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The Congo Affair
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Book Synopsis The Trouble with the Congo by : Séverine Autesserre
Download or read book The Trouble with the Congo written by Séverine Autesserre and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2010-06-14 with total page 345 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 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 (2003-2006). 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.
Book Synopsis The War That Doesn't Say Its Name by : Jason K. Stearns
Download or read book The War That Doesn't Say Its Name written by Jason K. Stearns and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2023-08-15 with total page 328 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Why violence in the Congo has continued despite decades of international intervention Well into its third decade, the military conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has been dubbed a “forever war”—a perpetual cycle of war, civil unrest, and local feuds over power and identity. Millions have died in one of the worst humanitarian calamities of our time. The War That Doesn’t Say Its Name investigates the most recent phase of this conflict, asking why the peace deal of 2003—accompanied by the largest United Nations peacekeeping mission in the world and tens of billions in international aid—has failed to stop the violence. Jason Stearns argues that the fighting has become an end in itself, carried forward in substantial part through the apathy and complicity of local and international actors. Stearns shows that regardless of the suffering, there has emerged a narrow military bourgeoisie of commanders and politicians for whom the conflict is a source of survival, dignity, and profit. Foreign donors provide food and urgent health care for millions, preventing the Congolese state from collapsing, but this involvement has not yielded transformational change. Stearns gives a detailed historical account of this period, focusing on the main players—Congolese and Rwandan states and the main armed groups. He extrapolates from these dynamics to other conflicts across Africa and presents a theory of conflict that highlights the interests of the belligerents and the social structures from which they arise. Exploring how violence in the Congo has become preoccupied with its own reproduction, The War That Doesn't Say Its Name sheds light on why certain military feuds persist without resolution.
Book Synopsis An Affair with Africa by : Alzada Carlisle Kistner
Download or read book An Affair with Africa written by Alzada Carlisle Kistner and published by Island Press. This book was released on 2013-03-05 with total page 263 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In June 1960, a young faculty wife named Alzada Kistner and her husband David, a promising entomologist, left their 18-month old daughter in the care of relatives and began what was to be a four month scientific expedition in the Belgian Congo. Three weeks after their arrival, the country was gripped by a violent revolution trapping the Kistners in its midst. Despite having to find their way out of numerous life-threatening situations, the Kistners were not to be dissuaded. An emergency airlift by the United States Air Force brought them to safety in Kenya where they continued their field work. Thus began three decades of adventures in science. In An Affair with Africa, Alzada Kistner describes her family's African experience -- the five expeditions they took beginning with the trip to the Belgian Congo in 1960 and ending in 1972-73 with a nine-month excursion across southern Africa. From hunching over columns of ants for hours on end while seven months pregnant to eating dinner next to Idi Amin, Kistner provides a lively and humor-filled account of the human side of scientific discovery. Her wonderfully detailed stories clearly show why, despite hardship and danger -- and contrary to all of society's expectations -- she could not forsake accompanying her husband on his expeditions, and, to this day, continues to find the world "endlessly beckoning, a lively bubbling cauldron of questions and intrigue." In the spirit of Beryl Markham's West with the Night and Isak Dinesen's Out of Africa, An Affair with Africa shares with readers the thoughts and experiences of a remarkable woman, one whose unquenchable thirst for adventure led her into a series of almost unimaginable situations. Readers -- from armchair travelers fascinated by stories of Africa to scientists familiar with the Kistners's work but unaware of the lengths to which they went to gather their data -- will find An Affair with Africa a rare treasure.
Book Synopsis Death in the Congo by : Emmanuel Gerard
Download or read book Death in the Congo written by Emmanuel Gerard and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2015-02-10 with total page 293 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Death in the Congo is a gripping account of a murder that became one of the defining events in postcolonial African history. It is no less the story of the untimely death of a national dream, a hope-filled vision very different from what the war-ravaged Democratic Republic of the Congo became in the second half of the twentieth century. When Belgium relinquished colonial control in June 1960, a charismatic thirty-five-year-old African nationalist, Patrice Lumumba, became prime minister of the new republic. Yet stability immediately broke down. A mutinous Congolese Army spread havoc, while Katanga Province in southeast Congo seceded altogether. Belgium dispatched its military to protect its citizens, and the United Nations soon intervened with its own peacekeeping troops. Meanwhile, behind the scenes, both the Soviet Union and the United States maneuvered to turn the crisis to their Cold War advantage. A coup in September, secretly aided by the UN, toppled Lumumba’s government. In January 1961, armed men drove Lumumba to a secluded corner of the Katanga bush, stood him up beside a hastily dug grave, and shot him. His rule as Africa’s first democratically elected leader had lasted ten weeks. More than fifty years later, the murky circumstances and tragic symbolism of Lumumba’s assassination still trouble many people around the world. Emmanuel Gerard and Bruce Kuklick pursue events through a web of international politics, revealing a tangled history in which many people—black and white, well-meaning and ruthless, African, European, and American—bear responsibility for this crime.
