Group+8+-+Rwanda

=**__History__**= Rwanda is a small, mountainous country that is about 26,338sq km and is roughly the shape of Maryland for comparison. The population is approximately 11.4 million as of 2011 and the capital is Kigali. This country is located in Central and Eastern Africa and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi, and Demographic Republic of the Congo. The three major groups that live in Rwanda are the Hutu, Tutsi, and Twa. They share a common language and culture and are classified as "social groups" rather than tribes. Interestingly enough, the genocide involved the disagreements between the Hutu and Tutsis.

The worldwide event that occurred in Rwanda is one that many people still will not forget about today. It occurred between the months ofApril-July,1994 all in Rwanda. More than 800,000 people of the Tutsi minority were killed during this mass destruction. However, the war between the Hutu's and Tutsi's started way before the genocide actually occurred. From the time of the colonization of Rwanda in the 1880's, Belgians considered the Tutsi group to be superior because they were taller and thinner and therefore they got better jobs and educational opportunities. As a result, the Huti group grew resentment of the Tutsi's and riots started happening in 1959 and more than 20,000 Tutsi's were killed. Those that did survive had to flee the country leaving most of their belongings behind. Then in 1962, after Rwanda became independent from Belgium, the Hutus seized power in the country. In 1990, Tutsi refugees formed the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) whose goal was to overthrow the Hutu-led government and secure their right to return to their country. The genocide started happening on April 6, 1994 when the president of Rwanda at the time, Juvenal Habyarimana, plane was shot down by a missile above the Kigali airport instantly killing him and all of the passengers on board. Identity of the assassins is not publicly known but many are accusing members of the Tutsi political party, as well as the current president of Rwanda, Paul Kagame, who used to be a Tutsi leader rebel group. Immediately following the plane crash, members of the Hutu militiamen set up roadblocks in Kigali, and between the 6th and 7th of April these men checked the identity cards of every passer-by searching for Tutsi's, members of the opposite party, and human rights activists. Those that were a part of these groups were killed on hand by machetes. People of all ages of the Hutu group were killing Tutsi's and theft and incentives like food and money were used as principles to bribe people to kill their so-called "neighbor" group.

The killings and massacre of the Tutsi's was gruesome and one particular case took place on April 15-16,1994 in a Roman Catholic church located about 60 miles outside of Kigali. The major of the town, a Hutu, encouraged the Tutsi's that they would be safe there and to hide. However, the mayor actually ended up betraying them and the Tutsi's were severely beaten and killed. It took two days to kill thousands of Tutsi's that were inside of the church. This was only encounter. The worst massacres took place from April-May.

The RPF took control of Kigali and the whole country on July 18, 1994, ending what was known as the worst genocide of the 20th century that occurred over a horrendous 100 days.

=__Comparative Genocide__= When researching genocide it is nearly impossible to avoid comparison to the Holocaust. Considering this, it is important to be aware of the effects of this comparison. It is undeniable that the Holocaust is unmatched in magnitude to any other genocide in history. By comparing other genocides to the Holocaust, it is easy to belittle their severity. Over six million Jews had their lives taken from them in gruesome manners in the Holocaust. When the casualty figures of the Rwandan genocide are compared to those of the Holocaust they appear insignificant; however, the fact of the matter remains that hundreds of thousands of people lost their lives. It is clear that the assertion that no other genocide is equivalent to the Holocaust in magnitude leads us to subconsciously devalue a human life. Roth draws light to this fear; “Others fear that the uniqueness claim banishes other genocides to undeserved second-class status (Roth 28).” Placing any genocide secondary to the Holocaust undermines its severity and reduces global urgency to act. Many consider Holocaust research and comparison essential following the logic that if they are aware of the causes of the Holocaust that other genocides may never again occur. Several major genocides have occurred since the Holocaust including those in Rwanda, Darfur, and Kosovo among others. When preconditions to genocide are established they must not be ignored or else the horrors are doomed to repeat themselves.

When exploring the prerequisites for the Holocaust and the Rwandan genocide there are a striking number of similarities. Much like the Nazi party created the idea of the Aryan race, Hutus developed the idea that Tutsis were an inferior racial group. These groups remain social inventions based on hate rather than fact. Jews and Tutsis alike had their noses and eyes measured as a way of categorizing them into their socially invented races (Walker 1). Ironically, both Hutus and Tutsis shared much common ground; “The two ethnic groups are actually very similar - they speak the same language, inhabit the same areas, and follow the same traditions (Rwanda 2).” This can also be said of the so-called Aryan race and the Jews. Jews were forced to carry identification papers and wear the infamous yellow Star of David to make themselves identifiable. Likewise, the Tutsis were forced to carry identification cards. In both cases, the minority filled the role of the scapegoat. Along with the minorities being blamed for problems, came mass cooperation from the public, political propaganda, and a pretext of segregation and prejudice. Hitler cunningly carried out the atrocities of the Holocaust under the cover of war. This method was adopted by Hutu leaders after President Habyarimana’s plane was shot down. It is clear that war was not the cause for either genocide, but rather the history of bad blood between groups. Global authorities turned a blind eye to the atrocities in Rwanda. The United State’s reluctance to get involved is illuminated by a BBC article on this issue; “Even after it had become indisputable that what was going on in Rwanda was a genocide, American officials had shunned the g-word, fearing that it would cause demands for intervention (Genocide 1). “ In World War Two, it also was a case of too little too late in terms of political and military intervention. Had the world fiercely opposed Hitler earlier on the catastrophes may have been largely diminished. Both Jews and Tutsis were forced to return to the societies responsible for such horrific atrocities upon conclusion of the genocide. This meant a return to prejudice and segregation (Rwanda 4). The vast number of similarities is shocking and begs the question, if we know all of this about genocide, why are they allowed to occur over and over again? Until the world acknowledges these causes it appears the same mistakes will continue to be made.

