Identity and Cultural Diversity in Conflict Resolution and Democratisation for the African Renaissance

Abstract

Since its independence in 1962, Burundi has witnessed conflicts and violence. A multitude of factors help explain these tragedies, which include the creation of a negative image of the ‘other’; an ever-strengthened fear of the ‘other’; the blood feud between the Hutus and the Tutsis; and an illusion of the dominance of a so-called ‘ethnic group. The purpose of this paper is to underscore the part which the colonial state played with regard to the creation and intrumentalisation of ethnicity, based on racist ideologies. Since independence, the ruling elites continue to appropriate and radicalise this category. As result, they are not only able to enjoy political gains, but also simply perpetuate ethnicity with the help of an institutional framework, while pretending to fight it. The Burundi nation that was built on moral and social values such as Ubushingantahe, Ubuntu, Ubupfasoni, a love for a work well done, and the value of effort, finds itself in a trap. There is a...