The Trouble with the Congo

Local Violence and the Failure of International Peacebuilding

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Political Science, International, Foreign Legal Systems, Reference & Language, Reference
Cover of the book The Trouble with the Congo by Séverine Autesserre, Cambridge University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Séverine Autesserre ISBN: 9780511852381
Publisher: Cambridge University Press Publication: June 14, 2010
Imprint: Cambridge University Press Language: English
Author: Séverine Autesserre
ISBN: 9780511852381
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Publication: June 14, 2010
Imprint: Cambridge University Press
Language: English

The Trouble with the Congo suggests a new explanation for international peacebuilding failures in civil wars. Drawing from more than 330 interviews and a year and a half of field research, it develops a case study of the international intervention during the Democratic Republic of the Congo's unsuccessful transition from war to peace and democracy (2003–6). Grassroots rivalries over land, resources, and political power motivated widespread violence. However, a dominant peacebuilding culture shaped the intervention strategy in a way that precluded action on local conflicts, ultimately dooming the international efforts to end the deadliest conflict since World War II. Most international actors interpreted continued fighting as the consequence of national and regional tensions alone. UN staff and diplomats viewed intervention at the macro levels as their only legitimate responsibility. The dominant culture constructed local peacebuilding as such an unimportant, unfamiliar, and unmanageable task that neither shocking events nor resistance from select individuals could convince international actors to reevaluate their understanding of violence and intervention.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

The Trouble with the Congo suggests a new explanation for international peacebuilding failures in civil wars. Drawing from more than 330 interviews and a year and a half of field research, it develops a case study of the international intervention during the Democratic Republic of the Congo's unsuccessful transition from war to peace and democracy (2003–6). Grassroots rivalries over land, resources, and political power motivated widespread violence. However, a dominant peacebuilding culture shaped the intervention strategy in a way that precluded action on local conflicts, ultimately dooming the international efforts to end the deadliest conflict since World War II. Most international actors interpreted continued fighting as the consequence of national and regional tensions alone. UN staff and diplomats viewed intervention at the macro levels as their only legitimate responsibility. The dominant culture constructed local peacebuilding as such an unimportant, unfamiliar, and unmanageable task that neither shocking events nor resistance from select individuals could convince international actors to reevaluate their understanding of violence and intervention.

More books from Cambridge University Press

Cover of the book Ultrasonic Guided Waves in Solid Media by Séverine Autesserre
Cover of the book Democratization from Above by Séverine Autesserre
Cover of the book Essentials of Pediatric Radiology by Séverine Autesserre
Cover of the book A Grammar of Tariana, from Northwest Amazonia by Séverine Autesserre
Cover of the book Single Embryo Transfer by Séverine Autesserre
Cover of the book The Aesthetics of Grammar by Séverine Autesserre
Cover of the book Foreign Opera at the London Playhouses by Séverine Autesserre
Cover of the book Making a New Deal by Séverine Autesserre
Cover of the book A History of the Soviet Union from the Beginning to the End by Séverine Autesserre
Cover of the book The Struggle for the Streets of Berlin by Séverine Autesserre
Cover of the book The Nativist Prophets of Early Islamic Iran by Séverine Autesserre
Cover of the book Getting into Graduate School in the Sciences by Séverine Autesserre
Cover of the book Ritual, Play and Belief, in Evolution and Early Human Societies by Séverine Autesserre
Cover of the book Cambridge Handbook of Institutional Investment and Fiduciary Duty by Séverine Autesserre
Cover of the book Computational Thermodynamics of Materials by Séverine Autesserre
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy