The Rwandan genocide - Essay Example

The Rwanda civil war was fought between the Hutu regimes. The Francophone nations of Africa and France also supported the regime. The Rwandan Patriotic Front, took the support of Uganda and created a lot of chaos and tension within the country which eventually led to the rise of Hutu Power. Hutu Power believed in an ideology. They claimed that the Tutsi wanted to enslave Hutus and should be restrained from at any cost. Irrespective of the concurrent ethnic turmoil, inclusive of the displacement of Hutus in huge in the north at the hands of the rebels, the pressure on the government of Juvenal Habyarimana continued to mount up.

It paved way for a ceasefire in 1993 and a pre-mature implementation of the Arshua Accords. Habyarimana’s assassination took place in April 1994. It was the closest and biggest reason behind the killings of Tutsis and proponents of a peaceful Hutus. The mass genocide took place primarily due to two Hutu militias who were associated with political parties i.e. the Interhamwe and the Impuzamugambi. The genocide was carried out by a Hutu power group popularly known as the Akazu all over. The massive killing sprouted the demise of the peace agreement for the war end.

Tutsi RPF on the other hand, relaunched their offensive and eventually defeated the army while seizing complete control of the country. Ethnic tensions in Rwanda are no new phenomenon. Disagreements had always been there between the majorities, the Hutus against the minority Tutsis. However, the bitterness grew even further during the colonial period. On the exterior, the two ethnic groups resemble a lot in their mannerism. The language they speak is the same; they pursue the same traditions and culture and have inhabited the same areas.

However their difference lies in their appearance. Tutsis are taller and thinner than the Hutus. Many claim that the origin of the Tutsis, traces all the way back to Ethiopia.