He is the son of Esther Aline (née Lowndes-Moir), a writer on religion, and Rev.d Dr Victor de Waal, Dean of Canterbury from 1976 to 1986.
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The following year he joined the Africa division of Human Rights Watch, only to resign in December 1992 in protest for HRW's support for the American military involvement in Somalia.
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His siblings include barrister John de Waal, ceramic artist and writer Edmund de Waal, and Caucasus expert Thomas de Waal.
Dowden is part of the Editorial Board of African Affairs, the Journal of the Royal African Society, and together with Alex de Waal, coordinates African Arguments, a series of short books and a blog about Africa today.
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