Land, conflict and livelihoods in the great lakes region testing policies to the limit

Abstract

This publication looks at the relationship between land tenure, land use, and population movements, and conflict, defined here as large-scale, violent conflict. The concepts are illustrated with case studies by the African Centre for Technology Studies (ACTS) on Rwanda, Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Burundi.1 The relationship between land and conflict is intuitive. Historically, land has been significant in war in the form of a ‘prize’ of territorial control enjoyed by the victors at the expense of the vanquished – losing groups would often be forced to flee, relinquishing their homes, fields and properties. More recently however, increased interest in conflict analysis has revealed various complex relationships between control over land (and land-based resources) and conflict. Combatants involved in conflict within states – by far the most significant kind of conflict today – often claim that unequal access to land is one of the causes of violence. During conflict, land access is affected not just for belligerents, but for entire communities, who become targets of violence due to the ethnicization of conflict. And in post-conflict situations, the land and shelter needs of returning internally displaced populations (IDPs) and refugees must be carefully managed in order to avoid dangerous disputes and further violence.