Our event this week in Bujumbura (introduced in my previous blog) is split into two parts. Special UN Envoy Mary Robinson’s consultation and mobilisation in support of the Framework of Hope will be followed by a Great Lakes Regional Conference on United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 –…
The apparently never ending cycles of violence in and around the eastern provinces of the Democratic Republic of Congo have been followed (always ‘followed’ unfortunately) by cycles of international interest that have failed to deliver change and build a permanent peace. Can the latest international effort really be different? Can we dare to hope for…
Nous sommes arrives And arriving in DRC through Kinshasa airport is quite an experience. There are few facilities, and many steps to pass through with passport, yellow fever vaccination certificate, baggage labels all checked – sometimes repeatedly with a hint of bribery in the air. Dozens of locals descend on you looking to help with…
Listening diplomatically while asking tough questions that must be answered is never easy. So, confronting Congolese rebels with accusations of recent sexual violence during a dialogue about long term solutions and peace was a test for me on Saturday. But the opportunity to hear up close the grievances of some of the M23 rebels, and…
One of the saddest places on earth is the Kigali Genocide Memorial managed by the Aegis Trust. Here, 250,000 or so victims of the Rwanda genocide in 1994 are buried together, alongside an exhibition and permanent memorial to their memory. A flame is lit each year by President Kagame to burn at the entrance as…
