Adolphe Mushizi Mwendambali

Senior Fellow – DR Congo

Adolphe Mushizi Mwendambali is an attorney and, since 2016, he has served as the Women Protection Advisor–Human Rights Officer of the United Nations Joint Human Rights Office in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

About Adolphe Mushizi Mwendambali

Adolphe Mushizi Mwendambali has served as an attorney-at-law and legal advisor since 1999. He has extensive experience working for the United Nations and human rights organizations in the region, and has served as the Community Reintegration Program Manager for Caritas International (2003-2004), Protection Associate, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, (UNHCR) (2004-2009), Program Coordinator for Land Litigation, United Nations-Habitat (2009-2010), Women and Children Protection Program Manager, Rebuild Hope for Africa (2010-2011), Civil Affairs Program Officer, United-Nations Peacekeeping Mission in the DRC (2011-2016), and Women Protection Advisor – Human Rights Officer, United-Nations Joint Human Rights Office (2016-ongoing).

Mr. Mushizi is also the founder and advisor for the Global Peace Network Great Lakes Region (2012-2014) and the peacebuilding network, Absolutely Justice and Peace, a non-profit dedicated to dispute resolution, mediation, and leadership training for vulnerable populations, especially women, throughout the D.R. Congo.

Legal Experience

  • Arbitration of land and mining disputes, including getting settlement for compensation
  • Advises companies regarding tax litigation, contract disputes, and work-related conflicts
  • Represents clients (individuals and companies) in the courts and during judicial proceedings
  • Collaborates with legal colleagues on administrative acts that harm communities, companies and individuals interests
  • Advocates for communities and individuals regarding abusive expropriations by mining companies
  • Works with students to raise awareness regarding how to settle disputes with the support of institutions

Mediation Practice

Mr. Mushizi has been involved in the resolution of workplace disputes throughout his legal career, beginning in 1999. He has experience mediating disputes related to non-legal and non-compliant contracts involving insurance companies, such as co-ops, regional hospitals, the office of medical work, the levy of taxes on rental income, and worker remuneration.

ADR Achievements and Training

ADR Achievements

  • Weinstein JAMS International Fellowship (2016)
  • Establishing mediation platforms and mediation for lawyers and judicial personnel
  • Coordinating land-related disputes
  • Building feminist leadership on resolving community disputes through non-profit Absolutely Justice and Peace
  • Collaborating on the resolution of mining-related disputes with lawyers and national experts

ADR Training and Peace Building

  • Mediating the Litigated Case, Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution, Pepperdine University School of Law (2016)
  • Peacebuilding courses, Austria Study Centre for Conflicts Resolution, ASPR Austria, (2013)
  • The Rule of Law Training Courses, Folke Bernadotte Academy, Sweden, (2008)
  • Protection Learning Program, UNHCR Geneva (2006-2007)

ADR Teaching and Mentoring

  • Delivered conflict resolution courses to students and young lawyers (2000-2013)

Publications and Education

Publications

“Summary of the Conflict dynamics in the Kivu provinces” (2016)

“The Lands of East: a Binomial “Development-Crisis,’” A critical discourse on nationality and citizenship (2016)

“Strengthening democratic institutions and Governance reforms in the DRC.” A prospective analysis sketch for the crisis in the DRC. Notebook, Peace and Justice Studies (2015)

“How do Displacement, Conflicts, Land, and Identity shape the Eastern DRC’s crisis?” research – findings (Nov. 2014)

“Uprootedness: Identity? Land? Ethnicity? Intolerance?” Research (2013-2014) – Nationality and conflicts in DRC: a legal approach, Analysis (2014)

Contribution au processus DDRR en RDC: « Un Guide Pratique », Bukavu (2008) (The contribution to the DDRRR Process: a practical guide). – Meeting parallelism: Land and community reintegration in DRC, Research (2014)

“Enhancing re-integration of combatants in Eastern DRC, improving returnees’ reintegration – Challenges to complete the DDRR of former combatants in DRC,” factual analysis (2009)

Nationality and mixed families (2008)

“Protection Learning Program Project Report,” March 2007. – Protection strategy focused on the SGBV – Gender and Age – sensitive approaches (UNHCR’s Protection Learning Program final paper November (2006))

Migrations And Congolese Nationality: an issue of conflict? Unsuccessful attempts to the peaceful settlement of conflicts in the East DRC.

The social dynamics at the heart of conflicts in the Great Lakes Region

Educational Qualifications

  • Masters Degree of Law, Catholic University of Bukavu (1999)
  • Graduate Degree of Law, Catholic University of Bukavu (1996)
  • State Diploma of Literary Arts (Latin and Philosophy), Jesuits’ Alfajiri College (1991)

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