Dr Scott Straus discusses his recent work on a comparative study of different trajectories of violence in civil war. The study focuses empirically on relatively recent (during the past two decades) armed conflicts in Rwanda, Sudan, Côte d’Ivoire, Mali, Chad, and Senegal; the theoretical perspective builds on existing national-level explanations of genocide and mass killing.

The Centre of Governance and Human Rights was launched by the Department of Politics and International Studies (POLIS) on 18 November 2009. An Inaugural Lecture was delivered by Dr Francis M Deng, Special Adviser to the UN Secretary-General on the Prevention of Genocide and Mass Atrocities, on the topic of ‘Managing Diversity as a strategy for the prevention of genocide and mass atrocities’.

David Cato, Advocacy/Litigation officer at Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG), in conversation with Dr Andy Tucker (Deputy Director, University of Cambridge Centre for Gender Studies), on the grave human rights situation facing homosexuals in Uganda and their continued struggle for sexuality-based rights.

Co-hosted by the Centre for Gender Studies and the Centre of Governance and Human Rights.

On the eve of celebrating the twentieth anniversary of Nelson Mandela’s release from prison, the Centre of Governance and Human Rights (CG+HR) hosted a roundtable discussion at King's College, Cambridge, with leading academics on Southern Africa - Stephen Ellis, Saul Dubow and Jocelyn Alexander - and Paul Trewhela, the author of a provocative new book 'Inside Quatro' on the human rights records of the ANC and SWAPO in exile. Chaired by the BBC World Service's Africa Editor, Martin Plaut.

On the eve of celebrating the twentieth anniversary of Nelson Mandela’s release from prison, the Centre of Governance and Human Rights (CG+HR) hosted a roundtable discussion at King's College, Cambridge, with leading academics on Southern Africa - Stephen Ellis, Saul Dubow and Jocelyn Alexander - and Paul Trewhela, the author of a provocative new book 'Inside Quatro' on the human rights records of the ANC and SWAPO in exile. Chaired by the BBC World Service's Africa Editor, Martin Plaut.

A seminar discussion with the editor of (Sokari Ekine) and a contributor to (Ken Banks) a new edited book – SMS Uprising: Mobile Activism in Africa (Fahamu, 2009) – which is the first of its kind to explore how and the extent to which new communications technologies are changing public action in Africa, and the impact of this on governance and people’s well-being.

Sokari Ekine is an activist with a multidisciplinary background in technology, education and human rights. She is the author of the blog Black Looks (www.blacklooks.org).

Ken Banks is the founder of www.kiwanja.net and the developer of FrontlineSMS (www.FrontlineSMS.com). He specialises in the application of mobile technology for positive social and environmental change in the developing world and previously lived and worked throughout Africa for 16 years.

This talk is part of the Centre of Governance and Human Rights Events series.