Mob Violence in Bukavu's Urban Slums: Understanding the Causes

Reports of mob violence and assaults in Bukavu's urban slums as a form of "instant popular justice" against alleged offenders and criminals abound and repeatedly strike the media headlines in such a way that wealthier suburbs housing Bukavu's working and middle-upper classes hardly do. Repetitive accounts of these events found in public domain seem to support the idea that these practices are pervasive and a common trait characterizing the social life into Bukavu's poor settings settlements. State mandated security provision in Bukavu's urban slums like Panzi is characterized by its haphazard presence and its heavy-handed ways. Such inadequacies not only fuel feelings of frustration due to exclusion from basic public services, but open up niches for the propagation of violent alternatives to access and administration of justice in the form of mob violence. This book investigates the phenomenon of mob violence in Panzi area and also examine how it can be prevented.