Ethnic Tension In Rwanda Essay

The ethnic tension in Rwanda is caused by two groups: the Hutu and the Tutsis. When Belgian colonized Rwanda they gave out identification cards to classify the natives by ethnicity. The Belgian’s favored the Tutsis despite the majority of the people being Hutus. So the Tutsis’ had access to better jobs and educational opportunities due to the Belgians favoritism. This caused the Hutu to resent the Tutsis. There are practically no differences between the two groups. They both share the same language, live in the same areas, and have the same traditions. Some Tutsis are taller and thinner and some say they originate from Ethiopia. In Belgium, the two groups contributing to ethnic tension are the Flemish and the Walloons. The Flemish occupy north Belgium which they call Flanders. The Flemish speak Dutch and to the Flemish there is no such thing as Belgium there is only Flanders. The Walloons occupy South Belgium and speak French. The two groups do not recognize the existence of the country Belgium. With no loyalty to Belgium the government is often shut down. This language conflict has been hurting Belgium for the last 30 years. Language is a crucial part of life because language unifies a nation. The city of Brussels is considered the front line of conflict because it is the only city where to the two groups interact. The twos sides rarely interact. Kids are operated in schools and even have …show more content…
A nation is a group of people that share a common culture, history, language, or religion. In the cases of Belgium and Rwanda, there happen to be two nations living within the same state. The Tutsis and Hutus have different history which makes them a different nation and, the Wallons and Flemish speak different languages. These two countries are not considered a nation- state because nation and state do not coincide. History and language are important parts of making a nation