Facts about the Rwanda Genocide

Facts about the Rwanda Genocide are the key points one should note before they go on a tour to Rwanda so that one can know how it feels to lose those many people. The Rwanda genocide brought a lot of tears in the eyes of Rwandans and the world at large but in the end, it also made the country stronger by bringing the people close to one another as one group of people regardless of their tribes. While in Rwanda, you can participate in the Rwanda genocide tour to have a clear understanding of the 1994 Rwanda genocide that was known worldwide and Rwanda as a dark time for the people in Rwanda. You will also find out the different facts of the genocide that can be seen below;

Started officially after the death of juvenile Habyarimana’s death: Although mass killings of the Tutsis happened before the 1994 Rwanda genocide, after the death o the then president of Rwanda juvenile Habyarimana who was a Hutu and the Hutu president of Burundi and it is believed that the people that killed the president were of the Rwanda patriotic front which was headed by a Tutsi leader and the now president of Rwanda. To the Hutus with their estranged relationship with the Tutsis, it was like a driving factor for them to carry out the mass killings of the Tutsis.
The target group was the Tutsi: The Tutsis where the main target for the people that were killed in the genocide because of their wealth and social positions that they had over the Hutus, the Tutsis always occupied big positions in the country which the Hutus didn’t like so much they had accumulated a lot of wealth compared to the Hutu. And this led to their mass killings, the moderate Hutus were also killed in the long run, the ones that helped the Tutsis during the genocide by hiding them from the killers, providing food to them, the shelter and so on were also killed, the Twa a minority group in Rwanda with few numbers of people were also killed because the Hutu wanted to be the only existing group of people in the country they wanted to wipe away other races from the history of the country.
Rwanda Patriotic Front Spear Headed the End of the Genocide: The Rwanda patriotic front in the leadership of Fred Ryigema who was the commander of the Rwanda patriotic front who started the works of the front to put an end to the Rwanda genocide and the unjust rule of the Hutus in the country. After the death of Fred Ryigema, he was succeeded by his second in command Paul Kagame the now president of Rwanda who carried out surprise attacks on the Hutu who were carrying out the mass killings among other tactics to lessen their dominance and the numbers that were killing the innocent Tutsis and by July 15th 1994 the genocide ended with the help of the Rwanda patriotic front.
The local leaders in the villages organized the groups: Provincial leaders with the funding they got from the Hutu hardliners, they were able to carry out meetings with the Hutu youths where they received funding and given instructions on how to participate in the Rwanda genocide, they were also helpful in the inciting violence in the Hutu youths, they also organized training for equipping killing tactics to the Tutsis and at the end of the day they exercised the skills in the mass killings of the people.
That incited Violence: There were many means used to incite violence among the people and creating racial groups in the country, some of the means used to incite hatred in the people of Rwanda included media where the Rwanda television libre des mille collines created a lot of tension among the Hutu and the Tutsi. The propaganda of the radio station was anti-Tutsi this helped in inciting hatred and the violence in the Hutu youths that carried out the mass killings. In 1993 the government imported machetes from china which is supplied to the different youths during the Rwanda genocide to ease their work of carrying out the genocide.
Over a Million People Were killed: The Rwanda genocide tour will enable you to go to the various memorial sites where you will find out that many people lost their lives during the Rwanda genocide. This can be evident when you visit the different genocide memorial sites in the country that commemorate the lives of those that were killed during the genocide the sites include Bisesero, Gisozi genocide memorial sites, Kigali genocide memorial museum, Murambi genocide site among other sites where you will see the different displays of the remains of the people that were killed in the genocide and all over the country, it is estimated that over a million people were killed which was such a trying moment for them
The Hutus Received funding to carry out the genocide: Many Hutus that participated in the mass killings received funding from the high authorities of the Hutus in office some people blame the Hutu front-liners who provided them with killing equipment like the machetes, food, hand grenades, land where they used to practice and rest if they needed to, keep their killing equipment and so on. This increased the indulgence of the Hutus into carrying out the genocide because they were paid to do so. And because the genocide was well planned for, it was easy to carry out the mass killings.
It led to the formation of memorial sites. Mass killings of the Tutsis started before the outbreak of the genocide: It should be noted that the mass killings of the Tutsis didn’t happen only in the Rwanda genocide, it should be noted that it happened years before the outbreak of the genocide in 1994. There were always –tensions between the Hutu and the Tutsis because after the independence of Rwanda from Belgium, Tutsis fled the country because the Hutus had gained political dominance over the Tutsis. In 1959, the Hutus killed a number of Tutsis because they had a lot of wealth and high positions in the country, with the mass killing in the war the Hutu, took on the positions of the Tutsis and ended their dominance. There was always tension among the two races because they believe they were not ‘’Rwandan enough’’ they were the second group of people to settle in Rwanda after the Hutus and the original inhabitants the twas. And because of that and the reason of them being richer than the Hutu with high social status, it infuriated the Hutu more and this also was a factor for the outbreak of the genocide.