The Coming Genocide? Burundi's Past, Present, and Potentially Deadly Future

ABSTRACT

The Great Lakes region of Africa is the most conflict-prone region of the world and one current concern is political violence in Burundi. This research investigates whether Burundi is on the precipice of a genocide. Burundi's weak democratic norms, genocidal history, and the impact of contagion and diffusion of violence in the region provide a number of the conditions that could contribute to a genocide. This research investigates the past and present conflict variables of the Great Lakes region with a focus on Burundi and assesses the potential that the ongoing political violence in Burundi will lead to genocide.

Acknowledgment

The section of this article “Setting the Stage: The Past” is taken in part from the author's dissertation: Christina K. Cliff “The Spread of Violence: Contagion and Diffusion in Genocide and Terrorism” (Diss. University of Idaho, 2011), pp. 208–262. The author thanks the participants of ISA-NE 2016 and two anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments and suggestions.

Notes

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