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Dissertation Defense - Bernard Londoni
Understanding the longstanding conflict between the Banyamulenge and "indigenous" tribes in Eastern DRC: Why do neighbors fail to coexist?
Monday, April 3, 2017
1:30pm - 3:30pm
Metropolitan building 5183
Arlington Campus
Committee:
Dr. Karina Korostelina (Chair)
Dr. Daniel Rothbart
Dr. Elavie Ndura
Abstract:
The question of group-based identities and inter-group behaviors in relation to how groups build or break up relations is of interest to social anthropologists, political scientists, sociologists, and social psychologists. The eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has a long history of conflict since what has come to be known as the 1996 first Congo war (ICRtoP 2016). Literature provides widespread support that intergroup contact (Pettigrew 1997, Davies, et al. 2011) and intergroup empathy (Mazziotta, et al. 2014) play a positive role in improving relations and fostering coexistence. However, the eastern DRC case clearly contrasts evidence from existing literature that links intergroup contact and empathy with positive relations. This research focused on understanding intergroup failure to coexist peacefully in Uvira of eastern DRC. I used a framework to analyze the role that concepts such as contact, empathy, legitimacy, power, trust, and social identity factors play in this conflict to facilitate or impede coexistence. My hope was to gain not only a better understanding of what contributes to the lack of coexistence in this area, but also develop insights into similar phenomena occurring in other parts of the world, especially the Great Lakes Region of Africa, where issues of coexistence have been studied and clear answers have not been found.