February 26, 2013
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees

Abstract:

The present study looks at developments in the areas of policy and process during the period 2001-2012 that sought to address “the gap(s)” that work against a smooth transition from humanitarian relief to development. This study is written primarily from the perspective of UNHCR, and mainly in relation to its efforts to engage development actors in the search for durable solutions to the plight of people forcibly displaced by conflict, especially for those who have been living in protracted situations of displacement. This study thus complements an earlier one undertaken by UNHCR in 2001.

The issue of the gap(s), or put more positively, the need for relevant linkages, to better ensure the transition from relief (humanitarian activities) to development, has now become a recurring theme, especially in deliberations on post-conflict early recovery. Although post-conflict situations still dominate reflections on early recovery and peacebuilding, the specificities of post-disaster situations (e.g. hurricanes, earthquakes, etc.), as well as the impact of slow-impact natural disasters such as drought, have now also been recognized. Thus, UNHCR’s main interest in the reintegration of returnees (either IDPs or refugees), or local integration, particularly of refugees in protracted situations, is only one element of many that now occupy the attention of the international community in addressing the subject of transition from relief to development....

February 20, 2013
Conflict and Health

Abstract:

Background
Concepts of 'what constitutes mental illness', the presumed aetiology and preferred treatment options, vary considerably from one cultural context to another. Knowledge and understanding of these local conceptualisations is essential to inform public mental health programming and policy.

Methods
Participants from four locations in Burundi, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, were invited to describe 'problems they knew of that related to thinking, feeling and behaviour?' Data were collected over 31 focus groups discussions (251 participants) and key informant interviews with traditional healers and health workers.

Results
While remarkable similarities occurred across all settings, there were also striking differences. In all areas, participants were able to describe localized syndromes characterized by severe behavioural and cognitive disturbances with considerable resemblance to psychotic disorders. Additionally, respondents throughout all settings described local syndromes that included sadness and social withdrawal as core features. These syndromes had some similarities with nonpsychotic mental disorders, such as major depression or anxiety disorders, but also differed significantly. Aetiological concepts varied a great deal within each setting, and attributed causes varied from supernatural to psychosocial and natural. Local syndromes resembling psychotic disorders were seen as an abnormality in need of treatment, although people did not really know where to go. Local syndromes resembling nonpsychotic mental disorders were not regarded as a 'medical' disorder, and were therefore also not seen as a condition for which help should be sought within the biomedical health-care system. Rather, such conditions were expected to improve through social and emotional support from relatives, traditional healers and community members.

Conclusions
Local conceptualizations have significant implications for the planning of mental-health interventions in resource-poor settings recovering from conflict. Treatment options for people suffering from severe mental disorders should be made available to people, preferably within general health care facilities. For people suffering from local syndromes characterized by loss or sadness, the primary aim for public mental health interventions would be to empower existing social support systems already in place at local levels, and to strengthen social cohesion and self-help within communities....

October 25, 2012
International Crisis Group

Abstract:

Although the institutions are functioning and the government has been priding itself on its development and security achievements, Burundi is regressing. Due to the 2010 electoral impasse, the Arusha agreement has been replaced by a de facto one-party system characterised by the end of dialogue between the opposition and the ruling party, the government’s authoritarian drift and the resumption of political violence. Respect for the political minorities and rule of law has been largely ignored since 2010. To ensure lasting stability, the political actors should resume dialogue, guarantee pluralism for the 2015 elections and support a consensual transitional justice process. Given that they sponsor peacebuilding efforts, provide a significant amount of aid to Burundi and in the absence of other donors, the current international partners should focus on these issues while discussing with the government.

The dust has not yet settled since the 2010 elections. After boycotting the electoral process, the opposition parties formed a coalition (the Democratic Alliance for Change, ADC-Ikibiri) and several opposition leaders went into exile. A wave of mutual violence by the opposition and the ruling party (the National Council for the Defence of Democracy and the Forces for the Defence of Democracy, CNDD-FDD) ensued. Challenged by armed groups and criticised by civil society, the government has resorted to repression and intimidation....

