The Democratic Republic of Congo is unfortunately synonymous with its dreadful past and its terrible present, despite its beauty, complex history and unachieved potential. Locked not only into its own internal troubles but also into those of the Great Lakes region, it has provided more than enough material on forced migration, violence and political quagmires to fill this issue of FMR. As Bernard Mumpasi Lututala’s article tells us, displacement did not begin in the early 1990s, yet there has been since then a continuous series of events triggering displacement, suffering and all manner of breaches of people’srights and security. Unconscionable numbers of people have died or been killed.
While the articles contained in this issue of FMR make grim reading, they also offer glimmers of hope for better outcomes, at least potentially, alongside analysis of how and why these things have been happening. There are political and humanitarian agreements; there are laws and the beginnings of systems to uphold them’ there are people determined to work their way out of their seemingly intractable situation. Potentially it can get better in DRC, and we hope that this issue of FMR will make a contribution to stimulating analysis and building awareness to support that process.
This issue is online at http://www.fmreview.org/DRCongo/ and will be available in English, French, Spanish and Arabic.
We continue to try to make FMR more accessible to those with visual disabilities. The whole issue is available online as a PDF, and all articles in this issue are available in HTML format that is appropriate for screen-readers and as audio files. Our website also offers links to software downloads to aid accessibility.
FMR36 is being distributed together with a special FMR supplement on HIV/AIDS, security and conflict.
All issues of FMR are freely available, and searchable, online. We encourage you to post online or reproduce FMR articles but please acknowledge the source (with a link to our website) – and, preferably, let us know.
Forthcoming issues of FMR
- FMR 37 will include a feature theme on Non-state armed groups, due out in March 2011.
- FMR 38 will include a feature theme on Technology and communications. See the call for articles.
Please see information about future issues of FMR.
With our best wishes
Marion Couldrey & Maurice Herson
Editors, Forced Migration Review
We would like to thank those agencies who have generously provided funding for this particular issue: Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada (DFAIT), International Alert, the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (DRC office) and UNHCR’s Regional Bureau for Africa. We would also like to thank all our regular donors for their continued, valuable support. Regular funders are listed on our funding page.