The 1994 genocide in Rwanda took place on the 7th of April, a day after the aircraft carrying the Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana and Cyprien Ntaryamira, president of neighboring Burrundi was shot down. The 7th of April 1994 saw a succession of massacres across Rwanda. In 100 days, this state-led extermination campaign targeted at the Tutsi minority and “moderate Hutus” was orchestrated by specific, influential architects -Hutu hardliners of the Habyarimana’s inner circle. This power clique was accountable for the systematic annihilation of Rwanda’s Tutsi minority, an approximate of over half a million civilian lives.
Although there are numerous misleading accounts of the genocide that are constructed on the notion that the
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Pre-colonial Rwanda operated under a monarchical political system, controlled by the Tutsis. The terms Hutu and Tutsi originated from the social and economic distinction between farming and animal husbandry. In general, Tutsis were pastoralists of higher social standing, whilst Hutus were famers of lower social status; the categories were not determined and had variation within. If a Hutu acquired enough cattle, they could become Tutsi and vice versa . Due to German, and later Belgian, colonisers developed a structure of categories for different “tribes” that functioned of aesthetic impressions. In the 1930s, Belgian colonial officers introduced identity cards that labeled Rwadans according to their ethnicity. The colonisers had an impact on the manner in which power was allocated in the colonial system. Belgian colonisers practiced indirect rule through the Tutsis, whilst treating them as a superior race, in the process cementing Tutsi dominance and increasing the arbitrariness and repression of local rule. In essence, under colonial rule, “race” became the central determinant of power; and consequently, “race” became a symbol of oppression. After World War II, Belgian withered under the newly established United Nations and thus introduced reforms that increased Hutu political representation. Henceforth seeing a new Hutu political class emerge and instigating the
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.
In 1994, genocide unfolded in Rwanda claiming the lives of more than 700,000 Tutsi massacred at the hands of Hutu extremist, while the entire world stood by and watched. Some would argue this event was a result of civil unrest between the Tutsi and Hutu stemming from ancient
This caused the Belgian colonists to feel frightened because they did not want to lose power in Rwanda, due to how Rwanda helped Belgian’s gain imperialism.14 By the mid 1950’s Belgian colonists decided to favour the Hutus, so the Belgian government can take back some power from Tutsis.15 This decision made by the Belgian government only made things worse in Rwanda as the Hutus (who make up 85% of Rwanda’s population) overthrew the Tutsi and Belgian government. In the 1959 Presidential election in Rwanda, the Hutus elected Greg wa Kayabanada, who then used the same method of controlling Rwanda as the Belgian colonists once did.16 Kayabanda used the identity discrimination but this time it was against the Tutsis. The Tutsis were now denied higher education, ownership of land, and positions in the
In 1910 the European governments agreed to give Germany control of the regions of Rwanda and neighbor Burundi. Germany indirectly ruled using the already established hierarchy of the wealthy and Elite Tutsi at the top with the peasant Hutu at the bottom. The Tutsi used their German ally to crush the Hutu in the north, who had managed to live freely of the Tutsi leadership. Germany then used its power over Rwanda to collect taxes in the form of money. This forced Rwanda to start planting cash crops, such as coffee, rather than plant crops of food and consumption. In addition, it was during early colonialism that racial divide began to grow in the form of physical characteristics. Many early colonists of Rwanda believed and said that the Tutsi were European like, and less savage as their darker skinned African brothers. This led to ridiculous and humiliating practices such as measurement of skull size, and the saying that Tutsi were more light skinned and must have descended from Ethiopia. This continued for 4 years, and then WW1 started on July 28th, 1914. It was during WW1 that the Belgians gained control of Rwanda and Burundi from the Germans. It was after the war in 1923 when the world government of the time (League of Nations) mandated Rwanda and Burundi under Belgian colonialism. The Belgians were no more benevolent then their successor. During this time
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
This investigation studies two of the causes of the 1994 genocide of Rwanda. The two causes are examined in order to see to what extent each contributed to the genocide. The social and ethnic conflicts between two Rwandan groups called the Hutus and the Tutsis caused violent disputes and riots. The assassination of President Juvenal Habyarimana is often thought of as the event that sparked the mass murders. Did the assassination of President Juvenal Habyarimana influence the Rwandan genocide of 1994 more than the ongoing social and ethnic conflicts?
