LOCAL JUSTICE AND CONFLICT RESOLUTION:
THE ABUNZI MEDIATORS OF RWANDA
Dr. Martha Mutisi
Manager: Interventions Department,
African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes
(ACCORD)
IACM Conference
11-14 July 2012
The Study
• Qualitative study
– Research based on July 2011 fieldwork in Rwanda
– Kigali as well as semi-rural areas such as Gacuriro
– Interviews with abunzi mediators, ordinary members of
society, government officials, civil society actors
– Observations of abunzi proceedings
– Desktop research
– Study forms a chapter towards a Monograph series on TCR
RWANDA
•Known as the land of a
thousand hills, Rwanda is
currently in transition
•Rwanda’s population is
composed of three ethnic
groups;
•Hutu (84%),
•Tutsi (15%)
•Twa (1%)
•All groups speak the
same language,
Kinyarwanda.
RWANDA: A BACKGROUND
• 1994- Genocide where 800 000 Tutsis including
moderate Hutus were killed by Hutus;
• Three months later, genocide ended with coming
into power of Paul Kagame and the Rwanda Patriotic
Front;
POST-GENOCIDE RWANDA
• Since then, Rwanda has followed a unique path
towards addressing the challenge of ethnic conflict;
• Efforts towards rebuilding peace and reconciliation;
o The gacaca courts paved way for accountability by trying
approximately 1.5 million cases of genocide;
o After the conclusion of gacaca courts in 2010, Rwanda
uses both modern and local methods of conflict resolution
o Abunzi mediators try local criminal and civil disputes
LOCAL INSTITUTIONS OF CONFLICT
RESOLUTION IN RWANDA
• Abunzi-an organ meant for providing a framework of
obligatory mediation prior to submission of a case
before the first degree courts;
• Literary translated, abunzi means ‘those who
reconcile.’
• Abunzi are mandated by law;
– Article 159 of the Constitution, and the Organic Law No.
31/2006 and Organic Law No. 02/2010/OL on the
Jurisdiction, Functioning and Competence of Abunzi
mediation committees
LOCAL INSTITUTIONS OF CONFLICT
RESOLUTION IN RWANDA
• Abunzi mediators are not only institution to
attempt to resolve a dispute between parties;
o The inama y’umuryango – i.e. family level
meetings,
o The umudugudu, i.e. village level meetingso The abunzi mediators, i.e. those who reconcile
o The gacaca courts– meant for genocide crimes
o The primary courts
LOCAL JUSTICE AND CONFLICT
RESOLUTION: THE ABUNZI MEDIATORS
• The abunzi is an indigenous system which existed in
Rwanda before colonialism;
o Objective is to unite two parties who have a disagreement;
• Abunzi mediation can be paralleled with similar traditional
dispute resolution systems in other parts of Africa;
o Kogtla in Botswana,
o Bashingantahe in Burundi
o Dare in Zimbabwe.
LOCAL JUSTICE AND CONFLICT RESOLUTION:
THE ABUNZI MEDIATORS
• Abunzi mediation in Rwanda qualifies to be labelled
as a form of local conflict resolution and justice
• The responsibility for peace rests with individuals
and communities themselves, not only Track I
Diplomats;
• Local Justice exists at the local level and is
community driven.
CALLS FOR LOCAL JUSTICE AND CONFLICT
RESOLUTION
Any country emerging from conflict and
embarking on a peace-building process,
should not exclude its people, and it
should always consider its own specific
circumstances and context.
Rwanda’s President, Paul Kagame,
November 2011
ANATONY OF THE ABUNZI MEDIATORS
• Abunzi, just like their counterparts, the
inyangamugayo in the gacaca courts are “persons of
integrity;”
• Abunzi are expected to have mediation skills;
• The cell council elects the abunzi whose members
serve a two-year term, which is renewable.
CONCEPTUALISING ABUNZI MEDIATORS
• Abunzi mediation is in line with the decentralisation
of development, peacebuilding and justice
-
Rwandan Government’s Decentralisation Policy, Decentralisation
Implementation Strategy of 2000, Decentralised Government Reform
Policy of 2005.
