The Rwandan genocide was a period of one hundred days of violence that killed over 800,000 Rwandans. This is one of most controversial topics in international politics as many officials believe the genocide could have been stopped. This even led to world leaders, like then-President Bill Clinton apologizing for the lack of support. But how did the genocide begin? Much like most issues that faces Africa today, the reason for the Rwandan genocide can be traced all the way back to precolonial and colonial times as well as the postcolonial rule. In the Rwandan genocide, there were two main fighters: the Hutu and Tutsi. According to the lesson seven lecture, the Hutu and Tutsi were a form of caste system, or social class order. Hutus were seen
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Since Tutsis were seen as being the higher class of Rwanda, the German colonists favored them. Tutsis were also "whiter" than Hutus due to their tall bodies and long noses and lighter skin (Peterson 257). This lead to the Tutsis receiving more benefits than the Hutus. For instance, the Hutus were mainly farmers a low-income job during colonization while Tutsi could own cattle and land, a higher income position. By the time Germany transferred Rwanda to Belgium, Hutus remained mostly equal. They all followed the same religion and spoke the same language, but they held different jobs and social statuses. Belgium then started to redistribute cattle to Rwandans, which was seen as Hutus as a redistribution of power (Lesson 7 Lecture). This was the beginning of the Hutus regaining power in Rwanda and the start of the postcolonial era. This would also be the first case of violence between the Hutu and Tutsi. In 1959, the Hutu revolt for the first time, killing 20000 Tutsi and "swept away the Tutsi monarchy" (Peterson 259). Since the monarchy was swept away form the revolution, the next step in the postcolonial era was who would run the country next? In July of 1973, Juvénal Habyarimana, a Tutsi, took over as defense minister of Rwanda, dissolving the Hutu party and freezing all political activities in the country
Since Tutsis were seen as being the higher class of Rwanda, the German colonists favored them. Tutsis were also "whiter" than Hutus due to their tall bodies and long noses and lighter skin (Peterson 257). This lead to the Tutsis receiving more benefits than the Hutus. For instance, the Hutus were mainly farmers a low-income job during colonization while Tutsi could own cattle and land, a higher income position. By the time Germany transferred Rwanda to Belgium, Hutus remained mostly equal. They all followed the same religion and spoke the same language, but they held different jobs and social statuses. Belgium then started to redistribute cattle to Rwandans, which was seen as Hutus as a redistribution of power (Lesson 7 Lecture). This was the beginning of the Hutus regaining power in Rwanda and the start of the postcolonial era. This would also be the first case of violence between the Hutu and Tutsi. In 1959, the Hutu revolt for the first time, killing 20000 Tutsi and "swept away the Tutsi monarchy" (Peterson 259). Since the monarchy was swept away form the revolution, the next step in the postcolonial era was who would run the country next? In July of 1973, Juvénal Habyarimana, a Tutsi, took over as defense minister of Rwanda, dissolving the Hutu party and freezing all political activities in the country