Book Synopsis Consuming the Congo by : Peter Eichstaedt
Download or read book Consuming the Congo written by Peter Eichstaedt and published by Chicago Review Press. This book was released on 2011-07 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Describes the "conflict minerals" mined in the Congo amidst armed conflict and human rights abuses including gold, diamonds, coltan, tin, and tungsten used in cell phones, computers, and other electronics. Explores the slave labor, violence, and disease killing millions of Congolese mining these resources, and offers ways one can help.
Book Synopsis Selling the Congo by : Matthew G. Stanard
Download or read book Selling the Congo written by Matthew G. Stanard and published by U of Nebraska Press. This book was released on 2012-01-01 with total page 404 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Belgium was a small, neutral country without a colonial tradition when King Leopold II ceded the Congo, his personal property, to the state in 1908. For the next half century Belgium not only ruled an African empire but also, through widespread, enduring, and eagerly embraced propaganda, produced an imperialist-minded citizenry. Selling the Congo is a study of European pro-empire propaganda in Belgium, with particular emphasis on the period 1908–60. Matthew G. Stanard questions the nature of Belgian imperialism in the Congo and considers the Belgian case in light of literature on the French, British, and other European overseas empires. Comparing Belgium to other imperial powers, the book finds that pro-empire propaganda was a basic part of European overseas expansion and administration during the modern period. Arguing against the long-held belief that Belgians were merely “reluctant imperialists,” Stanard demonstrates that in fact many Belgians readily embraced imperialistic propaganda. Selling the Congo contributes to our understanding of the effectiveness of twentieth-century propaganda by revealing its successes and failures in the Belgian case. Many readers familiar with more-popular histories of Belgian imperialism will find in this book a deeper examination of European involvement in central Africa during the colonial era.
Book Synopsis The Congo Affair by : Norman Shakespeare
Download or read book The Congo Affair written by Norman Shakespeare and published by eBookIt.com. This book was released on 2015-02-28 with total page 426 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A fascinating nail-biting and romantic exodus from civil war in the heart of the equatorial jungle. It takes compelling reasons to leave rewarding jobs and comfortable urban lifestyles, and move to an isolated aero-space project in an equatorial jungle. The facility, constructed during a brief lull in the country's tumultuous history, is located on the equator; a good place to launch large rockets. Nearly three thousand westerners live and work behind a fence separating them from the jungle and the darkness. Few take an interest in the primeval ecosystem outside. As happens frequently in the Congo, things start to go downhill. Civil-war spreads and the base, fifteen-hundred miles up the river, is slowly cut-off. Regular re-supply flights are suspended after a near miss with a surface-to-air missile fired from the bush. The alternate route; ten days by dilapidated ferry to Kinshasa, becomes less reliable by the week. Head-office personnel in Europe are out of touch with things on the ground, and reluctant to 'upset' local politicians by suggesting curtailing operations prematurely. The situation reaches a point where the inhabitants are forced to prepare for the worst, and to seriously consider their desperate evacuation plans. While the mighty river flows endlessly by, camp security guards assume power from the academic admin staff, and 'martial law' is imposed. James Kent, a very private divorcee with I.T. and military experience engages the help of friendly natives to gather intelligence and questions the head-guard's escape plan. The community starts to polarize. Some make it to the coast by ferry but the situation deteriorates further, with repeated attacks by rebels causing more tensions. The stage is set; darkest Africa, suspense and passionate romance take control.
