Annette LaRocco's blog

Over the last few months, conflict has ignited across the border between the two Sudans, with the potential to escalate even further. A new Enough Project report, “South Sudan and Sudan Back at War: The View from Juba” reflects on these last few months and evaluates the causes and implications of the deteriorating relationship between Sudan and South Sudan.  Read More »

The recent turbulent events on the ground in eastern Congo present a unique opportunity for the Congolese government to finally take steps to arrest Bosco Ntaganda and deliver him to justice. In a new report released today, “Taking the Terminator: Congo’s Golden Opportunity to Deliver a Warlord to Justice,” the Enough Project provides background information on Ntaganda and his rebellion, describes the implications of his recent mutiny, and offers recommendations for the U.S. and partner donor nations.  Read More »

In a letter sent today to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, a coalition of 142 Congolese and international human rights organizations—including the Enough Project, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and 132 Congolese civil society organizations—called on the U.S. to provide urgent diplomatic leadership supporting the governments of Congo and Rwanda in the arrest of the notorious warlord Bosco Ntaganda.  Read More »

In the wake of an alarming escalation of violence and rhetoric between Khartoum and Juba, the African Union Peace and Security Council, or AUPSC, issued a decision on April 24 aimed at getting the parties back to the negotiating table. The strong tone of the decision coupled with its roadmap for a normalization of relations between Sudan and South Sudan makes it, perhaps, the most comprehensive statement of policy regarding the two states to emerge since South Sudan’s independence last July.  Read More »

Highlighting the desperate need for justice and security sector reform in eastern Congo was the defection of controversial warlord-turned-Congolese-general Bosco Ntaganda from the formal military structure, in which he took hundreds of loyal officers and soldiers with him. In the midst of the crisis, Enough’s teams in eastern Congo, Nairobi, and Washington, D.C., have churned out coverage and reflections on a variety of topics related to Ntaganda, justice reform, and the security sector in Congo. Here’s a round-up of the recent blog posts.  Read More »

The Congolese government and international community should urgently reform the Congolese military and security sector, according to a newly released report spearheaded by the Eastern Congo Initiative and 12 other leading international and Congolese civil society groups, including the Enough project. The report, “Taking a Stand on Security Sector Reform,” is the product of extensive research and interviews in Congo and several donor countries.  Read More »

As the entire Great Lakes region waits and watches with uncertainty as to how the tense security situation in eastern Congo will play out, Radio Okapi reported that Congolese President Joseph Kabila and his Army Chief of Staff, General Dider Etumba, arrived in Goma on Monday.  Read More »

U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay condemned a series of inflammatory statements by the governor of Sudan’s South Kordofan state, Ahmed Haroun. His speech, which was caught on camera and published by Al Jazeera, calls for Sudanese troops to take no prisoners in the fight against the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North, or SPLM-N, rebels in South Kordofan. Haroun tells the soldiers, "Don’t bring them [the rebels] back, eat them alive."  Read More »

A new Small Arms Survey report released last week cites evidence of external support of the White Army. After conducting research in Akobo, Likuongole, and the area surrounding Pibor town, Small Arms Survey found evidence of linking the White Army to weapons and ammunition identical to those used by both the SPLA and prominent rebel groups in South Sudan.  Read More »

Freelance journalist David Axe and artist Tim Hamilton have teamed up to create a non-fiction graphic novel that highlights the impact of the Lord’s Resistance Army, or LRA, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, one of the countries where the group currently operates. Their collaboration, “Army of God,” specifically depicts the crisis which the LRA has brought upon civilians living in remote areas of the northeastern provinces by highlighting the stories of individuals who have witnessed LRA violence.  Read More »