In September 2014, the Congolese government carried out a reorganization of its armed forces (FARDC). Congo is a huge country covering many local realities, each of which has its own threats, balance of power, conflict potential and economic assets. The Congolese officers in question are individuals who have been trained in military schools or whose experience is the result of the years which they served in rebel movements, defending or attacking the nation. Many have, over the years, made a serious attempt to provide some rule of law, but many others are notorious violators of human rights considered by many Congolese citizens as being as much a part of the problem as the solution. All of the officers grew up in a context where bad governance had sunk to such low levels that we had to invent new words such as 'kleptocracy' and 'auto-cannibalism' to describe Mobutu's state - a heritage which has proved very difficult to leave behind. The army remains a colourful mélange after several waves of integration, each time a new phase of the armed conflict was concluded with another unworkable peace agreement. The challenge to transforming the FARDC into a truly unified, disciplined, transparent and competent [...]
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