Introduction

The conflicts in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have caused the most deadly humanitarian crisis of our time. About 5.4 million people have died as a consequence of this crisis over the last ten years. The crisis has often been referred to as “Africa's First World War,” because at one stage eight African countries and many other international and transnational actors were involved. The United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) has been active in the country since 2000. This chapter studies several aspects of the functioning of MONUC as an illustration of the opportunities, as well as the shortcomings, of a system of collective security.

The chapter first discusses the recent UN reforms and provides a brief overview of the conflicts and difficult peace process in the DRC. It subsequently analyzes MONUC's work as a concrete example of collective security in the eastern DRC. It goes on to show the closely related difficulties in creating a collective security system and improving security in current chronic conflicts and offers a grounded critique of international decision making and policy making concerning UN reforms and collective security.

UN reform

The UN reform process after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States generated a variety of reform proposals from a High-Level Panel of Experts and the Secretary-General.