Download or read book Tintin in the Congo written by Hergé and published by Egmont Books (UK). This book was released on 2005 with total page 62 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Join the world’s most famous travelling reporter in two exciting adventures as he heads for the Congo. The young reporter Tintin and his faithful dog Snowy set off on assignment to Africa. But a sinister stowaway follows their every move and seems set on ensuring they come to a sticky end. Tintin and Snowy encounter witch doctors, hostile tribesmen, crocodiles, boa constrictors and numerous other wild animals before solving the mystery and getting their story. Join the most iconic character in comics as he embarks on an extraordinary adventure spanning historical and political events, and thrilling mysteries. Still selling over 100,000 copies every year in the UK and having been adapted for the silver screen by Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson in 2011. The Adventures of Tintin continue to charm more than 80 years after they first found their way into publication. Since then an estimated 230 million copies have been sold, proving that comic books have the same power to entertain children and adults in the 21st century as they did in the early 20th.
Book Synopsis Dancing in the Glory of Monsters by : Jason Stearns
Download or read book Dancing in the Glory of Monsters written by Jason Stearns and published by PublicAffairs. This book was released on 2012-03-27 with total page 372 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A "meticulously researched and comprehensive" (Financial Times) history of the devastating war in the heart of Africa's Congo, with first-hand accounts of the continent's worst conflict in modern times. At the heart of Africa is the Congo, a country the size of Western Europe, bordering nine other nations, that since 1996 has been wracked by a brutal war in which millions have died. In Dancing in the Glory of Monsters, renowned political activist and researcher Jason K. Stearns has written a compelling and deeply-reported narrative of how Congo became a failed state that collapsed into a war of retaliatory massacres. Stearns brilliantly describes the key perpetrators, many of whom he met personally, and highlights the nature of the political system that brought these people to power, as well as the moral decisions with which the war confronted them. Now updated with a new introduction, Dancing in the Glory of Monsters tells the full story of Africa's Great War.
Book Synopsis The Democratic Republic of Congo by : Michael Deibert
Download or read book The Democratic Republic of Congo written by Michael Deibert and published by Zed Books Ltd.. This book was released on 2013-09-12 with total page 197 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Over the past two decades, the Democratic Republic of Congo has been at the centre of the deadliest series of conflicts since the Second World War, and now hosts the largest United Nations peacekeeping mission in the world. In this compelling book, acclaimed journalist Michael Deibert paints a picture of a nation in flux, inching towards peace but at the same time solidifying into another era of authoritarian rule under its enigmatic president, Joseph Kabila. Featuring a wealth of first-hand interviews and secondary sources, the narrative travels from war-torn villages in the country's east to the chaotic, pulsing capital of Kinshasa in order to bring us the voices of the Congolese - from impoverished gold prospectors and market women to government officials - as it explores the complicated political, ethnic and economic geography of this tattered land. A must-read for anyone interested in contemporary Africa, The Democratic Republic of Congo: Between, Hope and Despair sheds new light on this sprawling and often misunderstood country that has become iconic both for its great potential and dashed hopes.
Book Synopsis Dangerous Sanctuaries by : Sarah Kenyon Lischer
Download or read book Dangerous Sanctuaries written by Sarah Kenyon Lischer and published by Cornell University Press. This book was released on 2015-07-22 with total page 222 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Since the early 1990s, refugee crises in the Balkans, Central Africa, the Middle East, and West Africa have led to the international spread of civil war. In Central Africa alone, more than three million people have died in wars fueled, at least in part, by internationally supported refugee populations. The recurring pattern of violent refugee crises prompts the following questions: Under what conditions do refugee crises lead to the spread of civil war across borders? How can refugee relief organizations respond when militants use humanitarian assistance as a tool of war? What government actions can prevent or reduce conflict?To understand the role of refugees in the spread of conflict, Sarah Kenyon Lischer systematically compares violent and nonviolent crises involving Afghan, Bosnian, and Rwandan refugees. Lischer argues against the conventional socioeconomic explanations for refugee-related violence—abysmal living conditions, proximity to the homeland, and the presence of large numbers of bored young men. Lischer instead focuses on the often-ignored political context of the refugee crisis. She suggests that three factors are crucial: the level of the refugees' political cohesion before exile, the ability and willingness of the host state to prevent military activity, and the contribution, by aid agencies and outside parties, of resources that exacerbate conflict.Lischer's political explanation leads to policy prescriptions that are sure to be controversial: using private security forces in refugee camps or closing certain camps altogether. With no end in sight to the brutal wars that create refugee crises, Dangerous Sanctuaries is vital reading for anyone concerned with how refugee flows affect the dynamics of conflicts around the world.
