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Genocide
In April 2004 Rwanda will mark the 10 year anniversary of the genocide in which up to 800,000 Rwandans, predominantly Tutsis, were killed over a period of a hundred days. The violence which erupted on April 6th, 1994 was the result of growing tensions between Rwanda’s two main ethnic groups, the Tutsis and the Hutus in part due to the difficult transition from colony to independence. Prior to the genocide, Hutus comprised about 85 percent of the population, the Tutsis 14 percent, and the indigenous Ba’Twa people, 1 percent. Although the Hutus account for the majority of the population, in the past, the Tutsi minority was considered the aristocracy of Rwanda and dominated Hutu peasants for decades, especially while Rwanda was under colonial rule. When German explorers first came to Rwanda they observed in the royal court a ruling class, the Tutsis, and a subservient class, the Hutus. This class structure was maintained by the Belgians and the French missionaries who followed, supporting as they did the Tutsi minority governing class. The Germans and Belgians colonial powers both preferred the Tutsi and rewarded them with positions of power, once Rwanda was granted independence in 1962, battle for control over the government, control over the land and cattle, and control over the social standings began. In 1978 Maj. Gen. Juvénal Habyarimana, a moderate Hutu who was commander of the national guard was elected president. During the Habyarimana regime, Rwanda experienced significant economic growth but ethnic conflicts between the Hutu and the Tutsi continued to simmer. It is estimated that during this time approximately 600,000 Tutsi refugees fled the country. Some of these refugees banded together to form the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) who would play an important role in the ending of the genocide. Find out more about the Rwandan Genocide with these related links
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