C’est le ton qui fait la panique

In this episode, we analyze the rhetoric surrounding peace agreements and how they can be interpreted differently by the warring parties.

Indeed, these texts, supposed to seal the end of conflicts, sometimes become sources of new tensions, as each party interprets them according to its own interests. The recent peace agreements signed in Washington and Doha between Kinshasa and Kigali on the one hand, and Kinshasa and the M23 on the other, are a striking example.

And therein lies the danger. When each party forms its own interpretation, it can not only block the peace process but also reignite tensions. So, how can we prevent the narratives developed around these peace agreements from exacerbating the crisis instead of ending it? What type of language could help bring the warring parties' perspectives closer together?

To discuss this, two guests will be invited:

- Josaphat Musamba, PhD student in political science at Ghent University, specializing in security dynamics in eastern DRC

- Lucien Ramazani, philosopher, political scientist, PhD student at the Catholic University of Louvain