October 4, 2012
International Fund for Agricultural Development

Abstract:

Not a day goes by that conflict does not rage in some part of the world. Equally, not a day goes by that some person, some family or some community does not take a step on the road to a better, more secure future, one free from conflict, hunger and poverty. And both can happen in one and the same place. Both conflict and development are driven by a profound dissatisfaction with the way things are. But the one is a destructive response, while the other is positive and constructive.

Waiting for peace to take root before we begin to nurture development is a luxury we cannot afford. IFAD has a history of working with the most marginalized and disadvantaged rural populations, in the most difficult to reach areas, the most fragile situations and the most degraded environments. And we must continue to do so. If we want to help 80 million rural women and men to raise themselves out of poverty over the next three years, we have to go to where they are. They may be in least developed countries, fragile states, or pockets of intractable poverty in middle-income countries....

October 1, 2012
International Alert

Abstract:

This report represents a synthesis of the key findings and recommendations of a regional research project on women’s political participation and economic empowerment in countries emerging from conflicts in the Great Lakes region of Africa. The research project, conducted in Burundi, Rwanda, DRC and Uganda, was undertaken jointly by International Alert and the Eastern Africa Sub-regional Support Initiative (EASSI), in partnership with some of the leading women’s organisations in the four countries, as well as the Department of Women and Gender Studies at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda.

The research focuses on four case studies and examines the nature and quality of women’s political participation in the four countries to establish whether women’s increased representation in decision making at the national and local governance level has translated into the adoption of gender equality policies and enhancement of women’s socio-economic status at all levels of society. The research further analyses the economic dimension of women’s political participation by linking women’s economic empowerment and their representation in the political arena....

December 6, 2012
EURAC // African Association for the defence of Human Rights // Invisible Children // Enough Project // Resolve // Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect // IKV Pax Christi

Abstract:

On June 29th 2012, the United Nations Security Council welcomed the Secretary General’s ‘Regional Strategy to address the threat and impact of the activities of the Lord’s Resistance Army’ (‘UN Regional Strategy’ or ‘Strategy’).1 The Strategy was well received by local and international civil society organizations as an ambitious framework with the elements of a comprehensive response. Then, as now, the message was clear – if fully implemented, the Strategy could resolve this devastating 26-year conflict and pave the way for the long-term recovery of the affected region and its people.

The governments of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Uganda, South Sudan, Central African Republic (CAR), and Sudan bear the primary responsibility for defeating the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) and protecting their populations. However, under the Strategy, United Nations (UN) departments, agencies, and offices have committed to augment their efforts, and those of the African Union (AU), by taking specific action to address the threat of the LRA. While there is a limit to how much progress can have been made in the five months since the Strategy was adopted, this report seeks to assess progress made by UN actors against the benchmarks outlined in the UN Regional Strategy....

September 20, 2012
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees

Abstract:

As of January 2011, UNHCR reported that there were more than 106,000 refugees and asylum seekers living in Cameroon, over 14,000 of them living in urban and peri-urban areas. The majority come from neighbouring and nearby states such as Burundi, the Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo, Guinea, Nigeria, Rwanda and Sudan.

The regional dynamics of many of the conflicts in Sub-Saharan Africa generate a perspective of refugees as a potential security threat, as governments fear that some refugees will involve the country in the conflict, for example by using the host country as a base for rebel groups to attack their home country.1 The host country’s desire to protect and separate itself from the effects of conflict, and the conflict itself, influence the way in which treatment, assistance, and polices are formed towards refugees. This is often achieved by confining refugees into camps and settlements where they are prevented from moving freely, which is essential to their ability to access many of their economic and social rights, such as employment.

Refugees in Cameroon are mostly self-settled, as there is only one refugee camp in the country, the Langui camp, located in the extreme north of the country near the border of Chad, and thus is home to a large number of Chadian refugees; however the UNHCR is working to repatriate some 1,000 Chadian refugees upon the signing and finalising of an agreement with the government of Cameroon. 3In Cameroon the large majority of refugees in country are coming from the neighbouring country CAR, with 80,900 living in the East and Adamaoua regions of Cameroon....

