ABSTRACT
The Great Lakes Region is marked by the fragility of each of its member states, and the region has seen some of the world’s deadliest conflicts, wars, and mass atrocities, most prominently the Rwandan genocide of 1994. Grievances over deprivation, oppression, injustice and discrimination persist, often along ethnic lines, demarcating insiders from outsiders. The Dar es Salaam Declaration (2004) and the legally binding Pact on Security, Stability and Development of 2006 sought to respond to these conditions by generating ten protocols and programs of action. These found expression in the work of the regional inter-governmental body, the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR).
We argue that the regional and national committees constitute an institutional mechanism for the prevention of genocide and mass atrocities. The multi-level and multidisciplinary nature of this mechanism contains opportunities for transformation and prevention based upon the principles of best practice, complementarity, linkages and ownership (Art.22(2)) of the Pact. Capacity building and implementation of national and community projects increasingly offer new problem-solving opportunities, promote collective responsibility and learning and have translated into legal frameworks, institutional and operational norms and practices that can support atrocity prevention.
