About Rwanda

In 1994, almost a million people were killed in 100 days of violence in Rwanda. However, the genocide did not occur in a vacuum. When the colonial power, Belgium, departed in 1961, it left behind a system of racial classification and favouritism that set one group against the other. The Belgians divided the population into Hutu (80%) and Tutsi (15-18%) with a small number of ethnic Twa people. Identity cards stated racial background, and Tutsi were excluded from education, the government and many types of employment. From 1959 onwards, Tutsi were attacked and massacred in growing numbers. Many fled to neighbouring countries and some formed a small rebel militia in exile, the Rwandan Patriotic Army.

Extremist groups in the majority Hutu population were trained and armed by the French government of Francois Mitterand during Operation Turquois, from 1990 onwards. France supported Francophone Hutu politicians against the Anglophone Tutsi, fearing it would loose its power in Africa should Rwanda slip out of its sphere of influence.

In April 1994 extremists wanted to stop a power-sharing arrangement, imposed by the United Nations. When the then-president of Rwandan was killed when his plane was shot down on his way home from power-sharing negotiations, the attack was blamed on Tutsi. However it is believed that it was instead the Hutu militia, the Interahamwe, who were responsible for the crash and the president’s death, and that this was the pre-arranged signal for groups of Interahamwe around the country to start killing Tutsi and moderate Hutu. Although the names of the victims had been on the Interahamwe’s lists for months, if not years, ordinary Rwandans were spurred on to join in the killing by provocative propaganda broadcasts from the Hutu power radio station, Radio Mille Collines. The propaganda developed and played on latent hatred, borne from years of discrimination against the Hutu. Hutu who showed reluctance to participate were themselves killed. Tutsi were stopped at roadblocks or seized in their homes and slaughtered, mostly with machetes. The international community withdrew its own citizens and chose not to even discuss the genocide at the United Nations.

The Rwandan rebels in exile, the Rwanda Patriotic Army, invaded and swept across the country, defeating the Interahamwe. Hundreds of thousands of Hutu, including those who had masterminded and participated in the genocide, fled to Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo). Many remained there in camps, provoking a regional destabilisation that still causes immense violence in eastern DRC.

The Rwandan Patriotic Army, under the leadership of Paul Kagame, formed a government with representatives of all communities and began to rebuild the country, holding regular elections. More than 100,000 people charged with genocide crimes remain in prison in Rwanda. A system of locally based courts called gacaca (literally “on the grass”) have attempted to handle the huge backlog of cases. While there is recognition that survivors need to see justice done, many responsible for the killing remain free, due to lack of resources to imprison hundreds of thousands of participants. This caused untold misery to survivors. Rwanda is now one of the safest countries in Africa, but reconciliation has been far harder to achieve while events of 1994 are so fresh in people’s memories.

For an easily-digestible explanation of the genocide, and the lack of response from the international community, read Romeo Dallaire’s, “Shake Hands With The Devil” (soon to be released as a film). For a more thorough examination of France’s involvement, read Andrew Wallis’s book, “Silent Accomplice –the untold story of France’s role in the Rwandan genocide”. For the most authoritative view of the international response (or lack of response) including how the United Nations avoided even discussing the genocide as it happened, read Linda Melvern’s books “A People Betrayed” and “Conspiracy To Murder”. For an in-depth look at what occurred day by day during the genocide, read the Human Rights Watch report by Rwanda-expert, Alison Des Forges, “Leave None To Tell The Story”. Also recommended is Paul Rusesabagina’s book, “An Ordinary Man”, the basis of the film, “Hotel Rwanda”. For an overview of why the international community does nothing about genocide, read Samantha Power’s book, “A Problem From Hell”.