The Rwandan Genocide A Civil War Between the Hutus and the Tutsis

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The Rwandan GenocideA Civil War Between the
Hutus and the Tutsis
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Genocide

• Between April and June of 1994, an estimated
  800,000 Rwandans, from the group known as Tutsis,
  were killed in the span of 100 days.

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This is their story
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Who were the Hutus?Who were the Tutsis?
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Who are the Hutus Tutsis

• The Hutus and Tutsis are two groups of people
  that settled in present day Rwanda close to
  two-thousand years ago.
• Some scientists believe the Tutsis migrated from
  present day Ethiopia.
• Over time they worked together and united.
• They developed a single language (Kinyarwanda)
  and one set of religious and philosophical
  beliefs.

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Long ago, Rwanda and Burundi were one nation. The
Hutu and Tutsi lived here.
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Working Together

• The Hutus and Tutsis were cultivators and raised
  livestock.
• With fertile soil and regular rainfall, the
  region where the Hutus and Tutsis lived
  eventually became the most densely populated
  nation on the entire African continent.

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A Division Begins

• In the 18th century, when Rwanda emerged as a
  powerful and populous nation, its rulers began to
  measure their power in the number of their
  cattle.

• The Tutsi were rich in cattle. They were the
  elite and ruling class.
• On the other hand, the Hutu had less livestock
  and less power.

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Hutus vs. Tutsis

• The Hutus were the majority around 85. But
  they were considered commoners.
• The Tutsis were the minority around 14. But
  they were considered the elite, ruling class
  because of their large estates, large number of
  servants, and large number of cattle.

Tutsi 14
Hutu 85
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Marriage

• Although there were some families that
  intermarried, most Hutus married Hutus and most
  Tutsis married Tutsis.

• This impacted genetics and the way Hutus and
  Tutsis began to look.

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Physical Appearance

• Because the Hutus and Tutsis did not usually
  intermarry, their offspring began to develop
  similarities in their features.
• The Tutsis were often very tall, thin, with
  narrow features, and fair skin.
• The Hutus were often shorter, stronger, with
  broader features, and darker skin.

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This is a picture from the movie Hotel
Rwanda.The man on the right, plays a Hutu
character. The woman on the left, plays a Tutsi
character.
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Colonization

• The Germans were the first Europeans to colonize
  Rwanda.
• They did so in the early 1900s.
• The Germans helped to fight off other countries
  that wanted to attack Rwanda (the Hutus and
  Tutsis). This helped to protect Rwanda and make
  it strong.

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Colonization Continued

• After WWI, the United Nations decided that
  Germany could no longer rule Rwanda.
• The country was now under the safeguards of the
  United Nations, and it was to be governed by
  Belgium.

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Belgium Brings Further Division

• Belgium decided to use the class system (that
  had already been put into place) to their
  advantage.

• The Belgians favored the Tutsis and gave them
  privileges and western-style education.

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Why did the Belgians do this?

• The Belgians did this because they could control
  Rwanda easier this way.
• The Belgians also favored the Tutsis because they
  appeared more European in their tall, slender
  features. They discriminated against the Hutus
  because they appeared less European.

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How do you think the Hutus felt about this?How
do you think the Tutsis felt about this?
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Identification Cards

• After creating laws that gave special privileges
  to the Tutsi, the Belgians ran into a problem
  how could they be sure who was a Tutsi and who
  was a Hutu?
• Physical characteristics identified some, but not
  all.
• The solution Have every single citizen register
  and carry an identification card.

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What if you had no proof?

• If you could not give proof of your ancestry, the
  Belgians would simply measure your height and
  other features.

• If you appeared more European, they listed you
  has a Tutsi.
• If your features were shorter, darker, stronger,
  etc. they listed you has a Hutu.

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• Soon the Hutus got tired of this discrimination.
• What do you think they did?

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PARMEHUTU

• The Party for the Emancipation of the Hutus is
  formed in 1959. It is called Parmehutu.
• Hutus rebelled against the Belgian colonial power
  and the Tutsi elite.
• 150,000 Tutsis flee to Burundi (which at the time
  was part of Rwanda).

