ABSTRACT
Despite a regional peace deal in 2002, and the formal ending of transition periods in Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo), peace in the Great Lakes Region remains uncertain. While each of the countries has its own history of conflict, developments are also similar or strongly related. All three experienced Belgian colonization, resulting in states organized on the basis of ethnic and regional differences. Politics and violence in Rwanda since independence have strongly impacted on developments in Burundi and vice-versa. Flows of refugees, military intervention by neighbouring countries, and crossborder war economies have further contributed to the regional character of conflict in the region.