• Abunzi can be labelled as ‘grassroots justice,”
• Government efforts towards localising peace
processes
JURISDICTION OF THE ABUNZI
The abunzi have a broad jurisdiction which includes:
• Civil disputes
o Paternity issues, matrimonial disputes
o Breach of contact , labour cases
o Disputes related to land and other assets below 3
million Rwandan francs (US$2500)
• Criminal cases;
o Theft, larceny and extortion
o Domestic violence, assault etc
THE STATE AND THE ABUNZI MEDIATORS
• Abunzi mediation mandated by the Organic Law of
2006 and 2010 on Mediation Committees;
o Like gacaca courts, the abunzi function according to
codified; although their decisions are inspired by custom.
• Formal courts will not consider a dispute unless the
abunzi have first considered /ruled on the dispute;
o Especially if the dispute’s property value is below 3
million Rwandese francs;
• The state assists abunzi by dealing with those who
fail to comply with mediation processes.
STRUCTURAL REPRESENTATION OF
THE ABUNZI
MINISTRY OF JUSTICE (MINIJIST)
APPEAL ABUNZI MEDIATION
COMMITTEE AT SECTOR
LEVEL
MINISTRY OF LOCAL
GOVERNMENT
(MINALOC)
Administrative
support
ABUNZI MEDIATION
COMMITTEE AT CELL LEVEL
Total= 30 000 Abunzi Mediators
THE ABUNZI MEDIATORS ORGANOGRAM
ABUNZI MEDIATION BUREAU
President, Vice President and Secretary
3 PERSONS
ABUNZI MEDIATION COMMITTEE
12 MEMBERS
The Presidents
and VicePresidents are
elected by the
abunzi
committees and
the Secretary of
the abunzi is also
the Secretary of
the Cell
There must be at
least 30% women in
abunzi committees
LOCAL JUSTICE AND CONFLICT RESOLUTION:
ABUNZI MEDIATORS
• Decentralisation of justice: Abunzi are among govt’s
repertoire of initiatives designed to make justice
available to citizens at every level;
According to the 2010 Citizen
Report Cards (CRC) survey
conducted by the Rwanda
Governance Advisory Council
(RGAC), the abunzi Mediation
committees came as the first
appreciated dispute resolution
instrument in comparison with
other mechanisms. Citizens felt
that the abunzi process allow for
easy access to justice.
LOCAL JUSTICE AND CONFLICT RESOLUTION:
ABUNZI MEDIATORS
• Grassroots peacebuilding: Abunzi are local
actors who play prominent roles in
peacebuilding;
• Restorative Justice: Abunzi approach
encourages conciliation and mediation which
ultimately promotes restoration
ABUNZI MEDIATORS AND THE
ABANYARWANDA CONCEPT
• Abunzi processes evoke the notion of
Abanyarwanda, i.e. Rwandanness (unity);
– The notion of Abanyarwanda epitomises the concept of
‘imagined community.’
– Abanyarwanda helps to heal the divide between ethnic
groups;
– Rwandan government says this approach is a necessary
step towards reconciliation after the trauma of genocide;
– Schools in Rwanda are instructed to teach a curriculum in
line with the narrative of unity, emphasizing the notion of
Abanyarwanda.
CHALLENGES FACING THE ABUNZI MEDIATION
SYSTEM
• State-centered justice and legalized mediation; Elements of
litigation and coercion in abunzi process; Overbearing role of the;
• Coerced peacebuilding?: References to unity; utterances that do
not stress ‘oneness’ are met with public disapproval; The notion of
unity has the danger of negating dissent;
• Proper Reconciliation?: Concerns that the notion of unity may be
an act: Are Rwandans ‘pretending peace?
CHALLENGES FACING THE ABUNZI MEDIATION
SYSTEM
• Genuineness: Is this a “reinvention of tradition for
particular uses in the present?” (Hobsbawn, 1983)
• Limited institutional support: Deficits in transport,
training, documentation and other forms of support
ENHANCING THE ABUNZI MEDIATION SYSTEM
• Training and capacity building support
– E.g. in family law, domestic violence law etc
– Assistance with transport and communication
• Documentation
– Strengthening record keeping of abunzi decision
• Limiting the state’s involvement
CONCLUSION
• Rwanda’s strategy towards post-conflict resolution is
unique and informed by its scarred history;
• The concept of abunzi mediation certainly evokes a
sense of national belonging and promotes local
justice;
• However, it is not clear whether continues state
involvement in the abunzi will promote sustainable
peace;
Thank you…