Rwanda: Struggling Fairness in an Unfair World

894 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Colonialism and its impact on african culture

Rwanda: Struggling Fairness in an Unfair World

Imagine an idyllic tropical paradise, where the air is laced with the alluringly sweet smell of peace. The sun shines resplendently, releasing waves of bliss and life. The people live together in harmony, and laugh together happily; life is good. This pure, perfect quality of living was a swatch of life in Rwanda. When Belgian explorers set foot on Rwandan soil, their sociability shrouded their true manipulative intentions. The Belgians had no appreciation for peace, true happiness, or even the lives of the inhabitants. Though, they were among many countries including the United States who manipulated Africa’s innocence and plundered their vast resources unjustly. The Belgians then deemed the minorities, the Tutsis as a superior race simply because of their height. As a result, the minorities were in a better economic condition than the majority, the Tutsis. Additionally, the Hutus were forced to perform manual labour for the Tutsis, and beat them if they did not comply. It was this Belgian adulteration of purity that rooted the future Rwandan conflict. These acts of violence and discrimination against the Hutus are what planted the seed of hatred into the hearts of Hutus, which would later become a large, virulent tree. Thus, before anyone could blame the Hutus for anything, one must look to the source of the hatred: the Belgians.

The documentary, “The Last Just Man”, reminded me how cruel inaction can be. By the end, I found myself in a state of utter numbness, to the point where the soft caresses of the wind on my face were undetectable. Before this documentary, I had complete faith in the government. I always believed that they had the self interest of the world at heart, a...

... middle of paper ...

...were blaming him for their lives lost (despite their planting of evil’s seed previously). The amount of stretching Roméo Dallaire’s will had to undergo was mind-blowing. I do not think that any other man could have handled himself better than he did: he performed admirably under hellish conditions, in which any other human would self-terminate.

In summary, ”The Last Just Man”, was powerful enough to evoke tears in a college football player. I felt flabbergasted at Belgium’s tenacity to blame, astounded by the United Nation’s incompliance with basic moral codes, and impressed by Roméo Dallaire’s exemplary leadership and willpower. This documentary was truly enlightening for me, as I never realized how much brain damage something like this could cause. I now look forward to studying new global conflicts, bearing these factors in mind when drafting a solution.

Show More
Related

  • Analysis Of An Ordinary Man And Hotel Rwanda

    1043 Words  | 3 Pages

    The ethnic division within the Rwandan culture played an integral role during the genocide. In 1918, Belgium is given the authority to govern the territory of Rwanda-Urundi under the Treaty of Versailles. Under Belgian rule, the traditional Hutu-Tutsi relationship was morphed into a class system favouring the Tutsis over the Hutus. The Belgians eventually created a system of ethnic identity cards differentiating Hutus from Tutsis. This would become a central driver of the Rwandan genocide. In the movie there are many instances where Rwandan citizens are asked to show their identity cards. In most cases, those who were not Hutu would be punished. Another example of the geopolitical struggle between these two ethnicities was illustrated through the media. Media is used as a platform to convey a message that influences the thoughts and actions of individuals around the world. Since Hutus are the majority in Rwanda, they were able to exert their influence over the Tutsis through mechanisms such as the media. Throughout the country, local Hutu power radio stations were aired calling for the extermination of Tutsis. The station would often find ways to dehumanize the Tutsis. In most cases they would refer to Tutsis as ‘cockroaches’. In order to create an accurate portrayal of the genocide, the film used the exact recordings from the Hutu power radio.

    Read More

  • Modern Genocide in Africa

    924 Words  | 2 Pages

    The state-sponsored massacres of Hutus by the Tutsi-dominated Burundian army in 1972 was one of the most significant post-Holocaust genocides and as such received appropriate levels of international attention due to a lack of political distractions within western nations. The genocide broke out as a Hutu-lead rebellion in which Hutu insurgents massacred Tutsis and resisting Hutus in the lakeside towns of Rumonge and Nyanza-Lac. As many as 1200 people killed in this initial incident, the Tutsi-dominated government responded by declaring martial law and systematically proceeded to slaughter Hutus (Totten 325). After hundreds of thousands of Hutus had been massacred by the Burundian government, the neighboring nation of Zaire aided the Hutus in a counteroffensive attack on the Tutsi-controlled army. Having succeeded in their effort, the genocide was quickly brought to international attention within a few days. The United Nations invested $25,000 from the World Disaster Relief Account’s fund...

