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Periodical article Periodical article Leiden University catalogue Leiden University catalogue WorldCat catalogue WorldCat
Title:The DRC and Lesotho crises: some lessons for the SADC
Author:Kadima, DenisISNI
Year:1999
Periodical:Lesotho Social Sciences Review (ISSN 1028-0790)
Volume:5
Issue:1
Period:June
Pages:65-82
Language:English
Notes:biblio. refs.
Geographic terms:Lesotho
Congo (Democratic Republic of)
Southern Africa
Subjects:military intervention
politics
Political crisis
Conflict management
Southern African Development Community
Abstract:The military intervention of SADC troops in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and in Lesotho has aroused curiosity and confusion among the region's political observers because of the lack of a clear definition of the role of the postapartheid SADC and the lack of clarity over the conditions and mechanisms of military intervention of South Africa and Botswana in Lesotho, on the one hand, and Zimbabwe, Angola and Namibia in the DRC, on the other hand. This paper looks at these violent conflicts from the perspective of the internal actors, both armed and unarmed, given that lasting stability in these countries depends essentially on the commitment of these internal actors to end or to continue the hostilities. It shows that the roots and nature of the conflicts were different: whereas the Lesotho crisis occurred in the context of a dysfunctional and exclusionist electoral sysem, the roots of the DRC conflict are to be found in the undemocratic nature of its incumbent regime, as well as the absence of a legitimate and inclusive constitutional framework. It is crucial for regional leaders to make sure that conflicts are not fabricated by politicians to advance their quest for power before they decide on a military intervention. Bibliogr., sum.
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