms of arguments, ideas, and thoughts while at the same time maintaining clear and easy language in order to keep the debate accessible for a large public beyond confined academic circles. For the last mentioned reason, all contributions will be in either French or English (given the non-profit nature of the project, there is unfortunately no possibility for translation or adding a third language such as Kiswahili).

For the sake of promoting a wide range of ideas, Amani Itakuya does not have topical limitations beyond the basic rule of sticking to the wider frame of peacebuilding in the DRC. Therefore, the essay series – while not (yet) covering all aspects of peacebuilding in the DRC – will provide a tour through a wealth of issues connected to the central question.

While it is impossible to claim that yet another series of writings on the Congolese conflicts may substantially contribute anything to peacebuilding, this essay series attempts at democratising and opening up existing dialogues as well as fostering discussion between locals and outsiders, but also between Congolese from different parts of the country, and Rwandans, Ugandans, Burundians alike.

Amani Itakuya is also considered to be a forum of free speech, with the only restriction that hate speech and discrimination of any kind shall not be tolerated. Responsibility and copyright of the essays lie with the respective authors and so does external photography, where provided.

The subsequent essays are listed below with hyperlinks for an overview. Note that all essays originally appeared with the Amani Itakuya series but that reprints are possible under the condition of proper referencing such as provided in the Creative Commons License. Questions relating to the project can be directed to the editor via twitter.

#01 | Josaphat Musamba | La contruction de la Paix dans l’Est de la RDC – Les Opportunités et les Obstacles

#02 | Ley Uwera | We need Justice!

#03 | Passy Mubalama | En finir avec les FDLR, un pas vers la construction de la Paix dans l’Est de la RDC

#04 | Alex Engwete | …when a West Bank-like separation barrier will be built along the DRC-Rwanda border

#05 | Manuel Wollschlaeger | Est-ce que la transparence est en faveur d’une distribution plus équitable des revenus?

#06 | Ben Radley | The Conflict Minerals Agenda – Looking For Peace in the Wrong Place

#07 | Godefroid Muzalia | Bembe – Banyamulenge à Fizi: à quand la paix ?

#08 | Judith Verweijen | Rebels in suits: tackling civilian support networks of armed groups in the eastern DR Congo

#09 | Dominique Vidale-Plaza | Committing to unraveling the roots of SGBV and the conflict

#10 | Carol Jean Gallo | Time to bridge the gap

#11 | Rachel Niehuus | Trauma, Reconciliation, and the Possibility of Peace in eastern Congo

#12 | Bulambo Mulonda | La consolidation de la paix dans un contexte fragile

#13 | Richard Kapend | How can peace be achieved in the Democratic Republic of the Congo?

#14 | Jean-Mobert Nsenga | Est de la RDC, ces guerres…au nom des Tutsis!?

#15 | Willy Change | Diplomatic tricks, military victories, regional integration, and hopes for peace

#16 | Robert Falay | Leadership Renewal for a Sustainable Peace in Eastern Congo

#17 | Bram Verelst | “The Woodpecker in the dead tree”: armed conflict and peacebuilding in Eastern DRC

#18 | Soraya Souleymane Aziz | La paix…

#19 | Anand Upadhyaya | American Advocacy for the Congo – The Importance of Unity

#20 | Timo Mueller | Reforming the Congolese Security Sector

#21 | Blaise Ngomanseke | Tomorrow, maybe…

#22 | Olivier Nduhungirehe | Eradicating the FDLR for sustainable peace and security in the DRC

#23 | Charlotte Mertens | Colonial Remembering, Injured Bodies, and Current Humanitarianism

#24 | Michel Bigwi | Promoting the values of ubuntu and their implications on peacebuilding in the DRC

#25 | Arsene Tungali | Et si on faisait fin à la communauté internationale?

Unless otherwise indicated, the pictures used are © http://www.christophvogel.net.

Suggested citation: Lastname, Firstname (Year): Title. Amani Itakuya #XY. Hyperlink, retrieved on Day/Month/Year.