There are far fewer notable differences between these catastrophes than similarities. This fact is alarming considering the vast cultural, regional, and political differences between the parties responsible. The most obvious difference between the genocides remains the scale. The Nazis exterminated upwards of six million Jews. The death tally in Rwanda totaled approximately 800,000. This comparison may have contributed to the world’s reluctance to act as the number of death seems in the Holocaust belittles the death total in Rwanda. Another notable difference involves the groups persecuted. The Nazi party went after a number of other minorities in addition to Jews including communists, physically and mentally handicapped, Slavs, and others. In the Rwandan Genocide, the Hutus focused their prejudice solely on the Tutsis. Lastly, the Jews exhibited few signs of resistance. There were some exceptions but, most were somewhat compliant due primarily to their hope for rescue. Tutsis on the other hand, eventually combated the Hutus and put an end to the genocide under their own power (Genocide 4). This could possibly stem from the awareness that there would be little to no global intervention and therefore little reason to hope for rescue.

=__**Media Culture**__= Movies Documentaries Books Music
 * Hotel Rwanda
 * Shake Hands With the Devil
 * Beyond the Gates also known as Shooting Dogs
 * Sometimes in April-HBO TV show
 * Shake Hands With the Devil
 * Rwanda: Do scars ever Fade
 * Rwanda: living forgiveness
 * Shake Hands With the Devil
 * A Sunday by the Pool in Kigali
 * Lament of Victims of Genocide

When comparing the genocide in Rwanda to that of the holocaust based on both the amount of media culture available, the types of media culture that is out there and the accessibility of media culture the holocaust comes out on top every time. there are more movies, books, poems, works of art, music, documentaries and even tv series. This is most likely do to the fact that the holocaust was several decades ago giving it more time to accumulate these things =__**Musealization**__=

No matter what the event is, remembered or not, history repeats itself; whether it is the Holocaust during World War II in Europe or the Rwanda genocide in Africa during the spring of 1994 (Schneider). To help inform and the general population about Rwanda and the Holocaust a museum is being constructed in Johannesburg, South Africa in late 2011. It will contain artifacts, survivor testimonies’, history, films and photos to aid in the expression of these events ( Schneider).

The remembrance of both of these genocides that have been felt worldwide, are to be used as a learning experience and as a warning to the constant oppression that the world still faces among the human race. No matter if it’s the Jewish religion or the Tutsi population, these events still happen (Schneider).

Using proactive prevention through education, these museums act as cultural and historical icons of the tragedies that continue to happen around the world due to racism, prejudice and discrimination ( Schneider).


 * Nyamata memorial site **

This church is the site of the killing of 2,500 people and show graphic displays of the torture, rape and killing of women (NMR). It also teaches its visitors about the deliberate use of HIV as a weapon (Kigali Memorial Centre).


 * Murambi Memorial Centre **

This monument, of an old school, marks the death of over 27,000 people. Marked as a permanent exhibition to the genocide, here lay hundreds of corpses, preserved for display, as well as, documents of the genocides history sating back to colonial times (Kigali Memorial Centre).

Purposefully displaying the memorial, as is to ensure future education for future generations (Kigali Memorial Centre). As seen in many Holocaust memoirs, they are used to preserve history in a way future generations will understand (NMR).This new construction is soon to be opened and will benefit the local community and school children (Murambi).

This site was chosen as an important landmark to have a memorial due to the tragedy that occurred there. After the genocidal campaign arrived in the area in 1994, during the second week, Tutsi fled to safer grounds (Murambi). Over 65,000 relocated from church to school where numerous waves of massacres began, known as the Murambi massacre of 1994 (Kigali Memorial Centre).


 * Bisesero Memorial Site **

Here lies the site of the killing of 30,000 people; this memorial site is in the hills of Kibuye province of West Rwanda. Acts of resistance from Tutsis were formed in this region, trying to organize against the massacre. The Tutsi weren’t as well equipped as the Hutu, sticks against well-armed soldiers and became a very unsuccessful fight. Now known as the Hill of resistance, it consists of nine communes throughout the place. Along with many other well know museums, on display, are bones treated for memorial purposes (Kigali Memorial Centre).


