Dossier: Successful conflict resolution at the local level

In Rwanda, mediation committees are entrusted with settling local disputes. They derive from reconciliation mechanisms going back hundreds of years and help resolve countless conflicts before these end up in court. A growing number of women on such committees are developing skills that are being widely recognised.

Women's abilities in conflict mediation are increasingly winning respect. © Zélie Schaller

It is said of the abunzi women in Rwanda that they have integrity and tell the truth. In Kinyarwanda, abunzi means "those who reconcile". Every district in the country has such mediation committees comprising elected women and men. They are rooted in age-old traditions and enshrined in the constitution.

After the genocide in 1994 in which almost a million people died, institutions including the courts, police and prisons collapsed. Their staff had either been killed or were in exile, the buildings looted. Thousands of accused awaited trial in overcrowded detention facilities. Since the government was not in a position to set up fast track courts, it fell back on the ancient gacaca system. Gacaca – pronounced ga-cha-cha – means soft, short grass and indicates a place where people gather. It is a participative process in which the community is at once witness, judge and party to the proceedings.

The gacaca community courts, which follow traditional mediation processes, were tasked with establishing the truth, speeding up legal proceedings and facilitating reconciliation for Rwandans. They were closed in 2012. Abunzi committees had been introduced in 2003 to resolve civil disputes (ownership, inheritance and marital disputes). "These continue to exist, help reduce the case load of the courts and contribute to better community relations," says Dominique Habimana, the SDC's governance programme officer.

Kampire and Domina were appointed to the abunzi committee by their communities because they were regarded as persons of integrity. During their training they gained an understanding of the code of conduct and abunzi skills as well as mediation techniques and the application of laws. Both women live in the Karongi district located in the western part of the country. They have gained self-confidence and garnered respect from the community. "We have been helping to resolve conflicts and that has convinced men that we are capable. Their perceptions have changed and we are no longer discriminated against," says Domina. Kampire smilingly agrees.

Although it is not part of their mandate, both women also help to defuse family conflicts. They are respected for their abilities and often asked for advice. What motivates them? "Contributing to social cohesion and to peace in the country."

How an abunzi committee functions

Abunzi work at two levels: the 'cell', the first level where matters are heard, and the sector, where appeals are filed. In Rwanda, a cell is the primary administrative unit, followed by sector, which is below a district. An abunzi committee consists of seven honorary members who are elected by the cell and sector's council for a renewable term of five years. The executive secretary of a cell receives complaints and forwards these to the abunzi committee. The conflicting parties are summoned and each chooses one abunzi. The selected abunzi then choose the third abunzi. The remaining four can participate in the mediation process but have no say in the decision. The three abunzi hear the parties and witnesses. If an amicable settlement is reached, the proceedings are closed. If this does not happen, a decision is taken in accordance with the law. The parties can appeal the decision at the sector level. Abunzi can take up only civil but not criminal matters. Most disputes relate to property, cattle, inheritance and family issues.