“The true cause of the Rwandan Genocide was the negative influence of the European colonists on the relationship of the Hutus and Tutsis.” European colonists greatly aggravated relations between the Tutsi and the Hutu and indirectly caused the Rwandan Genocide. When the Tutsi people first came to Rwanda, they “impressed their power” upon the Hutu. And by the 15th century, the Tutsi had absolute rule over the Hutu, despite making up less than 15 percent of the population. They continued to successfully rule for centuries. Although the relationship between the Tutsi and the Hutu was strained, they were relatively “civil” towards each other until the late 19th century. This is about the time that the European colonial powers came in and worsened problems between the Hutu and the Tutsi. German colonists, who first arrived in
In 1994, over the course of 100 days, a genocide in Rwanda took the lives of 800,000 innocent men, women, and children and displaced 2 million more. The genocide was a result of tension that had been building since the Belgium colonization of Rwanda in 1916 between two ethnic group, the Hutus and the Tutsis. When Belgium colonized Rwanda, power was given to the Tutsis (an ethnic group in Rwanda that was 15% of the population) who became the privileged minority, whereas the Hutus (another ethnic group in Rwanda that was 85% of the population) became the working class majority. As the years progressed, the signs of inequality intensified. Tutsis were given priority in terms of education, jobs and power. There was even an identity card system created to differentiate between Hutus and Tutsis. The inequality and unfair treatment came to a boiling point and spilled over into a revolution in Rwanda in 1959. The result was a transition from Tutsi controlled Rwanda to a Hutu elected government. 70% of the Tutsi population was killed and the majority fled to neighbouring countries. For the next 5 years the displaced Tutsis’ made unsuccessful attempts to re-take the country, the result of which was the killing of roughly 10 000 Tutsi 's in Rwanda by the Hutu government as an act of revenge. For the next 30 years a negative peace ensued, but below the surface tensions continued to rise, finally erupting in the spring of 1994 with
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).
In 1994, Rwanda’s population was made up of three ethnic groups, the Hutus, the Tutsi, and the Twas. Hutu extremists blamed the Tutsi for their country’s social, economic, and political problems. Because of this, The Hutu extremists decided to kill the Tutsi and the Hutus who were opposed to the extremists. “In the early 1990s, hutu extremists within Rwanda’s political elite blamed the entire Tutsi minority population for the country’s increasing social, economic, and political pressures.” This shows that human rights are being violated because one ethnic group decided to blame a minority population for their country’s growing problems. The extremists decided they wanted control back and because of this they felt it was justified to kill as
When Belgium took control of Rwanda in 1916 the Hutu’s and the Tutsi’s had a slight differentiation of the ethnic groups, the Hutu’s were farmers and the Tutsi’s were cattle herders. Though they both spoke the same language and had similar traditions. The Tutsi were seen as a higher class of people, only because it took more money to buy cattle, but it was possible to have upward movement in society through changes in jobs or through intermarriage (Jones).
Rwanda was a Belgian colony until 1962. Under Belgian rule the Tutsis were favored over the Hutus for several reasons. Traditionally, the Tutsis were the nation's landowners. Physically, they were taller and, to the Belgians, they also had a
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
The turmoil started in 1916 when Belgians produced identity cards classifying people according to their ethnicity (“Rwandan Genocide Facts” 1). Since the Belgians considered the Tutsis to be superior, the Tutsis embraced this idea and enjoyed better opportunities than the Hutus for a number of years
The Belgians took more control over the governing of the region than had the Germans. The Mwami’s power was weakened , but the Tutsi power over Hutus was solidified, with Hutus being made laborers and Tutsis given administrative jobs . The differences between the two groups became more pronounced, even to the point where native people were given racial identity cards in 1933, identifying each individual as Hutu, Tutsi, or Twa (a small hunter-gatherer group that occupied the Ruanda-Urundi region before the Hutu). , This sparked animosity between the two groups.