During the precolonial era, hutu, tutsi and twa were commonly known as rwandans. April 7th marks the 22nd anniversary of the rwandan genocide. The 1994 rwandan genocide represents one of the most tragic episodes of political violence in recent history. From april to july 1994, between 800,000 and one million ethnic tutsis and moderate hutus were killed during a 100day killing spree planned and perpetrated by ethnic hutus, also known as genocidaires. Yet the processes leading to violence and the nature of the violence genocide in rwanda and civil war in. These effects are also seen in future generations of youth. This article investigates the role of mass media in the spread of violence by estimating the effects of propaganda disseminated via radio during the 1994 rwandan genocide. Demographic effects involve the transfer of children during genocides.
Complementary to the crosscountry studies mentioned beforehand, which rely on a uniform design for all conflicts under investigation, we focus on just this one country. By 1994, the rwandan militia had grown to over 30,000 members. Abstract the human, social and economic costs of rwandas genocide have been staggering. Between april and july 1994 rwanda experienced a tremendous wave of inter ethnic violence that caused at least 500,000 deaths. How colonialism affected the rwandan genocide umuvugizi. Pdf aspects and consequences of the rwandan law of. It was a genocide by those who saw themselves as sons and daughters of the soil, and their mission as one of clearing the soil of a threatening alien presence. Journalists could have had an impact in rwanda a sort of heisenberg. Both have also experienced regular, extreme massive violence. This planned campaign was led by key ethnic hutu members of. We aim to identify the countrywide short and longrun economic effects of the rwandan genocide on economic output. The rwandan genocide, however, does not have a signal signaturea hitler, a pol pot, a stalin. Burundi and rwanda are small east african countries with almost identical economic, social, and political features.
In cases of transfer, children are moved or displaced from their homes into boarding schools, adoptive families, or to new countries. The conjunction of these two observations has led some observers to link these two phenomena directly. Genevanew york, 6 april 2004 ten years after the genocide in rwanda that took the lives of 800,000 people, the countrys children continue to struggle with the lingering impact of the atrocities, unicef said today. Rwanda is the most densely populated country in africa. The impact of the rwandan genocide in 1994, the tiny country of rwanda was disrupted with brutal violence, and saw the killing of nearly one million people in a period of onehundred days. This ideologically driven genocide is a clear example of state sponsored massmurder. When the hutus discovered their reign had ended they feared tutsi backlash and about 2 million. In this paper i will investigate the true motivation of the 1994 rwandan genocide as more than just social divide and ethnic hatred between the hutu and the tutsi.
A brief history of the country rwandas population of more than 7 million people is divided into three ethnic groups. Billy batware, ma peace and conflicts studies european peace university, austria 15. For example, genocide survivor rb demonstrates a remarkable commitment. Message to symposium on the media and the rwanda genocide carleton university school of journalism and communication ottawa, march 2004 when, on 7 april, people around the world commemorate the 10th anniversary of the rwanda genocide, that observance should be. Cause and effects of the rwandan genocide, 1994 in august of 1994 the tutsi rpf group lead by kagame retook the capital and soon after, the rest of the country, ending the genocide. The impact of the rwandan genocide on gender identity. The socioeconomic impacts of the genocide and current. Rwanda and rtlm radio media effects pdf united states. Posttraumatic stress reactions of children were associated. Although the country has made remarkable progress over the last ten years, especially in terms of recovering some of the ground lost on education and health, gdp per capita remains much lower than what it would have been without the genocide. About 70% of the rwandan population was killed after the rpf ended the civil war that was against government forces. The rwandan genocide has become a textbook case of the ways in which hate speech, especially the use of the spoken word on radio, can. Rwanda is still suffering the wounds of these 100 days.
On the eve of the tenth anniversary of the rwanda genocide, the school of journalism and communication at carleton university in ottawa hosted a oneday symposium on march 2004, entitled the media and the rwanda genocide. The hutu who are of bantu origin comprises of the largest ethnic group making 84 percent of the population of rwanda. The genocide in rwanda was a tragedy in which over 800 000 were killed. Rwanda is an african country that comprises of three ethnic communities. And in 1994, as we all know, rwanda was also e site of a horrific genocide, in which over half a million people were killed in less than three months. The list of rwandas most wanted is a hodgepodge of hutu power bosses, military officers. In its motivation and construction, mamdani argues, the rwandan genocide needs to be understood as a natives genocide. The 1994 genocide of the tutsi in rwanda left about one million people dead in a period of only three months. In an attempt by the hutu regime to annihilate each and every tutsi, between 500,000 to 800,000 or even 1,000,000 tutsis were killed at the hands of hutus. Environmental causes, such as land scarcity, the increasing pressures of population on the land only aggravated the circumstances that led to the genocide.
