The system of community mediators, also known as Abunzi, combines traditional and modern methods of conflict resolution. It is also one of Rwanda’s Homegrown Initiatives (HGI), although similar mechanisms exist elsewhere.
“Unlike ordinary courts whose decisions specify the winner and the loser who, in most cases, keep living in an antagonistic relationship, Abunzi strive to help litigants to resume former normal relationships or at least mitigate the magnitude of their dispute” – A participant in a group discussion in Kicukiro District
The system of community mediators, also known as Abunzi, combines traditional and modern methods of conflict resolution. It is also one of Rwanda’s Home Grown Initiatives (HGI), although similar mechanisms exist elsewhere.
The word Abunzi can be translated as “those who reconcile” or “those who bring together”, from the verb kunga. Traditionally in Rwanda, Abunzi were people known within their communities for personal integrity and were thus asked to intervene in the event of a conflict. Each conflicting party would choose a person who was considered trustworthy, who was known as a problem-solver, and who was unlikely to alienate either party. The purpose of this system was to settle disputes and reconcile the conflicting parties and restore harmony within the affected community.
The reintroduction of the Abunzi system in 2004 was motivated partly by the desire to reduce the backlog of court cases, and partly to decentralize justice and make it more affordable and accessible to citizens seeking to resolve conflicts without the cost of going to court. Today, Abunzi is fully integrated into Rwanda’s justice system.
This conflict resolution mechanism rooted in Rwandan culture came to be perceived as more accessible and less threatening, and therefore more human. Those who referred their cases to Abunzi were more comfortable with this system because the Abunzi came from within their own community and thus had a better understanding of the issues and process at hand. As the Abunzi system gained more recognition as a successful method to resolve conflict and deliver justice, the importance of providing more structure and formality to their work increased. Consequently, the Abunzi started receiving training on resolving domestic conflicts, as well as logistical support from both governmental and non-governmental organizations, to improve the quality of their mediation services.
There are now over 30,000 Abunzi operating across Rwanda.
According to the Ministry of Justice 2019 annual report, during the fiscal year ending June 2019, Abunzi received 48,989 civil cases, of which 47,898 (97.8%) were completed (at sector and cell level) and just 1,091 (2.2%) were ongoing at the end of the year. The same report also describes the support given to Abunzi mediators during the 2018-2019 fiscal year: a total of 15,183 Abunzi and their 56,799 dependents were provided with 100% community health insurance; a total of 13,030 Abunzi were provided with monthly communication airtime to facilitate communication with fellow Abunzi and staff from the Ministry of Justice; and a total of 8,100 Abunzi were provided with bicycles to facilitate their daily work, bringing the total number of bicycles provided to 13,100.
Conflict resolution through community participation
The adoption of alternative dispute resolution mechanisms in Rwanda emerged from the recognition of a growing crisis in the judiciary in which it had become almost impossible to resolve disputes efficiently and in a cost-effective manner. The Government of Rwanda concluded that modern judicial mechanisms of dispute resolution were failing to deliver, and so the decision was taken to examine traditional mediation and conciliation approaches as alternatives. Doing so would not only help alleviate the pressure on conventional courts but would also align with the policy objective of a more decentralized justice system.
Establishment and purpose of the Abunzi
In 2004, the Government of Rwanda established the traditional process of Abunzi as an alternative dispute resolution mechanism. Established at the cell and sector levels, Abunzi primarily addresses family disputes, such as those relating to land or inheritance. By institutionalizing Abunzi, low-level legal issues could be solved at a local level without the need for them to be heard in conventional courts. About Governance
As the Abunzi system gained recognition as a successful method to resolve conflict and deliver justice, the importance of providing more structure and formality to their work. Read More