 * Nyanza Memorial Site **

Annually, on April 11th, a memorial ceremony takes place at Nyanza. Here at Nyanza, deserted refugees who were murdered are remembered (Kigali Memorial Centre).

This is the site of a refuge for 2,000 members of the Tutsis tribe, due to the United Nations presence. After the withdrawal of the UN, all of the members that had sought refuge were murdered. Simply marked by a wooden cross, this site is and International Community symbol of Rwandan abandonment (Kigali Memorial Centre).


 * Nyarubuye Memorial Site **

Another stark location, marking the Rwandan genocide, is the Nyarbuye Memorial. This place was once a convent and school where over 20,000 people were murdered. The Tutsis people were trying to flee the country into neighboring Tanzania. The school has been abandoned until around 2003, but the convent remains bare. This convent will soon be turned into a memorial and educational centre (Kigali Memorial Centre).


 * Kigali Memorial Centre **

Kigali Memorial Centre offers a place to burry the victims of the genocide. Over 250, 000 people are buried here. Three permanent exhibitions make up the memorial center, including the largest portion recording the Rwanda genocide in 1994. Like the Holocaust, Kigali uses these memorials as tools for the future generations to learn from. After the centre project began in 2000, the Aegis joined into finish the memorial. They started by collecting data from all over the world to created three unique exhibitions. The design was used to gain international recognition (Kigali Memorial Centre).

After first opening, there were over 1,500 survivors visiting each day, along with the 60,000 locals during the first three months, with over 7,000 of them international (Kigali Memorial Centre).


 * President Juvenal Habyarimana**

The assassination of President Juvenal Habyarimana is found to be one of the triggers to starting the Rwandan Genocide. His plane was shot down and caused his death. This plane is being made into an exhibit in remembrance of the such tragedy that helped spark the war. The Hutu people are also keeping majority of his house as is to have one display as a right of passage to history (Genocide Museum for Rwanda Palace).

Other memorials can include Wall of names, in which thousands of victims’ names were displayed on permanent wall (NMR). This project is still taking place today, and is in need of more funding. Along with the rose garden at the Kigali Centre, which symbolizes a peaceful memory for those who fell victim to the Rwandan genocide. For every victim a rose is placed in the garden. Eight mass graves, with unidentified corpses are spread throughout the city (Kigali Memorial Centre).

All of these museums and memorial centers hold different cultural and historical significance. They all use the past to help provide knowledge for warning of what could happen to the future.

__Works Cited__ // Adadevoh, K. (2009, December). Causes of the Rwandan Genocide. In // Helium: Where knowledge rules//. Retrieved December 1, 2011, from http://www.helium.com/items/1369994-causes-of-the-rwandan-genocide// “Children of Rwanda’s Genocide.” //New York Times.// New York Times Company, 1999. Web. 7. Nov. 2011. “Genocide in Rwanda.” //United Human Rights Council.// United Human Rights Council, 2011.Web. 7 Nov. 2011. Genocide Museum for Rwanda Palace. (2008, October 8). //BBC News//. Retrieved November 20, 2011, from __ [] __ Kigali Memorial Centre. (n.d.). //Kigali Genocide Memorial Centre//. Retrieved November 17, 2011, from __ [] __ // Lovett, I. The Shoah Foundation Widens Scope. // The New York Times//.// // Magnarella, P. J. (2002, December). Explaining Rwanda's 1994 Genocide. // Human Rights and Human Welfare//,// 2//(1).// Murambi. (2010). //Through A Glass Darkly//. Retrieved December 1, 2011, from http://genocidememorials.cga.harvard.edu/murambi.html NMR. (n.d.). //National Museum Rwanda//. Retrieved November 13, 2011, from http://www.museum.gov.rw/2_museums/kibungo/nyarubuye/pages/nyarubuye.htm

// Rosenberg, J. (2011, November). A Short History on the Rwandan Genocide. In // About.com//. Retrieved November 27, 2011, from http://history1900s.about.com/od/rwandangenocide/a/Rwanda-Genocide.htm// // Roth, John K. //The Ethics of Uniqueness//. Westview Press, 2007. Print.// //"Rwanda: How the Genocide Happened."// BBC News//. BBC, 17 May 2011. Web. 15 Nov. 2011// // Schneider, M. (2010, Oct 08). New museum to juxtapose holocaust, rwandan genocide. // The Jewish News Weekly of Northern California : J, // pp. 15A-15A. Retrievedfrom http://ezproxy.msu.edu/login?url=http: //search.proquest.com/docview/ 807646543?accountid=12598 // Walker, Robert. "Rwanda Remembers the Holocaust." //BBC News//. BBC, 27 Jan. 2005. Web. 24 Oct. 2011.