September 5, 2012
The Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces

Abstract:

This volume sets out to break down these stove-pipes and identify positive associations between DDR and SSR. Drawing on case studies from selected post-conflict settings, it demonstrates the potential and reality of improved collaboration between both endeavours. Enhanced cooperation could avoid negative outcomes. These may include former- combatants dropping out of programmes, trust undermined in security institutions and the creation of security vacuums that jeopardise the safety of individuals and communities. A central claim of this volume is that programmes must be responsive to the needs and interests of different national actors. Without understanding the dynamic political processes that shape the origins, parameters and outcomes of both processes, DDR and SSR may address security deficits, but will be unfit to support sustainable transitions towards national recovery and development....

August 21, 2012
Invisible Children // Resolve

Abstract:

The Mid-Year Security Brief provides a summary and analysis of the reported activities of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) from January – June 2012 (analysis period).

This brief covers LRA activity in Central African Republic (CAR), Democratic Republic of Congo (Congo), South Sudan, and Sudan. Reported LRA attacks rose sharply during the analysis period, increasing by 129% from the latter half of 2011. LRA forces reportedly committed 190 attacks from January – June 2012, in which they killed 38 people and abducted 311 others. From July – December 2011, LRA forces reportedly committed 83 attacks, in which they killed 22 people and abducted 137 others....

August 2, 2012
Resolve

Abstract:

The 2012 LRA Crisis Tracker Mid-Year Security Brief analyzes trends and patterns in LRA activity from January – June 2012.

December 12, 2012
International Crisis Group

Abstract:

Within a decade, the Gulf of Guinea has become one of the most dangerous maritime areas in the world. Maritime insecurity is a major regional problem that is compromising the development of this strategic economic area and threatening maritime trade in the short term and the stability of coastal states in the long term. Initially taken by surprise, the region’s governments are now aware of the problem and the UN is organising a summit meeting on the issue. In order to avoid violent transnational crime destabilising the maritime economy and coastal states, as it has done on the East African coast, these states must fill the security vacuum in their territorial waters and provide a collective response to this danger. Gulf of Guinea countries must press for dynamic cooperation between the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), take the initiative in promoting security and adopt a new approach based on improving not only security but also economic governance.

The recent discovery of offshore hydrocarbon deposits has increased the geostrategic importance of the Gulf of Guinea. After long neglecting their maritime zones, Gulf of Guinea states are now aware of their weakness. On the international front, renewed Western interest in the region is accompanied by similar interest from emerging nations. In this context, the rise in maritime crime has increased collective concern in a region where, for decades, the problems of sovereignty and territorial control have only been posed on dry land....

September 27, 2012
The Enough Project

Abstract:

The ongoing conflict in eastern Congo is at a critical turning point, and the risk of renewed international war hangs in the balance. At stake in this struggle between the Congo and the Rwanda-backed M23 rebels is control of the resource-rich provinces of eastern Congo, the survival of the Congolese state, the relationship between Rwanda and its principal donors, and the stability of the entire Great Lakes Region of Africa. A June 2012 United Nations Group of Experts report laid responsibility for the intensification of fighting at Rwanda’s doorstep by demonstrating direct links between the highest levels of government in Rwanda and the M23. Since then, several western governments including the United States have publicly condemned the rebellion and cut or suspended economic assistance to the Rwandan government. However, those cuts have not yet had the intended effect.

As the international community works to defuse the crisis in Congo, the U.S. and its allies must begin to work towards a sustainable peace with accountability for those who have committed serious crimes. There will be opportunities to achieve this in the coming months. Notably, the meeting between Congolese President Joseph Kabila, Rwandan President Paul Kagame, and other world leaders at the United Nations on Thursday offers a chance at transforming the current regional talks into a more robust peace process that addresses the key security, economic, and political issues. At that meeting, as well as in other subsequent forums, the U.S. and its allies must convey strong messages to both Congo and Rwanda about a cessation of hostilities, the protection of civilians, and the establishment of a road-map towards a sustainable political solution to the crisis. In addition to diplomatic pressures, the U.S. and others can be very helpful in imagining political and economic endgames that begin to address the core agendas of the warring parties so that sustainable peace becomes a real possibility....

