Civil Wars in Africa: Roots and Resolution

Les Harding is the author of Exploring the Avalon, Historic St.
John’s: The City of Legends, The Voyages of Lesser Men: Thumbnail
Sketches in Canadian Exploration and The Journeys of Remarkable Women:
Their Travels on the Canadian Frontier.

This scholarly book focuses on the root causes, consequences, and
resolutions (if any) of recent African civil wars—conflicts that have
often been overlooked by the First World. Authoritative case studies
have been prepared on civil wars in Ethiopia, Liberia, Mozambique,
Rwanda, Somalia, Sudan, and Uganda. There are detailed analyses of the
situations in Zimbabwe and Tanzania, two countries that were successful
in avoiding the curse of civil war. Each of the book’s 10 chapters was
written by experts in African politics, conflict resolution, and the
unique circumstances of the country about which they write. Topics
covered include ethnicity, regional and religious factionalism, the
roles of the United Nations and the Organization of African Unity,
foreign intervention, elites, colonialism, and liberation politics. Each
chapter is extensively footnoted and contains a map.

Civil Wars in Africa makes an impressive addition to the literature on
African political science, as well as to peace and conflict studies.
Expressed in the summary chapter is the hope that lessons learned,
particularly from the countries where violence was avoided, can be
applied to future conflicts before they reach the point of no return.