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Belgium Leaves

• In the 1960s Belgium withdraws from Rwanda.
• Rwanda and Burundi split into two different
  countries.

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The Hutus fight the Tutsis

• Still angry at being repressed and discriminated
  against for so many years, the Hutus fight the
  Tutsis.
• Many Tutsis are massacred, and many flee Rwanda.

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Igniting Violence

• A well-known Hutu leader, Dr. Leon Mugesera
  appeals to the Hutus to send the Tutsis back to
  Ethiopia via the rivers.
• Other Hutus said that they needed to clean up the
  filth and kill the Tutsi cockroaches.

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Negotiations Aug. 1993

• Following months of negotiations, President
  Habyarimana (a Hutu President) and the RPF
  (Rwanda Patriotic Front) sign a peace accord that
  calls for a return of Tutsi refugees.
• 2,500 United Nations troops are deployed to
  Kigali to oversee the peace accord.

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Will there be peace?

• Despite a peace accord, the Rwandan president
  stalls in created a unified government in which
  the power is shared.
• At the same time, training of militias and
  violence intensifies.
• An extremist radio station, Radio Mille Collines,
  begins to warn it is almost time for us to cut
  down the tall trees. This was code for, it is
  almost time to kill all of the Tutsis.

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WARNING!

• Human rights groups warn the international
  community of an impending genocide.
• In March of 1994, the human rights groups are
  forced to flee Rwanda due to the impending
  calamity. Only the Red Cross stays behind.

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The U.N. Leaves

• The U.N. is forced to leave for a variety of
  reasons, including increased violence in Rwanda
  and world tensions following a crisis that
  occurred in Somalia.

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GENOCIDE
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A Day that will Live in Infamy

• April 6, 1994 President Habyarimana and the
  president of Burundi, Cyprien Ntaryamira, are
  shot down in a plane and killed.
• No one knows who shot down the presidents plane.
  There are theories that the Hutus did this and
  there are theories that the Tutsis did this.
• That night the genocide begins.

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The Genocide

• The Hutu militia, at one point 30,000 people
  strong, slaughtered any Tutsi that came in their
  path.
• They encouraged regular Hutu civilians to do the
  same.
• In some cases, Hutus were forced to kill their
  Tutsi neighbors.

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The Death Toll

• In the span of 100 days, an estimated 800,000
  Tutsis were slaughtered.
• They were killed primarily with knives, machetes,
  and clubs.
• 100,000 of these were children.

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Where was the help?

• While the genocide was going on, the world sat
  back and watched.
• No troops or aide was sent by the Americans or
  any other country.
• The victims were left screaming for help, but no
  one came.

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An End to the Genocide

• By July, the RPF (a Tutsi organization) captured
  the city of Kigali. The government collapsed and
  the RPF declared a cease-fire.
• As soon as it became apparent to the Hutus that
  the Tutsis were victorious, close to 2 million
  fled to Zaire (now the Republic of Congo)

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A New Government

• On July 19 a new multi-ethnic government was
  formed, promising all refugees a safe return to
  Rwanda.
• Pasteur Bizimungu, a Hutu, was inagurated as
  president, while the majority of cabinet posts
  were assigned to Tutsis.

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Justice for Genocide

• The new government of Rwanda continues to seek
  justice for the innocent murder of close to a
  million people.
• Many people have been tried in court and found
  guilty of war crimes.
• 500 have been put to death for their war crimes,
  and another 100,000 are still in prison!!!

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What does the future hold for Rwanda?Only time
will tell.
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Works Cited

• Human Rights Watch Publications
• Leave None to Tell the Story Genocide in
  Rwanda http//www.hrw.org/reports/1999/rwanda/Gen
  o1-3-09.htmP200_83746
• BBC News
• Rwanda How a Genocide Happened
  http//news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/1288230.st
  m
• PBS Frontline
• Timeline Rwanda A Chronology of Key Events
• http//pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/rwanda/e
  tc/cron.html