March 28, 2012
Transitional Demobilization and Reintegration Program // International Bank for Reconstruction and Development // The World Bank

Abstract:

Although official warfare in the Republic of Congo stopped more than eight years ago, the Pool region has continued to feel the collateral effects of war until now at a scale largely ignored by the general public. The Pool region is where the Ninjas, a group of local militias, originated during the civil strife and retreated to afterwards. Peace and recovery did not gain traction in the area until 2010/2011.

March 1, 2012
German Institute of Global and Area Studies // The Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation

Abstract:

This article discusses the impact of economic resources on the behaviour of an armed group. The availability of resources, and the presence of "lootable" resources in particular, is presumed to have a negative impact on the way an armed group behaves toward the civilian population. The case of the Armed Forces of the Congolese People (Forces Armées du Peuple Congolais, FAPC) in eastern Congo strongly suggests that it is necessary to look beyond this monocausal argument so as to witness the range of other factors at work....

February 6, 2012
Life & Peace Institute

Abstract:

The following report by Lindsey Weber is an English synopsis of three studies on the role of the civil society in the pursuit of peace and democracy in the Republic of Congo. The studies, based upon empirical analysis of surveys and personal interviews conducted with members of civil society, approach the issue of the role of civil society in the Republic of Congo from different but complementary perspectives. They explore the local understandings of the concepts of civil society and peace as well as highlight the role played by the civil society in the peace process and the complex and often-incongruous relationship between the state and civil society.

The first study, Congolese Civil Society: How does it Express Itself?, defines the presence of civil society in the Congo and presents an overview of its impact. The other two, Outcome of the Role and Means of Action of Female Civil Society in the Construction of Peace and Horizontal Solidarity and Civil Society in Perspective: the State of Horizontal Society in Brazzaville are appropriate case studies of the role of specific components of Congolese civil society. The former study describes the activities and role of female civil society in the peace process. It is written by a historian, and discusses developments in the entire country. The latter progresses beyond the contentious issue of ethnicity to explore the concept of circulation, or interaction, as a catalyst for the consolidation of civil society independent of state guidance. This study is authored by a sociologist, and focuses on the city of Brazzaville. Therefore, the perspectives and levels of analysis are different for each study....

March 21, 2013
Feinstein International Center // Assessment Capacities Project

Abstract:

This paper reports the results of a study undertaken during 2012 by Tufts University for the Assessment Capacities Project (ACAPS), as part of the latter’s “Operational Learning” strand of work. This study is designed to complement the work of ACAPS on strengthening needs assessment by addressing the question of how assessments and other sources of information and analysis are used by humanitarian decision makers. The study is based on a combination of literature review, case studies, and key informant interviews.

The pressure to demonstrate that responses and claims about impact are grounded in evidence has been growing over recent years. Humanitarian donors are increasingly under similar pressures to demonstrate effectiveness and account for impact. This is partly a matter of showing that their decisions regarding policies and programs are well-founded and evidence-based. But, humanitarian contexts are almost by definition ‘‘non-ideal” for gathering data. Decisions often have to be made quickly, sometimes with relatively little access to current information or accurate data. The question about informed decision making may therefore come down to what constitutes a “well enough” informed decision in the circumstances; or what constitutes “good enough” information and analysis on which to base a response. Whatever the quality of information, no assumption can be made that the increased availability of good information and analysis will in itself result in better informed decisions. In reviewing the way decisions are made in practice, the study considers the ways in which such information is used (or not) at different points in the process, which varies across different kinds of decisions in different contexts.

The study is based around three main questions. First, how do decision makers in the humanitarian sector currently use information and analysis? Second, what factors, other than information and analysis, are influential in making decisions? Third, what would enable better-informed response decisions? In order to address these overarching questions, the study looks first at some of the main processes of decision-making in the humanitarian sector and the factors that appear to have most influence on decisions of different kinds. It goes on to look at the way information and analysis is currently generated in the humanitarian sector—both through formal and informal means—and related questions of relevance and credibility. These two topics are then brought together in addressing the question of the use of information by decision makers, and what might enable more informed and evidence-based response decisions....

