The 1994 Rwandan Genocide: The Hutu v. The Tutsi

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1 The 1994 Rwandan Genocide: The Hutu v. The Tutsi Katlyn Burmeister Professor Stratton January 2016 Research Assignment #4: In 1994, the Rwandan genocide, what some call the worst genocide in recorded history, occurred in Rwanda, Africa. Over the course of one year, over one million people were killed as a result of this mass genocide. [1] Within the last year there has been a reoccurring issue in which certain people have been denying that the events of the genocide have ever occurred. Through the use of propaganda films and other mediums of the sort, deniers are manipulating how people view and what they believe really happened during the Rwandan genocide. [2] Genocide, as most know, is a very serious crime involving the mass killing of a specific group of people, and it greatly affects not only those lost, but the families of loved ones and leaves communities shaken. Genocide denial isn t new, it has been seen after previous genocides including perhaps the most well-known: the holocaust. However, the struggle against genocide denial is still very real and still impacting victims and their families in Rwanda. This specific genocide dealt with the Hutu and Tutsi tribes within Rwanda fighting over ethnic inequality within the country s government. The Tutsi minority had, in the past, dominated Rwandan government and engaged in a long struggle spanning decades, with the Hutu majority over reign of the country. The struggle between the Hutu and the Tutsi was long ignored until the genocide in 1994, and instead left for the two groups to work out between one another. However, the big issues between the two hadn t previously existed until colonialism when Germany created tensions between them. Then, when Belgium stepped in and the Hutu and Tutsi formed their separate independent movements, the ethnic tensions between the tribes led to the first violent outburst which catalyzed into even more violence after Rwanda gained formal independence. The social structure that caused a strained relationship between the Hutu and the Tutsi, and eventually the 1994 Rwanda genocide, is directly related to colonialism and decolonization and could have been prevented. For this reason, genocide denial for the tragedy has grown and remains a current issue. The beginning of the genocide is traced back to the colonial period in which Germany, and later Belgium held colonial rule over Rwanda. Prior to Rwanda being colonized, the Hutu and the Tutsi held good relationships with no major issues between the two groups. When Germany came into Rwanda in 1890, they immediately started making changes to the social structure which created major distinctions between the Hutu and Tutsi and ultimately turned the two against each other. [3] 1 / 5

2 The Tutsi minority was considered elite or superior in the eyes of the Germans due the tribe s history as dominating precolonial royalty in Rwanda, and members of the Tutsi were then appointed as the local administrators, removing the current primarily-hutu administration. The Tutsi were continuously treated better than the Hutu majority and were forced to oppress the Hutu themselves, treating them as lesser people, which sparked tension. [4] During World War I, colonial power over the region was transferred to Belgium from Germany, and Belgium continued where Germany had left off. Over time, Belgium started to change its allegiance from the Tutsi, to the Hutu, which urged the Tutsi to push for decolonization even more than before, before the Hutu took over Rwandan politics. The Hutus formed PARMEHUTU (Hutu Emancipation Party), and created their own form of independence movement against the Tutsi. Rather than fighting for independence from colonial power, the Hutus were fighting for independence from the Tutsis within the colony. By 1959, the first major violent attack between the Hutu and Tutsi occurred and July 1, 1962, Rwanda was granted formal independence from Belgium. [5] Over the course of the next few decades, tensions continuously increased between the Hutu and Tutsi and eventually resulted in the 1994 genocide. In the 1960s, Hutu oppression towards the Tutsi and the number of attacks made against them increased. Around 200,000 Tutsi fled Rwanda as refugees to surrounding countries and about 20,000 Tutsi lost their lives as a result of oppression and discrimination The Tutsi rebels, or inyenzi, attacked back during this time period with the most successful attack made in 1963 outside Kigali, the Rwandan capital. However, many Tutsi were killed as a result. [6] In a January 1964 edition of The Times, a London Correspondent wrote to the public to inform them of the executive meeting taking place in Geneva relating to the issue of the rise in Rwandan refugees in places such as the Congo and Burundi. In the paper, the correspondent wrote that the executive committee of the United Nations High Commissioner s program for refugees had gathered so Mr. Thomas Jamieson, the director of the program, could tell and discuss with the committee what was going on near and within Rwanda after he had just came back from visiting the area [7]. Jamieson reportedly went to the area to observe the areas with refugees after he had heard that Tutsi refugees had attacked Rwanda. At the time, an estimated 22,000 Tutsi refugees had taken refuge in the United Nations centers, and it was believed that most of them had taken part in the attack. However, when Jamieson went, he claimed that everything appeared fine and the UN was making plans to assist the refugees [8]. At the time, many mixed reports were being made as to what was going on in Rwanda and what would be done about it. Authorities in surrounding areas were reporting problems with the large influx of Rwandan refugees, the United Nations High Commissioner s office was receiving relatively large volumes of refugees a day, yet nothing was being done. Though it was known that hundreds were killed and/or were being killed, and even with reports from two United Nations officials that genocidal activity was occurring within Rwanda, many, including the High Commissioner himself, believed the killings were being exaggerated and not occurring to the extent people living in the area were claiming [9]. From the beginnings of the origin of the 1994 genocide, action was not being taken where it should, or it was being done in the wrong ways, and people tried to deny the violence, and ultimately the genocide, 2 / 5

