Assassination Of The Rwanda Genocide

“Beginning on April 6, 1994, Hutus began slaughtering the Tutsis in the African country of Rwanda. As the brutal killings continued, the world stood idly by and just watched the slaughter. Lasting 100 days, the Rwanda genocide left approximately 800,000 Tutsis and Hutu sympathizers dead” (Rosenberg 1). When Rwanda’s President, Habyrimana, was killed in a plane crash, turmoil and massacres began. A series of events escalated violence until two ethic groups were engaged in bloody battle: The Hutus and the Tutsis. Throughout the Rwandan Genocide, the Tutsis were targeted because the death of President Habyrimana and problems in social and economic life was blamed in them, thus resulting in the 100-day genocide.

The assassination of President Habyrimana sparked political unrest in Rwanda. While flying in a plane, an unknown killer shot the plane down. There were no survivors of the crash. On that day, violence broke out in Rwanda, for the Hutus believed that the Tutsis were the cause of the death of their president. Originally, the terms ‘Tutsi and Hutu’ was based on the amount of cattle a person owned. Tutsi were the people who owned cattle while the rest were Hutus. These social groups were not set in stone, for they can change through marriage or buying cattle. Afterwards, when the Germans took over Rwanda, the terms began to identify a racial group. Since the Tutsi looked more Europeans, having lighter skin and a taller look to them. Because of this, they were given a larger amount of responsibility, upsetting the Hutus. Then, World War I happened, giving Belgium control of Rwanda. The country forced everyone to have an identity card, explaining if someone is Hutu, Tutsi, or Twa (hunters) (Rosenberg 4). Therefore, t...

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...assacre, Human Rights, Victim Remembrance, Education, Africa). This is an international court was established to keep the international law intact in Rwanda. During the genocide, there were millions of violations in Rwanda and nearby states of the law between January 1st and December 31st of 1994. This strived to create and maintain peace inside and near Rwanda (International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda) (UN ICTR).

The biggest reason the Rwandan genocide was not ended earlier was because the United Nations made a minimal effort to step on there and help the falling country. The job of the UN is to protect the people of the world, stop fighting between countries, and keep the international law. None of that was accomplished during the Rwandan genocide. To prevent future genocides, the United Nations must step in a finish any major killing before it starts.