: David John Penklis
: Transition to Peace Burundi 1993-2008
: BookBaby
: 9781098361099
: 1
: CHF 10.50
:
: Vergleichende und internationale Politikwissenschaft
: English
: 252
: kein Kopierschutz
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: ePUB
Transition to Peace, Burundi 1993-2008, is an original and in-depth examination of the involvement of the international community in Burundi's transition from the ravages of the civil war from 1993 to the achievement of peace in 2008. Having lived and worked in Burundi during those years of conflict, and subsequent doctoral research, Dr Penklis offers a unique insight into the complex and dynamic implementation of the peacemaking and peacebuilding activities of the actors involved. He also defines the success and the failures of those activities employed throughout the conflict and the resulting peace process. Readers who are interested in peace and conflict studies and international relations will find the information contained in this book to be invaluable reference material.

CHAPTER 1

BURUNDI CONTEXT AND CONFLICT

1.1. Introduction

This chapter explores the country situation and the series of events that have shaped the people, violence, and politics that influence the conflict and peace process. This is the environment where peacemaking, peacekeeping, and peacebuilding activities have been undertaken. Analysis of the country, violence, and events reveals a population struggling to survive, and manipulated by the political elite. The elite who have used, for decades, violence to maintain political control of the country. The context of the conflict and behaviour of actors in the conflict are keys for the engagement of actors in the peace process, the types of support or pressure to be applied, and the kind of strategy to resolve theconflict.

1.2. Geography

Burundi is located between 2˚ and 4˚ on the south latitude and between 29˚ and 31˚ on the east longitude. Rwanda, Tanzania, and the Democratic Republic Congo of (DRC) border the country. The capital is Bujumbura, and the country is one of the smallest African countries at 27,830 square kilometres. It has a varied terrain ranging from savannah grasslands to rolling hills and mountains with elevations ranging from Lake Tanganyika at 772 meters to Mt Heha at 2,670 meters. It is a landlocked country with an equatorial and generally moderate climate. There is only a small natural forest area due to the extensive uncontrolled deforestation and soil erosion, attributed to overgrazing and the unchecked expansion of agriculture (Brennan, 2005, p. 13).

1.3. Population

The country has an estimated 8.9 million people (2009), making it one of the most densely populated countries in the world. The population is divided into three ethnic groups, Hutu (or Wahutu of Bantu descent) comprising 85 per cent, Tutsi (or Watutsi of Hamitic origin) being 14 per cent, Twa (or Batwa of pygmy ancestry) of 1 per cent, along with an estimated 3,000 Europeans and 2,000 Southern Asians. Although this ethnic mix is always quoted and forms the basis of power-sharing and ethnic division decision making, it is not reliable. Jean Berchmans Ndayizigiye, a Burundian Great Lakes region culture and humiliation researcher, has identified that the percentages used for the ethnic groups are based on a census conducted in 1934 by theBelgians.

The basis of the ethnic identity and division was not ethnicity but was the number of cows a person had acquired. In 1934, cows were more valuable than other Burundian products and a measure of wealth. Persons owning more than ten cows were arbitrarily classified as Tutsi. As a result, relatively wealthy Hutu suddenly became Tutsi, and some poorer Tutsi became Hutu. The Belgians issued ethnic identity cards freezing Hutu, Tutsi, and Twa social identities into law and ethnic gr