3 even with valid evidence. From 1967 to 1973, violence against the remaining Tutsi was halted after the inyenzi invasions stopped. In 1973, the PARMEHUTU regime came to a close and President Kayibanda was overthrown after northern Rwandans were tired of the southern regime being favored over the north. The cousin of the previous president, President Habyarimana took over and for the 17 years that followed, ethnic violence was ended in Rwanda, as he had promised. However, discrimination was not eliminated in the region. The Hutu that came from the president s home region were favored over the rest of the population, leaving the majority of Rwanda ignored and neglected. The country thrived and the president protected the Tutsi, but he refused to allow any Tutsi refugees back into the country and administered quotas to the Tutsi for government-controlled programs. [10] By the 1980s, the president was no longer as strong as he was in the beginning, and his authority began to be challenged. President Habyarimana was informed that the Ugandan army was primarily full of Tutsi refugees and an attack was being planned against Rwanda, which urged the president to push for a series of reforms in Many at the time believed the president s democracy and refugee reforms were insincere, and in October of 1990 the Tutsi refugees invaded from Uganda. After the invasion, President Habyarimana had all Tutsi whom worked in politics at the capital of Kigali taken into custody and Tutsi massacres all over Rwanda were once again permitted. As violence broke out, troops from three countries: France, Belgium, and Zaire, were sent in to intervene against the rebels. After the rebels withdrew back into Uganda, Belgium and Zaire withdrew their troops, though France stayed for a few years. [11] Between 1990 and 1993, the president felt military, political, and economic pressure between the Tutsi rebel troops, Western countries, and Hutu within Rwanda. Eventually, in August 1993, the president agreed to grant the rebels (comprised of the Rwandan Patriotic Front, aka Tutsi rebels, and domestic Hutu opposition forces) seats in the cabinet and legislature, as well as officer positions and enlisted ranks in the army. The Hutu elite were extremely unhappy with this, and became worried. Near the end of 1993, UN peacekeepers took the place of French troops which further terrified the elites as they lost the French whom helped them fight back against the rebels. President Habyarimana then used persuasion and fear tactics to get the domestic Hutu in alliance with the Tutsi rebels on his side to form the pan-hutu and allow him to keep his power. The Hutu agreed, scared the Tutsi were using them to take over the country for themselves, or that the Tutsi would get rid of them as soon as their goals were reached. Hutu and Tutsi political tension continued to build until April 1994 when the president s plane was shot down and he was killed. The Tutsi were quickly blamed and genocide against the Tutsi would soon commence. [12] After President Habyarimana was killed, Prime Minister Agathe Uwilingiyama was appointed, but she was killed the next day in her home by militia forces. Thirteen Belgian peacekeepers were also captured and killed, which forced Belgium to withdrawal, just as the militia had wanted. The Rwandan Patriotic Front (aka RPF, the rebels) then pushed back into the north, which was then owned by the Tutsi, and war between the Hutu and Tutsi began again. For three months, the RPF fought its way down south, taking full control of Kigali, Butare, Ruhengiri, and more. By July 18 th, the rebels declared victory. [13] As the rebels traveled through Rwanda, a final solution against 3 / 5

4 the Tutsi was set in place by the Coalition for the Defense of the Republic, a political party established in All over the country, Tutsi were being gathered and killed in masses. Officials asked neighboring Hutu to identify Tutsi, and violently murdered them if they chose not to release their names. The identification cards of each citizen were also used to determine ones ethnicity. As Tutsi began to search refuge in churches, they were killed off in high volumes and dumped in the Kagera River. Violent torture tactics were used to kill Tutsi of all ages, with a total death toll somewhere around one million, and thousands of Tutsi in surrounding countries as refugees. [14] Conclusion: How the origins and events of the Rwandan genocide can teach us how to prevent major issues like this in the future. [1] Keep Up Fight Against Genocide Denial, The New Times, April 06, 2015, (Accessed January 12, 2016). [2] The New Times, April 06, [3] Alan J. Kuperman, The Limits of Humanitarian Intervention: Genocide in Rwanda (Washington, D.C.: Brookings Institution Press, 2001), pp [4] Kuperman, The Limits of Humanitarian Intervention: Genocide in Rwanda, 2001, pp. 6. [5] Kuperman, The Limits of Humanitarian Intervention: Genocide in Rwanda, 2001, pp. 6-7.; Bruce D. Jones, Civil Wars in Africa: Roots and Resolution (London: McGill-Queen s University Press, 1999), pp.57. [6] Kuperman, The Limits of Humanitarian Intervention: Genocide in Rwanda, 2001, pp. 7. [7] Genocide Charge in Rwanda, The Times, January 24, Accessed February 24, [8] The New Times, January 24, [9] The New Times, January 24, [10] Kuperman, The Limits of Humanitarian Intervention: Genocide in Rwanda, 2001, pp [11] Kuperman, The Limits of Humanitarian Intervention: Genocide in Rwanda, 2001, pp [12] Kuperman, The Limits of Humanitarian Intervention: Genocide in Rwanda, 2001, pp ; Bruce D. Jones, Civil Wars in Africa: Roots and Resolution, 1999, pp. 61,76. [13] Bruce D. Jones, Civil Wars in Africa: Roots and Resolution, 1999, pp / 5

5 Powered by TCPDF ( Spring 2016 [14] Bruce D. Jones, Civil Wars in Africa: Roots and Resolution, 1999, pp Geographic focus: Rwanda, Africa, Burundi, Uganda. Search Terms: Genocide, Rwanda, Tutsi, Hutu, roots. Primary Source Database: Search It Primary Source Search Date Limiter: 1959 (when large-scale violence between the Hutu and Tutsi first began) 1973 (PARMEHUTU regime days). Historical Research Questions: Though violence had been known to be raging between the tribes of the Hutu and Tutsi for decades, why didn t any major forces, such as the U.S. or European forces, step in to help put a quick end to the killings and conflict? 5 / 5