Political conflict in the Great Lakes region: the case of Rwanda

This study examines conflict resolution in the Great Lakes Region focusing on the Rwanda crisis. It has been guided by the hypotheses derived from the objectives of the study. The objectives of the study were: To find out if the persistent political conflict in Rwanda has been caused by a complex mix of factors including social, economic and political contradictions. These contradictions were perpetuated by the colonial regimes, conflicting social classes and ideologies that had crystallized on the eve of independence and after. Followed by creation of an exclusionist political culture manifesting itself in ethnicity, regionalism and other forms of undemocratic governance. To see if the above factors were aggravated by relentless manipulation by foreign power in pursuit of their geo-political interests such as preservation of Francophonie. To find out possible ways of conflict prevention and conflict management in Rwanda and in the sub-region. Thus, following the above objectives, it was hypothesized that: a). There is combination of various factors as sources of conflict in Rwanda. b). External interventions a one cannot resolve conflict in Rwanda. c). Management and resolution of conflict in Rwanda will depend on institutions and organization from civil society. The research findings show that the persistent political conflict in Rwanda has been caused by a complex mix of factors, including social, economic and political contradictions which were perpetuated by the colonial regimes, conflicting social classes and ideologies that had crystallized on the even and after of independence followed by the creation of exclusion political culture manifesting itself in ethnicity , regionalism and other forms of undemocratic governance exemplified by one party rule up to 1991. Study findings have also revealed that exclusionist political culture was aggravated by the relentless manipulation of foreign powers in pursuit of their geo-political interest such as preservation of Francophone. In the light of the findings, this study has come out with recommendation. Further studies have also been recommended on the role of the third party in mediation and conflict resolution; and also the role of civil society in conflict prevention and management rather than relying on intergovernmental institutions.