Ce manuel de formation compile les leçons d'une coopération fructueuse sur le thème de la formation entre International Alert et un réseau congolais de consolidation de la paix, Haki na Amani. Pour capitaliser sur les expériences des acteurs engagés dans la poursuite de la paix en Ituri, le district du Congo où opère Haki na Amani, il est essentiel de pouvoir mettre en œuvre des techniques et approches de formation efficaces. Ce manuel reprend les enseignements de la réflexion menée par l'équipe de formation de International Alert, et de sa coopération avec Haki na Amani dans le contexte de l'Ituri.

This study identifies disputed control over land as a root cause of conflict in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The report focuses on conflicts between customary and state-run land tenure systems, as well as claims by some communities to “indigenous” status which are used to relegate others to “migrant” or “foreigner” status. Waves of population displacement have created overlapping claims to land, and an ongoing process of refugee return is currently increasing tensions over these claims in parts of Eastern DRC. The report examines efforts to manage this return process and offers recommendations for action by local and international actors.

Sexual violence continues unabated in Eastern DRC, despite the signing of various peace accords from 2003 onwards and the promulgation of the 2006 Laws sanctioning sexual violence. This report focuses on community perceptions of sexual violence in Eastern DRC and shows that the persistence of sexual abuse against women but also increasingly against grown men and children is considered by communities in Eastern DRC as one the primary indicator that war is not yet over. The study examines whether the “rape as the weapon of war” analysis for sexual violence, which has become one of the main building-blocks of the international community’s response, is sufficient to explain the persistence of sexual violence, for even though military forces and rebels groups remain the primary perpetrators, sexual violence is also increasingly committed by civilians. The report argues that although it is still valid to describe sexual abuse as a weapon of war in certain circumstances in Eastern DRC, we should look at additional underlying structural factors such as poverty and scarcity of land, weakness of state structures, physical and economic insecurity. The study also examines the part played by ethnic and gender identities, gender norms and discourses as well as changing gender roles. The report proposes a number of policy recommendations to policy-makers in DRC and the wider region.

Informal mining and illicit trading of minerals has long been associated with violent conflicts in the Kivu provinces of eastern Congo. Coltan from the Kivus became particularly well known around the world at the turn of the century because of its use in the manufacture of mobile phones. Gold, which has soared in value as a result of the global financial crisis, also comes in significant quantities from these provinces and the adjacent district of Ituri. The sites in the Kivus and Ituri are now well known and have been mapped. Much less is known about mining sites in the adjacent provinces. This report, based on several months of field research carried out for International Alert by the International Peace Information Service (IPIS) and local partners, identifies mining sites in northern Katanga, in the province of Maniema, and in the district of Bafwasende. The report traces the main means of transport and the export routes that operate mainly though the commercial centres of Bukavu, Goma and Butembo. This information is an important addition to international knowledge about significant quantities of minerals that, although they are traded through known centres actually originate much further afield.

Menée dans le cadre du programme d’"Appui à la paix et à la stabilisation à l’Est de la République Démocratique du Congo" de la Commission Européenne, cette étude vise à mieux comprendre le rôle de la société civile dans la construction de la paix. S’appuyant sur les résultats d’une recherche de terrain, l’étude a recensé plus de 150 organisations. Le rapport dresse les contours du secteur de la paix et aide à comprendre les enjeux auxquels les acteurs font face. Dans un deuxième temps, l’étude offre une analyse fine et documentée d’initiatives locales de paix, axés sur des méthodologies clés : la médiation, la recherche-action et le plaidoyer. Enfin, l’étude propose des recommandations visant à l’amélioration des pratiques de paix des acteurs de la société civile et de ceux qui les soutiennent.

Dans le district de l’Ituri, en République Démocratique du Congo, les conflits fonciers sont considérés comme étant à la fois la cause, et la manifestation visible d’un conflit brutal qui a ébranlé la région dans la dernière décennie. La centralité de la question foncière au Congo demande des études et des plans d’action adaptés. Le réseau congolais Haki na Amani et International Alert ont compilé un guide pratique de prévention et de résolution de ces conflits fonciers pour mieux les comprendre, et mieux répondre à ce type de conflit. Ce guide est destiné aux communautés locales qui sont confrontées, au quotidien, à ces conflits complexes.

Inter-community violence and successive wars and rebellions have caused large-scale displacement of populations in the Great Lakes region of Africa. And when refugees and internally displaced people return, that can be the pretext for further outbreaks of violence. The displacement of people and also their return can often be exploited by political interests, and even if the people themselves are not being manipulated, rumours and false information can be orchestrated to heighten fears and tensions between communities. All these things are happening to some degree in the east of DRC, particularly at present in North Kivu. This short report is issued by International Alert to warn of the dangers and advocate action that should be taken.

International Alert is seeking to build on previous initiatives to inform and advance EU thinking on the reintegration of ex-combatants into post-conflict societies and economies. This is the second of two briefing papers produced as part of a year-long initiative aimed at reinvigorating the debate on reintegration. Based on research in Burundi, Liberia and Nepal, it discusses why the lessons of past reintegration programmes are not being learned and what implications this has for future EU disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR) programming. It was used in draft form to inform discussions at an Alert Roundtable held in Brussels in November 2009.

The Global Monitoring Checklist is a pilot research project designed to contribute towards international understanding on women, peace and security efforts. It highlights relevant activities at the local and national level by women, civil society, national governments and the international community. It is not a comprehensive survey of all initiatives relating to women, peace and security; rather, it is a first step in gathering and collating information that links directly to UNSCR 1325 implementation. International Alert is an active member Gender Action for Peace and Security UK (GAPS) and also hosts the working group at the London offices. GAPS is a research and advocacy group working to bridge the gap between the realities of women (activists and non-activists) at the local level in conflict and post-conflict regions with UK decision makers and practitioners working on peace and security.

This report focuses on economic recovery as a central pillar of peacebuilding in eastern DRC and, in particular, the role of the European Commission in supporting such processes. It argues that the drivers of fragility and instability must be addressed if meaningful long term economic recovery is to be realised. The report is based on field work carried out in South Kivu and Ituri, and draws on research by Alert’s partner in Bukavu, CEGEC. It explores how peacebuilding can be put at the heart of efforts to create shared economic opportunities in the east, notwithstanding the immense challenges faced by donors in such conflict-affected environments.

Elaboré dans le cadre du Partenariat pour la Prévention des Conflits, ce document analyse le contexte dans lequel l’UE utilise ses instruments de relations extérieures pour combattre l’insécurité, promouvoir une gouvernance légitime et efficace, et soutenir la reconstruction, un développement durable, et l’intégration régionale en RDC. Des consultations dans la région et dans l’UE ont permis de dégager des propositions communes sur chaque thème pour que l’UE puisse mieux contribuer à une paix et développement durable en RDC et dans la région.

Combatants on all sides of the conflict in Eastern DRC have been using sexual violence purposefully asa weapon of war. Acts of sexual violence continue to be committed with unprecedented cruelty, the perpetrators inflicting the most humiliating and degrading treatment on their victims that they can devise. This report is based on interviews with 492 women and 50 soldiers in Eastern DRC. It documents the violation of women's human rights during the war and examines the socio-cultural roots of this violence and the different forms it takes.