We estimate the longterm effect of the rwandan genocide on the work of the children born after the genocide, using variation in genocide intensity across communes and child work incidence in. Psychological effect of rwanda genocide introduction in april 1994, rwanda was submerged in a ruthless influx of composed savagery that left an expected one million individuals dead in a time of just three months. Sample essay on causes and effects of rwandan genocide. The present study aimed to examine the level of trauma exposure, psychopathology, and risk factors for posttraumatic stress disorder ptsd in survivors and former prisoners accused of participation in the genocide as well as in their respective. The objective of this paper is to analyse literature on the rwandan genocide 1994, the jewish holocaust 19411945 and the armenian genocide 19151917, in order to document circumstances. Zaire and in a belated attempt to redress past injustices the colonial. Estimates suggest that in just 100 days, conflict between the hutu majority and tutsi minority resulted in the killing of between 500,000 and 1 million citizens. The 1994 rwandan genocide saw over 900,000 tutsis and hutus from the opposition brutally massacred over a period of 3 months. A summary of the rwandan genocide polytechnic school.
Explaining rwandas 1994 genocide university of denver. What are some of its implications for gender relations. As a consequence of the genocide, there was a large number of households came to be lead by women and children. As with other genocides in the world, the one in rwanda was complex with multidimensional causes and effects. Common claims about media effects in rwandaand a critique in the literature on the rwandan genocide, one finds varied claims about the. Seventyfive percent of the tutsi population was killed. The origin of the violence that transpired in rwanda during the latter half of the twentieth century is tied to the ways in which hutu and tutsi were treated differently by the colonial masters. Borrowing concepts from transitional justice, such as truth, justice, forgiveness and reconciliation, the paper presented evidence from rwandan womens testimonies of the genocide to argue that processes of posttraumatic growth are indeed taking place in rwandan society. Despite the presence of united nations peacekeeping troops, the international.
The one thing that can be said to physically differentiate the two is that tutsi have been known to be taller and. Causes and effects of rwandan genocide, 1994 by devika. However, the questions orient the study to the period when the genocide was occurring, not to media effects that may have occurred before the genocide. Introduction this paper aims to discuss and examine the causes of the 1994 rwandan genocide.
The effect on their social and political roles lisa a. The 1994 rwanda genocide was the result of an economic crisis, civil war, population growth and a struggle for state power. The government forces and presidential guard were fighting refugees that fled rwanda, while the citizens of rwanda were trying to flee. Causes and effects of the genocide the rwandan genocide. The death toll for this genocide ranged from about 500,000 people to a 1,000,000. The purpose of this paper is to identify the historic and political causes for the rwandan genocide through an ethnic lens in order to determine whether ethnic division was really the cause for the atrocities or was rather just a dimension of. It was a genocide, the mass murder of africans that resided in rwanda. The rwandan genocide did not originate from the ancient hatred between hutu and tutsi ethnic groups, but from the manipulation of history and bad leadership. From time immemorial, they lived together on the same territory, had the. Origins, prevention, healing and reconciliation, political. Dyregrov, gupta, gjestad, and mukanoheli 2000 interviewed children and adolescents approximately 1 year after the.
This genocide damaged and destroyed the social cohesion and make up of rwandan society. The rwandan 1994 genocide has done a lot of harms in rwanda. However, the deadly repercussions are still being felt. Though the rwandan genocide in the late spring of 1994 can be classified as an ethnic conflict between the hutu and tutsi, many geneticists have failed to find marked ethnic differences between the two groups johnson. Today, the effects of the genocide in rwanda are still felt in many different ways both inside the country and in neighbouring states, including in the eastern regions of the democratic republic of. Common war, genocide against the tutsi minority bunch and vicious backlash assaults until 1998 frightened its tenants.
In response to the genocide, the united nations created a criminal. Young shabbily dressed men called heatedly for hutu power, waving machetes or holding huge weapons aloft. Abstract during 100 days in the spring and summer of 1994 in rwanda a planned genocide orchestrated by extreme members of the hutu ethnic group, the ruling faction. The country was ravaged by civil war, genocide, mass migrations, economic crisis, diseases, return of refugees and environmental destruction. Pdf environmental causes and impacts of the genocide in. The genocide against the tutsi in rwanda france genocide tutsi.
The rwandan genocide, also known as the genocide against the tutsi, was a mass slaughter of tutsi, twa, and moderate hutu in rwanda, which took place between 7 april and 15 july 1994 during the rwandan civil war in 1990, the rwandan patriotic front rpf, a rebel group composed of tutsi refugees, invaded northern rwanda from their base in uganda, initiating the. Some members were even able to acquire ak47 assault rifles. This study is significant because it will contribute to the understanding of the real causes of the conflict in order to effectively find a durable solution. Can living through genocide lead to positive change.
The broadcasts increased militia violence not only directly by influencing behavior in villages with radio reception, but also indirectly by increasing participation in. Very many children and women are still suffering the consequences of those horrible acts. Causes and effects of rwandan genocide can be understood properly by understanding the background of this country first. Background and current developments congressional research service summary in 2003, rwanda held its first multiparty presidential and parliamentary elections in decades. The effects of genocide on youth include psychological and demographic effects that affect the transition into adulthood. Causes and consequences of the rwandan conflict politics essay.