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Rwandan Genocide

The Rwandan Genocide, which began on April 6, 1994, was a mass slaughter of the Tutsi population by the Hutu majority, triggered by the assassination of President Habyarimana. Over 800,000 Tutsi were killed in a span of 100 days, with the Rwandan Patriotic Front eventually defeating the Hutu forces and taking power. Global responses were largely ineffective, with major powers failing to intervene despite awareness of the atrocities.

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14 views10 pages

Rwandan Genocide

The Rwandan Genocide, which began on April 6, 1994, was a mass slaughter of the Tutsi population by the Hutu majority, triggered by the assassination of President Habyarimana. Over 800,000 Tutsi were killed in a span of 100 days, with the Rwandan Patriotic Front eventually defeating the Hutu forces and taking power. Global responses were largely ineffective, with major powers failing to intervene despite awareness of the atrocities.

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melly620000
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Rwandan Genocide

Context and Information


Background
● A small country with an overwhelmingly
agricultural economy
● Part of German East Africa from 1894 to 1918
● Ethnic Groups include the Hutu (85%), Tutsi
(14%), and the Twa (1%)
● Belgium considered Tutsi to be superior when
they colonized Rwanda
● Tutsi ruled until around 1962 where power
shifted to Hutu
Pressures Increase
● Hutu blamed Tutsi for social and
economic pressures
● Tutsi were assumed to be
supporters of the rebel group RPF
(Rwandan Patriotic Front)
● Racial tensions resulted from cruel
treatment towards the Hutu during
Tutsi rule
Genocide
● On April 6, 1994, President
Habyarimana’s plane was shot
down
● Immediately afterwards, the Hutu
began a genocide against the
Tutsi under the guise of war
● Political opponents to the
genocide or those with the power
to stop it were immediately
murdered
Genocide (continued)
● Tutsi people or those suspected to
be Tutsi were brutally murdered and
mutilated
● Entire families were murdered at a
time
● Women were systematically raped
and then killed
● Genocide was started by Hutu elite
to consolidate power
Numbers
● 200,000 people participated in the
genocide
● 800,000 Tutsi had died in the
weeks following the president’s
plane being shot down
● ¾ of the Tutsi population were
murdered
● Radios called on people to murder
their neighbors
Rwandan Patriotic Front
● Tutsi-dominated rebel force
● Opposed Hutu rule
● Won many battles with little
opposition during the genocide
● Saved tens of thousands of people
from the genocide
● Killed thousands of civilians and
government troops alike
● Defeated Hutu 100 days after April
6 and put president Paul Kagame
into power
Global Reactions
● The UN, France, Belgium, and the
US were aware of the massive
slaughter
● Refused to take action to stop it
● Refused to acknowledge the mass
killings and refused to call it a
“genocide”
● Eventual weak protests did nothing
to slow the murders
Memorial
● Kigali Genocide Memorial works in
remembrance of the Tutsi
genocide and provides information
on it
● 3 exhibitions: The 1994 Genocide
Against the Tutsi, The Wasted
Lives, and the Children’s Room
Citations
http://www.unitedhumanrights.org/genocide/genocide_in_rwanda.htm

https://www.hrw.org/reports/1999/rwanda/Geno15-8-03.htm

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