Civil Wars of Rwanda and Burundi
The civil wars of Rwanda and Burundi stem from deep-seated ethnic tensions primarily between the Hutu and Tutsi peoples, who have historically had contrasting roles in society, with the Tutsi being the landowners and the Hutu comprising the majority population. Colonial rule by the Germans and Belgians exacerbated these divisions by favoring the Tutsi monarchy, leading to significant resentment among Hutus. As both nations approached independence in the late 1950s, violence erupted, particularly in Rwanda, where thousands of Tutsis sought refuge abroad. The Hutu political ascent culminated in the abolition of the Tutsi monarchy in Rwanda, while in Burundi, the Tutsi elite maintained control until a coup in 1966.
The situation escalated dramatically in 1994 with the Rwandan genocide, where an estimated 800,000 Tutsis and Hutu sympathizers were killed within a few months, initiated by extremist factions following the assassination of President Juvénal Habyarimana. The Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), formed by Tutsi exiles, launched a counter-offensive and seized control of the country, leading to a mass exodus of Hutu refugees fearing reprisals. Meanwhile, Burundi has continued to experience cycles of violence rooted in the same ethnic strife, contributing to ongoing instability in the region. The aftermath of these conflicts has included attempts at reconciliation and the establishment of a more stable governance framework in Rwanda, while Burundi remains affected by persistent ethnic tensions.
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Civil Wars of Rwanda and Burundi
At issue: Hutu and Tutsi struggles for national supremacy
Date: Beginning in 1959
Location: Rwanda and Burundi
Combatants: Force Armées Rwandaises (FAR) vs. the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF)
Principal commanders:FAR, Colonel Théoneste Bagosora (Hutu); RPF, Major General Paul Kagame (Tutsi), Major General Fred Rwigyema (Tutsi)
Principal battles: Ruhengeri, Kigali
Result: Victory of the Tutsi-backed RPF in 1994 in Rwanda; ongoing dominance of the Tutsi government in Burundi
Background
The major fault line in the civil wars of both Rwanda and Burundi resides in the long-standing differences between the predominantly agricultural Hutu and the cattle-herding Tutsi peoples. The latter migrated into the Great Lakes highland region during the 1400’s to 1500’s and became the landowning class in what is now Rwanda and Burundi. Hutus remained by far the majority of the population, however, constituting about 85 percent of the people in the area. When the German and Belgian governments formed colonies in the region, they ruled through the Tutsi monarchy, aggravating the resentments among Hutus and Tutsis.
As independence drew near, the Tutsi elite sought to continue control over both Rwanda and Burundi. In Burundi, they were successful, but in Rwanda, the Hutus organized a political party dedicated to Hutu emancipation. This party succeeded in becoming the majority party in Rwanda, owing to its successful demands for a democratic election in which the Hutus enjoyed a huge advantage that led to the abolition of the Tutsi monarchy. In Burundi, however, the Tutsi monarchy (which was eventually toppled by a Tutsi army coup in 1966) remained in firm control, and hope of unifying the two countries under a Hutu-majority government faded.
When serious discussions toward independence began in 1959, largely spontaneous civil conflict emerged in both Rwanda and Burundi. In Rwanda, thousands of Tutsis fled the country for safety. This stream of refugees continued after independence in 1962, when the Hutus formally took control of the government. Another outburst of intertribal animosity took place in both Rwanda and Burundi in 1972–1973. In Burundi, 100,000 Hutus and 10,000 Tutsis were killed, and tens of thousands of Burundian Hutus fled as refugees. In Rwanda, the violence was less severe, but thousands of additional Tutsi refugees fled into neighboring countries, bringing the total to about 300,000 refugees. In 1975, following the outburst of Hutu-Tutsi violence in 1972–1973, Major General Juvénal Habyarimana overthrew Rwanda’s elected government, establishing a period of relative stability that lasted until 1990. Meanwhile, the Rwandan Tutsi refugee community, many having served in the successful guerrilla army of Yoweri Museveni, in neighboring Uganda, formally established the Rwandese Patriotic Front (RPF) in 1987. Fueled by support from Museveni, its leaders Major Generals Paul Kagame and Fred Rwigyema began a long guerrilla campaign to reclaim control of their country. The campaign intensified in 1992.
Action
Because the war in Rwanda was a civil war, classical battles were rarely fought. The RPF was far-better disciplined and trained than the government’s Forces Armées Rwandaises (FAR). The latter enjoyed support among the majority Hutu population, which feared the Tutsi-dominated RPF. Having had experience fighting in Uganda’s successful National Resistance Movement (NRM), the RPF could not initially overmatch the FAR, but, on the other hand, their hit-and-run tactics were very successful. In March, 1991, they captured Ruhengeri for a time and then withdrew. The FAR and local Hutu leaders retaliated by massacring local Tutsi civilians. This ominous pattern foreshadowed the later genocide.
In 1992, facing the devastating economic effect of the civil war, President Juvénal Habyarimana decided to seek a cease-fire with the RPF. While the majority of Hutus welcomed this, extremists were shocked that Habyarimana would negotiate with the Tutsi-dominated RPF, and they began organizing quietly to resist any peace plan that would accommodate Tutsis. Private militias, including the Interahamwe, were formed. Together with elements of the FAR, these groups would conduct a genocide. After Habyarimana signed the Arusha Peace Accords with the RPF in 1993, opposition within his own party increased. Colonel Théoneste Bagosora, among others, led the opposition to Habyarimana, who was killed after his plane was shot down on April 6, 1994, probably by Hutu extremists. The genocide was unleashed immediately
As many as 800,000 Tutsis and Hutu sympathizers were slaughtered in the succeeding months, while the international community called for a cease-fire. The RPF, realizing that it could not expect any international help to stop the genocide, unleashed a determined campaign to capture Kigali, Rwanda’s capital, and overthrow the murderous Hutu regime, which itself was in disarray after Habyarimana’s death. This disarray gave extremist Hutu elements the ability to unleash the Interahamwe’s killing spree, but they formed no basis for a stable government. The battle-tested RPF, on the other hand, fought with determination and purpose, and by July, it had captured the entire country. More than a million Hutu refugees fled into Tanzania and the Congo, fearing Tutsi reprisals. The perpetrators of the genocide fled with them and continued to exercise control over them in refugee camps along the border.
Aftermath
The RPF eventually established a stable and more peaceful environment in Rwanda, and after two years in exile, the vast majority of the Hutu refugees had returned by 1996. Many fled instabilities in the Congo owing to a civil war precipitated there by Congolese Tutsis unhappy with the destabilizing presence of Hutu refugees in their regions. War crimes trials resulted in some prosecutions of Hutu leaders of the genocide. Rwanda became embroiled in an ongoing civil war in the Congo in the late 1990’s, while Burundi continues to be shaken by Hutu-Tutsi violence.
Bibliography
Adelman, Howard, and Astri Suhrke. The Path of Genocide: The Rwanda Crisis from Uganda to Zaire. London: Transaction, 1999.
Klinghoffer, Arthur Jay. The International Dimensions of Genocide in Rwanda. New York: New York University Press, 1998.
Lemarchand, René. Rwanda and Burundi. New York: Praeger, 1970.
Prunier, Gerard. The Rwanda Crisis: History of a Genocide. New York: Columbia University Press, 1997.
Rwanda/Zaire: Rearming with Impunity: International Support for the Perpetrators of the Rwanda Genocide. New York: Human Rights Watch, 1995.