Burundi: The Current Conflict, its Context and its Mediation

 

Throughout the post-colonial era, Burundi has been wrecked by internal conflicts, ethnic tensions and communal fighting. Periods of relative quiet gave way to high intensity violence, such as the massive murders that took place in 1972. As of the 1990s, however, the country has been engulfed in conflict almost on a permanent basis. Attempts to transform the political system towards a multi-party political system were sidetracked and ended in intermittent fighting between the Tutsi-dominated armed forces and various rebel groups fighting in defence of Hutu majority rule or various other objectives. As of the mid 1990s Burundi's civil war became also more and more intertwined with developments in the region: the genocide in Rwanda, the defeat of the Habyarimana regime, the rise to power of the RPF, the fall of Mobutu and the alternating coalitions of regional powers intervening in the DRC.

Ever since, mediatory actors representing varying sections of the international community have made half-hearted or serious attempts to reduce the levels of violence in Burundi, if not resolve the causes of its internal conflicts. Until now, these efforts proved in vain. Recently, however, new attempts were made to get what is called the "peace process" back on track, which among others could be seen in the light of the changes in the regional context, in particular the Lusaka process and attempts to resolve the conflict in the Congo.

It is for this reason that the African Studies Centre will organize a seminar on the current situation in Burundi. The seminar will not only focus on the historical and contemporary dimensions of the conflict inside Burundi itself, but also discuss the ways in which changing regional contexts interact with developments in the country and the opportunities and limitations of mediation. In view of this, the seminar is of interest to scholars, policy-makers and NGO representatives, as well as those with an interest in current affairs in Africa.

The seminar is organized in cooperation with the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Provisional Programme

13.30 - 13.50 Klaas van Walraven, Opening: Some Aspects of Third-Party Intervention in African Conflicts
13.50 - 14.00 Discussion
14.00 - 14.30 René Lemarchand, Burundi's Internal Conflicts:Past and Contemporary Dimensions
14.30 - 14.45 Discussion
14.45 - 15.15 Filip Reyntjens, Burundi's Conflict: Comparisons with Rwanda
15.15 - 15.30 Discussion
15.30 - 15.45 Tea
15.45 - 16.15 Ruddy Doom/Koen, Burundi's Conflict: Some Regional and Vlassenroot - Theoretical Issues
16.15 - 16.30 Discussion
16.30 - 17.00 Plenary Discussion
17.00 Drinks