Rwanda During The Colonial Era

The socio/cultural cause of the genocide in Rwanda came from the German and Belgian colonization, bringing along with them an idea of social science. Both colonial powers reinforced the Tutsi’s political power, which further oppressed the Hutus. This reinforcement caused the Hutus to envy the Tutsi’s aristocracy because they were privileged to all things, while the Hutus were privileged to nothing (Kapuscinski). This oppression led to many Hutu revolutions that the Hutus were successful in over the unprepared Tutsis. These victories of the Tutsis incidentally reversed the Rwandan apartheid system. The reversion of the system then gave

For years, Rwanda has been a hotbed of racial tension. The majority of the Rwandan population is made up of Hutu's, with Tutsi's making up the rest of it. Ever since European colonial powers entered the country and favoured the Tutsi ethnic group over the Hutu by putting Tutsi people in all important positions in society, there has been a decisive political divide between the two groups. This favouring of the Tutsi over the Hutu, and the Hutu subjugation as an ethnic lower class resulted in the civil war and revolution of 1959, where the Hutu overthrew the Tutsi dominated government, and resulted in Rwanda gaining their independence in 1962.

The two ethnic groups that were include in the Rwanda Genocide was the Tutsis and Hutus. The Tutsis were the minority population in Rwanda, but they held all the positions of authority. On the other hand, the Hutu made up around 85% of Rwanda’s population, but held no political power, they were denied higher education and land ownership. The size of the nose and the color of the eyes were the factors that determined whether a person was Hutu or Tutsi. The Tutsis disapprove of the colonial rule of the Belgians and demanded to become more independent. After World War II, the Tutsis felt impatient and that it was time they took matters in their own hands to pursuit their independence. In 1959, the tension and violence between the Tutsis and Hutus were greatly increased.

Rwanda is a country located in Central Eastern Africa, with an extensive history of colonization, after Belgium attained control in 1924. Belgium’s rule however also marked the beginning of a lengthy ethnic rivalry between the Hutu and the Tutsi people. Belgium favored the Tutsi the minority at 14 percent of the population over the Hutu, the majority at 85 percent, simply because the Tutsis were more resembling of the Europeans. “Colonial policy helped to intensify bipolar differentiation between Tutsi and Hutu, by inscribing “ethnic” identification on identity cards, by relegating the vast majority of Hutu to particularly onerous forms of forced cultivation and corvee, and by actively favoring Tutsi in access to administrative posts, education, and jobs in the modern sector,” (Newbury, 12). Belgium’s control fueled the Hutu’s resentment towards the Tutsis because the Tutsis received superior treatment for decades. Thus, when Rwanda finally acquired independence in 1962, the Hutus fought for control over the government, highlighting the first warning sign of the genocide to come. Many Tutsis were killed afterwards, while many others fled to neighboring countries to escape the violence.

The Tutsi tribe was historically seen as the ruling class of Rwanda while Hutu were considered farmer folk. Following World War I the Belgians were authoritarian rulers in the region, fueling further disputes between the Hutu

Under the power of Tutsi King Rwabugiri, ethnic differences were established when the King implemented a system in which, in return for labour, access to land was given. However, this system only applied to Hutu farmers and exempted Tutsi farmers (Eriksson, 1996). During the German colonization and later the Belgian trusteeship, the Tutsi were also favoured and viewed as superior (Eriksson, 1996). The Belgians increased the emphasis on the distinction of ethnic identity by issuing cards bearing the nationality designations of Rwandans (Klinghoffer, 1998). The colonisation by both Germany and Belgium contributed to an ethnic jealousy in Rwanda through treatment of the Tutsi (O’Halloran, 1995). The general decolonisation in Africa led to the Hutu revolution in which Rwanda underwent the transition from a Tutsi dominated monarchy to a Hutu led independent republic, which resulted in tens of thousands of Tutsi fleeing into exile (Eriksson, 1996).

Rwanda is divided into main two ethnic groups: the Hutu and the Tutsi, with the overwhelming majority being Hutu. Ethnic tensions in Rwanda date back in the late 1800s when The Berlin Conference assigned the territory to Germany. European colonists who traveled to Rwanda displayed typical scientific racism tendencies of the time. Convinced the Tutsi had migrated to Rwanda from Ethiopia and were therefore more Caucasian than the Hutu, they enforced notions that the Tutsi were racially superior to the Hutu and racialized the two groups. This led to the Hutu becoming a pariah group in Rwanda. Strong prejudice and discriminatory patterns began to emerge ad Tutsi supremacy continued into the

Before Rwanda became an independent African run country, it was under Belgian control. In the 1930s Belgium imposed indirect rule and put Tutsis in control of government. The Belgians did not invent the two ethnic groups, Hutu and Tutsi, but colonial intervention enforced a new meaning for the two ethnicities and thus engrained a hierarchy among the Rwandans . The Tutsis could be determined by their taller slighter build, lighter skin and thinner noses; in conclusion, they were the whitest Africans . By 1994 the two groups were visibly indistinguishable because of mixed parentage. This is portrayed in the movie Hotel Rwanda when a journalist asks two women what ethnicity they are; he discovers that one is Hutu and the other Tutsi. The journalist replies that the women could be twins. In the 1950s the newly established United Nations began to pressure Belgium to vacate Rwanda. Belgium introduced reforms to increase Hutu representation in politics, so from the 1950s until 1962, when Rwanda achieved independence a Hutu movement was born. The Hutu movement was gaining momentum and national recognition; the violence conducted during this period forced thousands of Tutsis to leave the country. In 1961 Belgium sponsored the federal election and a Hutu man, Gregoire Kayibanda was elected to power. This Hutu revolution excluded Tutsis from government and military. Kayibanda’s successor,

