New political order in the DR Congo? the transformation of regulation

Abstract

It has been said repeatedly: the Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire) remains only a shadow of its former self, a typical case of state failure and collapse. Closer observation suggests a different image, however: not only has this country demonstrated “a remarkable propensity for resilience” (Englebert, 2003), its administration and regulatory frameworks – which in some domains have not changed since colonial times – have remained largely intact even during the latest period of war and political turmoil. In this article, we would like to explain these different “cross currents and contradictions” (Young, 2004) that emerged during the past Congolese war, addressing the question of whether processes of state erosion and political reconfiguration during this period should be described as a further “privatisation of the state”, as proposed by Hibou and others, or rather as a transformation or commodification of state sovereignty. The article is organized diachronically: it first discusses the Mobutu period (1965-1997), and then the war (1996-2003), to finally draw some conclusions from Congo’s long period of political “transition”. Key words: Congo, conflict, non-state regulation, Armed groups

The Impact of Armed Civil Conflict on Household Welfare and Policy

“…The result is a profound reshaping of relations between populations, the politico-military or economic elites and legal and judiciary structures. Political relations are shaped and reshaped during times of conflict thereby inducing processes of social and political transformation (see Vlassenroot and Raeymaekers 2004). One way in which those processes occur is through the emergence of local 'governance' structures in places where 'government' is absent.…”

Public Authority and Conservation in Areas of Armed Conflict: Virunga National Park as a ‘State within a State’ in Eastern Congo

“…Extant literature reveals a relationship between the transnationalization of nature conservation and state territorialization, yet there has been no systematic analysis of these processes in conflict‐ridden areas, where there are often no clear distinctions between state, non‐state and extra‐state actors. This ambiguity is present in eastern DRC, where ‘the constant undermining and reinterpretation of state power within the context of crisis and violent conflict has apparently given life to a more commodified, indirect form of statehood that drives the middle ground between formal and informal, state and non‐state spheres of authority and regulation’ (Vlassenroot and Raeymaekers, : 51). It is therefore important to link the debate on state territorialization and conservation to the literature on conservation efforts in conflict areas.…”

Social Network Analysis and the De Facto/De Jure Conundrum: Security Alliances and the Territorialization of State Authority in the Post-Cold War Great Lakes Region

“…Key parts of former belligerent networks have struggled to maintain their spheres of influence, resisting or manipulating the appointment of administrators and the integration of their troops into the national army. Consequently, Kinshasa has only partial control over the east, a control that moreover runs predominantly via personal networks rather than administrative infrastructure, leading to the reproduction of long-standing patterns of indirect rule (Vlassenroot and Raeymaekers, 2008;Eriksson Baaz and Verweijen, 2013). DISCUSSION: THE ANALYTICAL PITFALLS OF SNA ENSNARED ON THE STATE SCALE Radil and Flint's (2013) main empirical strategy to get a grip on the ambiguous political geography of the Great Lakes Region is to study the prevalence of security alliances between states as well as between states and sub-state actors.…”