    Read More

  • Gourevitch's 'Hotel Rwanda'

    660 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Hutu and the Tutsi have been in conflict with each other for years but after what happened in 1994 I don’t think that anyone will ever forget. In that year Rwandas Presidents plan was shot down and he was killed. In the days following is when the genocide started, because the Hutu believed that it was the Tutsi that shot down the plan and killed the President because he was a Hutu. The United Nations let this go because of the killing of ten of their own and because of their rules of engagement that resulted from the ten Belgian members being killed while trying to protect the Prime Minister. During a short time period of only a few months about 800,000 Tutsi and Hutu moderates were killed by the militia, other groups and even neighbors.

    Read More

  • Left To Tell By Immaculee Ilibagiza Summary

    1288 Words  | 3 Pages

    It was hard for me to believe that something like this could happen, and it take so long for this country to get help. Immaculee’s family consisted for her father Leonard, who was a farm owner and was well respected within the community Kigali. Tutsi’s and Hutu’s looked up to him, her mother Marie Rose was a school teacher, her oldest brother Aimable attended boarding school, second oldest Demascene a brilliant scholar who earned his master’s, and the youngest brother Vianney. During the 1994 genocide Immaculee lost her entire family except for her brother Aimable who was off miles away in school. It was unbelievable how the people you once considered your friends, you offered advice to, and even helped out financial could turn their backs on you because of your ethnic make-up was a Tutsi. I learned that a country that is controlled by a government that lacks knowledge will only create disaster. Disaster that can spread amongst a community and create hate, separation among individuals, and cause people to kill innocent individuals because of their ethnic make-up. It amazed me at just how influential the government was to have Hutu’s hate and kill their Tutsi neighbors whom they once

    Read More

  • Rwandan Genocide: A Tale of Colonization and Ethnicity

    938 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the early 20st century a horrific genocide occurred between two African groups of people in Rwanda. In the early 1900’s Rwanda was colonized by Belgium and France but by Belgium missionaries. There were two main African clans in Rwanda at the time and that was the Tutsi’s and the Hutu’s. The Belgium missionaries gave power to the church. Many Africans that were practicing African traditional religions soon were converted to catholic Christians. The Belgium missionaries chose the Tutsi clan as being “elite” because of their physical appearance over the Hutus. The Tutsi people had narrower noses, thinner lips, and lighter skin and were labeled as being “white” and the Hutu’s had wider noses, fuller lips, and were considered to be “black” between

    Read More

  • Genocide in Rwanda: Extreme Denial of Human Rights

    1536 Words  | 4 Pages

    Former UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali once said, "We were not realizing that with just a machete, you can do a genocide." To be candid, nobody anticipated the Rwandan Genocide that occurred in 1994. The genocide in Rwanda was an infamous blood-red blur in modern history where almost a million innocent people were murdered in cold blood. Members of the Tutsi tribe were systematically hacked or beaten to death by members of the Interahamwe, a militia made up of Hutu tribe members. In just 100 days, from April 6, 1994 to mid-July, 20% of Rwanda's population was killed; about 10,000 people a day. Bodies literally were strewn over city streets. Genocide obviously violates almost all articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; however, the article I find most important is Article 3 - the right to life, liberty, and personal security. In just 100 days, one million people were denied the most basic privilege granted to every human – the right to live, simply because they were born to the wrong tribe.

    Read More

  • Rwanda Genocide

    1159 Words  | 3 Pages

    Many innocent lives were taken during the genocide in Rwanda in 1994. Philip Gourevitch’s “We Wish to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed with Our Families,” explains why the genocide that occurred in Rwanda should not be written off in history as just another tribal disagreement. This book entails the stories of Gourevitch and the people he interviewed when he went to Rwanda. These stories express what people went through during the genocide, the loss they saw, the mass killings they tried to hide from, and the history of what led to the Rwandan genocide. Rwanda’s colonial past did influence the development of the genocide in Rwanda. The hatred between the Hutus and the Tutsis had been going on for many years before the genocide.

    Read More

  • Ghost Of Rwanda Summary

    751 Words  | 2 Pages

    In April of 1994 the African nation of Rwanda was involved in a civil war between two of its major ethnicities, the Hutu and the Tutsis. Almost overnight, a state-sponsored genocidal campaign took the lives of nearly 800,00 Rwandans while the international community turned a blind eye. In Ghosts of Rwanda we saw the stories of the individuals who failed to act at the hands of international organizations, those who stood up with hope and tried to save lives, and those who survived through the massacre and lived to tell their stores.