During the Rwandan genocide, it didn’t matter whether or not you have known someone for five years or fifteen years, in the end, you would be killed. In this time, many people who married Tutsis were targeted as well due to the fact that they were married or engaged. Even having a relationship even if it was not exclusive you were targeted for being interested in a Tutsi, who at the time were called cockroaches. Tutsis were identified by having lighter skin, lighter eyes, and thinner noses. They were also typically taller and thinner. Yet that doesn't make someone Tutsi or Hutu, yet back then if you had any of these traits you were considered a Tutsi even if you were really a Hutu. This racial segregation that was created led to many

Ethnicity has played a major role in the country since it was a kingdom in the 1800’s. During those times it did not pose much of a threat, the Hutu farmers and the Tutsi herders lived integrated lives. Both shared a place in government, lived together, and bore children together. This way of life was radically changed during the colonial era. Since the Europeans required delineation between superior and inferior people in order to impose indirect rule in their colony, segregation arose between the two peoples. Begun under German rule, but intensified by the Belgians, lineation lead to dislike and distrust between the people. This dislike and distrust lent itself to hatred after many laws were put onto the Hutu, eventually removing all capacity to have any power within the kingdom they once had influence in. This constant abuse formed during colonial rule caused a divide between the Hutu and Tutsi, which eventually caused the majority to rise against the minority, and eventually try and wipe them out for good during the genocide of 1994. The impacts of these events are still very present today, but progress is being done to bring trust back between the Hutu and the

According to the book Peacemaking in Rwanda, Hutus and Tutsis had prior hate towards one another due to “wealth, military prowess, family, and control over a precious commodity, or occupation of a prestigious social position.” (Jones, pg. 18) This meant at any time my children that Tutsis could become Hutus and Hutus could become Tutsis. Due to this my children, I come before to tell you never to hate your very own people. Clan lineage in Rwanda was were, power and status placed a role in the leading of the people as that determined who was a high authority amongst the different yet similar clans. While clan lineage played a role in who would lead the different clans, Rwanda before World War I was colonized by Germans. Sadly my kids, after World War I colonization moved on to the Belgium and this is was the day, when I saw my life flash before my eyes. The once peaceful Rwanda had changed within a day. When the Belgium came into power they “imposed on the contrary an intellectual and administrative simplification that equated “Tutsi’s” with “ruling class”.”(Jones, pg. 19) Throughout the Belgium ruling, Tutsis were the chosen ones to do all of the administrative work for the League of Nations Mandate. Due to this Belgium’s required for Tutsis to carry around cards that specifically showed and

It wasn 't until Europeans came to colonize the zone that the expressions "Tutsi" and "Hutu" tackled a racial part. During these time, Belgium colonists believed that Tutsi’s had more European physical futures and where in this manner a more prevalent race. Furthermore, the Belgium’s distributed identity cards which stated whether you were of Hutu or a Tutsi ethnicity. Tutsi’s welcomed the Belgium’s idea and for a prolonged timeframe were given better social, economical and political opportunities, such as higher political voice, better job opportunists, and better education. Despite the fact that Hutus consisted of the vast majority of the population compared to Tutsis.

In Rwanda, the Hutu has come into much conflict since the 1990s. As the Germans and the Belgians colonized Rwanda, the favoritism of the colonizers created great ethnic divides within the country. These partitions ultimately became so profound that a violent genocide took place, turning countrymen against each other. The Congo was a nearby place for the violence between the Hutu and Tutsi to continue, while also becoming an important economic factor to the wealth of other nations. The colonization, genocide, and conflicts in the Congo all contributed to the major issue of racial segregation faced by the modern Hutus.

For the Rwandan genocide, there was always tension and hatred present between the Hutus and Tutsis. Contrary to the Armenians and Ottomans however, they were similar in many fields such as their language and traditions. In 1916, Belgian colonists classified the residents with identity cards according to their ethnicity. The Tutsis were considered superior over the Hutus, which sparked obvious hatred from the inferior Hutus. “Resentment among the Hutus gradually built up, culminating in a series of riots in 1959. More than 20,000 Tutsis were killed.” (Rwanda: How the genocide happened) Killings of Rwandans occurred even before the genocide. In 1962, as soon as the Belgium granted Rwanda independence, the Hutus took this opportunity to swoop in and replace them. The Hutus’ natural hatred towards the Tutsis and overpowering presence made them the perfect targets/suspects to be guilty of wrongdoings. Their build up of previous controversies played a significant role in giving themselves the right to believe that whatever horrible actions are inflicted upon the Tutsis are necessary and justified. Although some moderate Hutus were also victims of the genocide, the majority were potentially the Tutsis because of the Hutu regime’s claim that the Tutsis are the ones that should be wiped out completely. For the Holocaust during World War II, there was prior discrimination from the

In the era of colonialism, European authorities all cynically insisted that they acted to promote such higher commitments entitled the "white man's burden,” a vital aspect claimed to be in their national interest and of prodigious importance. Yet when these global and transnational forces increasingly usurp the power of states, in order to determine their own fiscal policies, newfangled ideologies spread, and eventually rivals spur in conflict and tragedies befall. Such a case was found in the dramatic fallout of the Rwandan Genocide. The root of the carnage is entwined in the European colonialism in Rwanda; where the hunger for power and land lied in Belgium colonist’s interest. Ultimately, upon their unwanted arrival, European colonists