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INTRODUCTION
With his successful coup d'état on 25 July 1996, the former Burundian president Pierre Buyoya brought the ongoing regional mediation efforts to a standstill. After the military takeover, violence increased in the second half of 1996: the number of battle-related casualties and refugees rose, and the fighting spread geographically (Hoskins et al. 1997; Ngaruko & Nkurunziza 2005: 47-61; UCDP 2014). The neighbouring countries reacted swiftly and agreed to 'exert maximum pressure on the regime in Bujumbura including the imposition of economic sanctions' (Second Regional Summit on the Burundi Conflict 1996). They demanded the immediate restoration of Burundi's National Assembly and the reinstatement of political parties as well as peace negotiations. Simultaneously, the international donors froze all assistance other than emergency aid.
The subsequent unfolding of the sanctions episode against Burundi was characterised by two seemingly contradictory developments: On the one hand, the regime resisted the external coercion, to the surprise of the sanction senders, who, given Burundi's economic and geopolitical vulnerability, had expected to quickly force Buyoya into negotiations. The embargo's initial effect on Burundi was indeed harsh; it further paralysed the already war-torn economy (Khadiagala 2003; Kamungi et al. 2005). This raises the question of how the Buyoya government managed to withstand the pressure of one of the most comprehensive sanction regimes since the end of the Cold War. In addition to sanction-busting activities, the regime launched a vocal campaign against the sanctions that (1) helped it to lobby for exemptions, (2) contributed to it regaining some international legitimacy so that the international donor community renewed its engagement, and (3) shifted the blame for economic problems to the embargo.
On the other hand, Buyoya eventually engaged in the kind of regionally mediated unconditional negotiations with all parties to the conflict that he had previously rejected. According to the assessment of several scholars, the sanctions contributed significantly to reviving the peace process because of their severe economic consequences (Ndikumana 2000; Lemarchand 2001: 91; Maundi 2003: 341). However, the fact that the regime agreed to the Arusha negotiations when the sanctions' economic impact had withered casts doubt on this interpretation. This paper argues that the controversies surrounding the sanctions shaped political contestation between the Buyoya government and the political...