ABSTRACT
Rebellion and diplomacy have played considerable roles in international politics in the last two decades.
Both phenomena, however, have failed to resolve many crises and conflict of interests that have plagued the African
continent. Studies have been done on the causes and effects of these conflicts. However, substantial attention has not
been paid to the centrality of diplomacy in the conflict processes. By drawing the contours of successes and failures of
diplomacy, this study investigated the consequences, challenges and effects of diplomacy in the Rwandan conflict, one
of the deadliest conflicts in Africa.
The study utilized both primary and secondary data. Survey method, in-depth interviews and Focus Groups
Discussions (FGDs) were utilized to source primary data. These include: 146 unstructured key informant interviews
with 14 academic staff of the National University of Rwanda (NUR), two staffers of the International Criminal
Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), four journalists, four members of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC),
seven members of the Association of Widows and Victims of Genocide amongst Women (AVEGA), 14 genocide site
guides, nine Gacaca members and four war crime prisoners. Eleven FGDs involving undergraduate and postgraduate
students of NUR were also conducted. Secondary data were drawn from library and archival documents. The study
employed a descriptive and content analysis approach.
Ethics of humanitarian intervention was a major factor that made decisive action slow, or impossible in
emergency situations by the Organisation of African Unity (OAU). Similar provisions in the OAU charter principles
made the organisation incapable of effectively dealing with ethno-chauvinistic conflicts. Focus Groups Discussions
emphasized competing and incompatible goals and exercise of state power as sources of many conflicts in Africa.
Rebel movements emerged where democratic processes failed, leading to civil wars and genocides. The growing
number of these crises, conflicts and civil wars therefore, led to the increasing demand for new conflict resolutions,
transformations, and post-conflict reconciliatory initiatives that require direct intervention beyond the purview of the
O.A.U charter. Such interventions require defining, acceptable and workable power sharing arrangements. In the
specific case of Rwanda, these requirements were complicated by neo-colonial manipulations, inciting ethnic hatred
and genocide. Thus, the failures of African and international diplomacy were central to the occurrence of genocide
and its devastating effects in Rwanda. These failures were repeated in the post-conflict reconstruction process, where
political intrigues and diplomatic inconsistencies in the workings of ICTR prolonged the process of healing and
reconciliation amongst the people.
The Rwandan case revealed how rebellion could degenerate into genocide in a divided society, where
leadership is overwhelmed by sectarian struggles. Effective diplomacy will require a larger regional framework of
conflict management that affords the opportunity for quick intervention. African leaders within the framework of
African Union (AU) should encourage their peers to respect the sanctity of human life, and its centrality to
development and governance, by creating an effective mechanism for solving conflicts in Africa. The proposed AU
standby force needs to be established and strengthened, to encourage diplomatic methods of negotiation and
compromise in order to prevent a quick recourse to violence by opposition forces.
UC, O (2021). Rebellion And Diplomacy In International Politics In The Context Of The Rwandan Crisis. Afribary. Retrieved from https://tracking.afribary.com/works/rebellion-and-diplomacy-in-international-politics-in-the-context-of-the-rwandan-crisis
UC, OKECHUKWU "Rebellion And Diplomacy In International Politics In The Context Of The Rwandan Crisis" Afribary. Afribary, 20 Apr. 2021, https://tracking.afribary.com/works/rebellion-and-diplomacy-in-international-politics-in-the-context-of-the-rwandan-crisis. Accessed 09 Nov. 2024.
UC, OKECHUKWU . "Rebellion And Diplomacy In International Politics In The Context Of The Rwandan Crisis". Afribary, Afribary, 20 Apr. 2021. Web. 09 Nov. 2024. < https://tracking.afribary.com/works/rebellion-and-diplomacy-in-international-politics-in-the-context-of-the-rwandan-crisis >.
UC, OKECHUKWU . "Rebellion And Diplomacy In International Politics In The Context Of The Rwandan Crisis" Afribary (2021). Accessed November 09, 2024. https://tracking.afribary.com/works/rebellion-and-diplomacy-in-international-politics-in-the-context-of-the-rwandan-crisis