March 19, 2013
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees // United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the DRC

Abstract:

A UN research into the human rights situation in detention centers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) shows that the number of deaths in detention almost doubled in 2012, and that conditions of detention remain extremely poor in the vast majority of detention centres.

Between January 2010 and December 2012, a total of at least 211 civilians died in Congolese detention centers. In 2012, 101 such deaths were recorded compared to 54 in 2010 and 56 in 2011. The report notes that poor conditions, including overcrowding, malnutrition, limited access to health care and lack of resources, were the main causes of death, but also says that more than 10 percent of the deaths (24 cases) were caused by torture or ill-treatment, a finding it describes as “extremely worrying.”

The report, published Wednesday, details the results of in-depth research conducted by human rights officers working for the UN Joint Human Rights Office in the DRC (UNJHRO)* during visits to prisons and other detention centers throughout the country....

March 12, 2013
Chatham House

Abstract:

This is a transcript of an event held at Chatham House on 20 February 2013. The panel dicussed the current peace talks between the government of the DRC and the M23 rebel group, lessons learned from the international community's past failures to stem conflict in the country and the options available for outside parties to bring about a lasting solution.

March 7, 2013
Refugee International

Abstract:

The recent increase in displacement due to conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has multiplied the risk of gender-based violence (GBV). At the same time, coordination efforts by the international aid community are failing to address the needs of women and girls. In 2009, United Nations Action on Sexual Violence in Conflict drafted a comprehensive strategy for combating sexual violence in the DRC, which was then adopted by the DRC government. However, challenges with leadership, information sharing, and funding are hindering implementation of this strategy and actually obstructing urgent response to beneficiaries. To ensure effective prevention and response to GBV, the current coordination mechanism should be abandoned in favor of a structure better suited to humanitarian crises....

February 28, 2013
Human Security Report Project

Abstract:

Human Security Research is a monthly compilation of significant new human security-related research published by academics, university research institutes, think-tanks, international agencies, and NGOs.

In this issue:

NATURAL DISASTERS AND CONFLICT: When Disasters and Conflicts Collide: Improving Links Between Disaster Resilience and Conflict Prevention
SYRIA: Preliminary Statistical Analysis of Documentation of Killings in the Syrian Arab Republic
KENYA: Kenya’s 2013 Elections
COLLECTIVE VIOLENCE: It’s Who You Know: Social Networks, Interpersonal Connections, and Participation in Collective Violence
MEXICO: Drug Violence in Mexico: Data and Analysis Through 2012
TRANSNATIONAL ORGANIZED CRIME: Transnational Organized Crime in West Africa: A Threat Assessment
FAITH COMMUNITIES AND RESILIENCY: Local Faith Communities and the Promotion of Resilience in Humanitarian Situations: A Scoping Study
YEMEN: A Lasting Peace? Yemen's Long Journey to National Reconciliation
DISPLACEMENT: Displacement, Disharmony and Disillusion. Understanding Host-Refugee Tensions in Maban County, South Sudan
MENTAL HEALTH AND CONFLICT: Madness or Sadness? Local Concepts of Mental Illness in Four Conflict-affected African Communities
SRI LANKA: Sri Lanka’s Authoritarian Turn: The Need for International Action
JUSTICE AND RECONCILIATION: Peace, Justice, and Reconciliation in Africa: Opportunities and Challenges in the Fight Against Impunity...

February 28, 2013
Human Security Report Project

Abstract:

Human Security Research is a monthly compilation of significant new human security-related research published by academics, university research institutes, think-tanks, international agencies, and NGOs.