    Read More

  • Rwandan Genocide: Unraveling a Historical Catastrophe

    604 Words  | 2 Pages

    The RPF decided to create a government consisting of a Hutu and a Tutsi holding the highest government positions. As the RPF took control of the government, “some two million Hutus – both civilians and some of those involved in the genocide – then fled across the border into DR Congo… fearing revenge attacks”(“Rwandan Genocide: 100 days of slaughter”). However, the violence did not stop here. The RPF then became angry at the Democratic Republic of Congo, claiming that the Democratic Republic of Congo “letting[let] Hutu militias operate on its territory” (“Rwandan Genocide: 100 days of slaughter”). As a result of the RPF’s claims about the Democratic Republic of Congo, they have invaded the Democratic Republic of Congo two times(“Rwandan Genocide: 100 days of slaughter”). The problems of the Rwandan Genocide has led to chaos in the Democratic Republic of Congo that has caused around 5 million deaths(“Rwandan Genocide: 100 days of slaughter”). In an attempt to punish those who were involved in the genocide, a large number of people have been sent to court. This genocide goes to show you how seemingly small problems between two groups can grow over time if not addressed, and cause major problems in the

    Read More

  • Rwandan Genocide

    1007 Words  | 3 Pages

    Africa has been an interesting location of conflicts. From the conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea to the revolutionary conflict in Libya and Egypt, one of the greatest conflicts is the Rwandan Genocide. The Rwandan Genocide included two tribes in Rwanda: Tutsis and Hutus. Upon revenge, the Hutus massacred many Tutsis and other Hutus that supported the Tutsis. This gruesome war lasted for a 100 days. Up to this date, there have been many devastating effects on Rwanda and the global community. In addition, many people have not had many acknowledgements for the genocide but from this genocide many lessons have been learned around the world.

    Read More

  • The Rwandan Genocide: Factors that Contribute to Genocide

    2659 Words  | 6 Pages

    When the Belgian colonizers entered Rwanda in 1924, they created an ethnic classification between the Hutu and the Tutsi, two tribes who used to live together as one. After independence in 1962, there was a constant power struggle between the two tribes. Former Canadian Prime Minister, Jean-Pierre Chrétien described the situation as “tribalism without tribes.” (Destexhe, 1995) There were many signs leading towards genocide, yet the nations in power chose to ignore them. From April 6, 1994 until mid-July, a time spanning approximately of 100 days, 800,000 people were murdered when the Hutu attacked the Tutsi. No foreign aid came to the rescue until it was too late. Ten years after the genocide the United Nations was still involved in Rwanda, cleaning up the mess that was left behind because of man’s sinful nature. Could the Rwandan Genocide have been prevented, or is it simply a fact of life? Even though the international community is monitoring every country and race, such an event as the Rwandan Genocide could occur again because the European colonizers introduced ethnic classification where it did not exist and the nations in power chose to ignore the blatant signs of genocide.

    Read More

  • Rwanda Imperialism Essay

    772 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Hutu and Tutsi were once peaceful people, who together made up the majority of Rwanda. In the 1800s when Imperialism and Industrialization were popular trends in Europe, Rwanda was colonized. The colonial occupation of Rwanda by Germany, and later Belgium instilled pro-euro ideology in the Tutsi tribe which quickly changed the peaceful mentality of the country. The next century was full of power shifts and tribal violence. However, no man could have predicted the events that took place on April 6th. On that fateful day in 1994, centuries worth of boiling racial tension finally exploded when the president of Rwanda, Juvenal Habyarimana was assassinated. What ensued was the most chaotic and controversial event of the late 20th century and one of the most tragic

    Read More

  • Christian Resistance In Rwanda

    1615 Words  | 4 Pages

    Like the Holocaust, the Rwandan genocide of 1994 was an act of extreme violence that involved all people from every age group and social standing. After the assassination of President Habyarimana, a Hutu, the Hutu population, led by the Hutu-dominated government, decided on the extermination of the Hutu population. In around 100 days, hundreds of thousands of Tutsi lives were lost to their Hutu neighbors in one of the most violent bloodsheds ever to see Africa. While the forms of rationalization may differ in some ways, there was still a level of Christian involvement in the Genocide. The question is, how could Rwanda, one of the most Christian nations in Africa, be a place of such violence and distaste for human life? What factors

    Read More

  • Ethical Issues in Hotel Rwanda

    961 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...ause the colonial masters believed that they resembled them. It was unethical for the Belgians to interfere with the peaceful coexistence that the two communities had enjoyed in the past. As a result, the Hutus acquired negative misconceptions about the Tutsis’ origin, what they stood for, and what they had done for them in the past. The Hutus expertly planned and organized the Rwandan genocide as a result of such historical distortions created by their country’s colonial masters.

    Read More

  • The Effects of Colonization on Rwanda

    864 Words  | 2 Pages

    Under the Hutu’s government reign the people of Rwanda voted to become a republic. A year later on July 1, 1962 Ruanda-Urandi became two separate countries. Though Belgium was no longer in power over Rwanda, ethnic dissension continued to affect the people. At independence a Hutu was elected, and later on another Hutu whom favored his ethnicity came into power. Hutu’s continued to dominate the governme...

    Read More

More about Rwanda: Struggling Fairness in an Unfair World

Open Document