The Rwanda Genocide: Impact of Colonialism
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- Category: Politics: Political Science
- Date Submitted: 04/25/2011 07:36 PM
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The Rwandan Genocide: the Impact of colonialism in the deaths of thousands of Rwandans
There is no doubt that the Rwandan genocide is an example of the ugly history of colonialism. This genocide resulted in the blood shed of 500,000 people including children, elders and women[1]. There are three ethnic groups in Rwanda—Hutu, Tutsi and Twa[2]. The genocide happened due to the tension between two ethnic groups in Rwandan called “Hutu” and “Tutsi”. The Rwandan genocide left a lot of important political facts to be investigated and debated such as the role of the United Nations in peacekeeping, the role of colonization and decolonization in conflicts among ethnic groups and other important issues.
In this research paper, I am going to discuss the role that colonialists played in ethnic mobilization in Rwanda.
Colonialist Legacy in Rwanda
In the article “Un train peut en cacher un autre: Narrating the Rwandan Genocide and Hotel Rwanda”, Harrow mentions that the Rwandan genocide is primordial where the tension between the Tutsi and the Hutu began in the past when the Tutsi migrated to Rwanda and settled There.
However, the tension was emphasized by the Belgian and German colonialists who created differences between Tutsi and Hutu using different methods such as categorizing people in identification cards. These colonialists gave privileges to the Tutsi who were just 14% from the overall population of Rwanda and unprivileged Hutu who were 85% form the overall population of Rwanda. Therefore, it’s obvious that the tension between the Tutsi and Hutu is not only primordial, but it’s also constructed.
In his book “When Victims Become Killers: Colonialism, Nativism, and the Genocide in Rwanda”,[3] Madani believes that the tension between the Hutu and Tutsi is primordial and constructed. In this article, Madani mentions that the Tutsi cooperation with the colonialist masters led to the oppression of the Hutus. The author points out that the Belgians...
There is no doubt that the Rwandan genocide is an example of the ugly history of colonialism. This genocide resulted in the blood shed of 500,000 people including children, elders and women[1]. There are three ethnic groups in Rwanda—Hutu, Tutsi and Twa[2]. The genocide happened due to the tension between two ethnic groups in Rwandan called “Hutu” and “Tutsi”. The Rwandan genocide left a lot of important political facts to be investigated and debated such as the role of the United Nations in peacekeeping, the role of colonization and decolonization in conflicts among ethnic groups and other important issues.
In this research paper, I am going to discuss the role that colonialists played in ethnic mobilization in Rwanda.
Colonialist Legacy in Rwanda
In the article “Un train peut en cacher un autre: Narrating the Rwandan Genocide and Hotel Rwanda”, Harrow mentions that the Rwandan genocide is primordial where the tension between the Tutsi and the Hutu began in the past when the Tutsi migrated to Rwanda and settled There.
However, the tension was emphasized by the Belgian and German colonialists who created differences between Tutsi and Hutu using different methods such as categorizing people in identification cards. These colonialists gave privileges to the Tutsi who were just 14% from the overall population of Rwanda and unprivileged Hutu who were 85% form the overall population of Rwanda. Therefore, it’s obvious that the tension between the Tutsi and Hutu is not only primordial, but it’s also constructed.
In his book “When Victims Become Killers: Colonialism, Nativism, and the Genocide in Rwanda”,[3] Madani believes that the tension between the Hutu and Tutsi is primordial and constructed. In this article, Madani mentions that the Tutsi cooperation with the colonialist masters led to the oppression of the Hutus. The author points out that the Belgians...