In this issue:

NATURAL DISASTERS AND CONFLICT: When Disasters and Conflicts Collide: Improving Links Between Disaster Resilience and Conflict Prevention
SYRIA: Preliminary Statistical Analysis of Documentation of Killings in the Syrian Arab Republic
KENYA: Kenya’s 2013 Elections
COLLECTIVE VIOLENCE: It’s Who You Know: Social Networks, Interpersonal Connections, and Participation in Collective Violence
MEXICO: Drug Violence in Mexico: Data and Analysis Through 2012
TRANSNATIONAL ORGANIZED CRIME: Transnational Organized Crime in West Africa: A Threat Assessment
FAITH COMMUNITIES AND RESILIENCY: Local Faith Communities and the Promotion of Resilience in Humanitarian Situations: A Scoping Study
YEMEN: A Lasting Peace? Yemen's Long Journey to National Reconciliation
DISPLACEMENT: Displacement, Disharmony and Disillusion. Understanding Host-Refugee Tensions in Maban County, South Sudan
MENTAL HEALTH AND CONFLICT: Madness or Sadness? Local Concepts of Mental Illness in Four Conflict-affected African Communities
SRI LANKA: Sri Lanka’s Authoritarian Turn: The Need for International Action
JUSTICE AND RECONCILIATION: Peace, Justice, and Reconciliation in Africa: Opportunities and Challenges in the Fight Against Impunity...

February 1, 2013
Households in Conflict Network // Institute of Development Studies // University of Sussex

Abstract:

Although popularly perceived as a positive force, social capital may also produce socially undesirable outcomes. Drawing on Rwanda’s 1994 genocide, this article shows that participation in its violence was partly determined by the features of individuals’ social networks. Perpetrators possessed larger networks in general and more connections to other perpetrators in particular. The quality as well as quantity of connections also mattered. Strong ties generally, and kinship and neighborly ties specifically, were strong predictors of participation. In contrast, possession of countervailing ties to nonparticipants was not significant. In explaining these findings, I suggest participants’ networks fulfilled functions of information diffusion, social influence, and behavioral regulation. The findings point to the importance of social structure and suggest that relational data should complement individual attribute data in predicting participation in collective violence....

November 2, 2012
REDRESS

Abstract:

An estimated one million Tutsis, and numerous moderate Hutus were killed in the genocide, and the lives of survivors were destroyed. Survivors interviewed by organisations over the past five years have repeatedly stressed the critical roles that justice and reparation play in addressing the consequences of the genocide. This includes holding to account the perpetrators and providing adequate reparation, also with a view to contributing to reconciliation and enabling survivors to rebuild their lives.

Ensuring adequate reparation, including rehabilitation, compensation and restitution, for survivors in Rwanda is a daunting task. Over the past eighteen years since the genocide in 1994, the Government of Rwanda, as well as survivors’ organisations and human rights advocates have grappled to find solutions as to how best to ensure that survivors’ rights and needs to adequate reparation can be met. As of today, such solutions have yet to be found....

October 12, 2012
Amnesty International

Abstract:

Dozens of people in Rwanda suspected of threatening national security have been held in a network of secret detention centres run by the military. In these camps, detainees were unlawfully held and were at risk of torture and other ill-treatment. Some are still held in secret detention. This report documents cases of unlawful detention and allegations of ill-treatment by Rwandan military intelligence in 2010 and 2011. Amnesty International is urging the government to end these practices, disclose the whereabouts of detainees, investigate torture allegations and bring those responsible to justice....

October 4, 2012
International Crisis Group

Abstract:

The plan to resolve the conflict in the Kivu by emphasising a military solution is failing. Two years after the rapprochement between Congolese President Joseph Kabila and his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame, government soldiers are still battling militias for control of land and mines. Neither side has the strength to win, but both have the resources to prolong the fighting indefinitely. Meanwhile, civilians suffer extreme violence, and the humanitarian situation is deteriorating. Ethnic tensions have worsened in anticipation of the repatriation of tens of thousands of Congolese refugees who fled to Rwanda during the 1990s. The UN Security Council has witnessed the deterioration of security in eastern Congo without opposing the decisions of Kagame and Kabila. A strategy based on secret presidential commitments, however, will not bring peace to the Kivu: the present approach must be reevaluated and broadened in order to engage all local communities and prepare the future of the region in a transparent dialogue that also involves neighbouring countries....