Book Synopsis Belgium and the Congo, 1885-1980 by : Guy Vanthemsche
Download or read book Belgium and the Congo, 1885-1980 written by Guy Vanthemsche and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2012-04-30 with total page 301 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book explains how and why Belgium, a small but influential European country, was changed through its colonial activities in the Congo, from the first expeditions in 1880 to the Mobutu regime in the 1980s. Belgian politics, diplomacy, economic activity and culture were influenced by the imperial experience. Belgium and the Congo, 1885-1980 yields a better understanding of the Congo's past and present.
Book Synopsis Foreign Intervention in Africa by : Elizabeth Schmidt
Download or read book Foreign Intervention in Africa written by Elizabeth Schmidt and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2013-03-25 with total page 289 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book chronicles foreign political and military interventions in Africa from 1956 to 2010, helping readers understand the historical roots of Africa's problems.
Book Synopsis The African Stakes of the Congo War by : J. Clark
Download or read book The African Stakes of the Congo War written by J. Clark and published by Springer. This book was released on 2002-09-13 with total page 266 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The African Stakes in the Congo War analyzes the Congo conflict by looking at the roles played by various states and factors in the conflict. Part I introduces the conflict by showing the historical and regional context of the war. Part II examines those states and groups that worked to support the Kaliba regime; Part III examines the rebel groups working to overthrow Kabila and those intervening on their behalf. Part IV looks at the role of supposedly neutral states such as South Africa and looks at the social and economic effects of the war by examining trans-state factors such as rebel groups, arms trading, and economic consequences. The collection includes both African and US/UK scholars, and covers the recent transfer of power from Laurent to Joseph Kabila.
Book Synopsis Why Comrades Go to War by : Philip G. Roessler
Download or read book Why Comrades Go to War written by Philip G. Roessler and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page 519 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An account of the AFDL's rise in 1996, crushing the dictatorship within Zaire/Congo and their subsequent collapse only months later as the Pan-Africanist alliance fell apart
Book Synopsis Canada, the Congo Crisis, and UN Peacekeeping, 1960-64 by : Kevin A. Spooner
Download or read book Canada, the Congo Crisis, and UN Peacekeeping, 1960-64 written by Kevin A. Spooner and published by UBC Press. This book was released on 2010-01-01 with total page 298 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 1960 the Republic of Congo teetered near collapse as its first government struggled to cope with civil unrest and mutinous armed forces. When the UN established a peacekeeping operation to deal with the crisis, the Canadian government faced a difficult decision. Should it support the intervention? By offering one of the first detailed accounts of Canadian involvement in a UN peacekeeping mission, Kevin Spooner reveals that Canada’s involvement was not a certainty: the Diefenbaker government had immediate and ongoing reservations about the mission, reservations that challenge cherished notions of Canada’s commitment to the UN and its status as a peacekeeper.
Book Synopsis Battleground Africa by : Lise Namikas
Download or read book Battleground Africa written by Lise Namikas and published by Cold War International History. This book was released on 2015-09-16 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Winner of the 2013 Choice Award for Outstanding Academic Title Battleground Africa traces the Congo Crisis from post-World War II decolonization efforts through Mobutu's second coup in 1965 from a radically new vantage point. Drawing on recently opened archives in Russia and the United States, and to a lesser extent Germany and Belgium, Lisa Namikas addresses the crisis from the perspectives of the two superpowers and explains with superb clarity the complex web of allies, clients, and neutral states influencing U.S.-Soviet competition. Unlike any other work, Battleground Africa looks at events leading up to independence, then considers the assassination of Patrice Lumumba, the series of U.N.-supported constitutional negotiations, and the crises of 1964 and 1965. Finding that the U.S. and the USSR each wanted to avoid a major confrontation, but also misunderstood its opponent's goals and wanted to avoid looking weak or losing its political standing in Africa, Namikas argues that a series of exaggerations and misjudgements helped to militarize the crisis, and ultimately, helped militarize the Cold War on the continent.
