Genocide

A lot has been said, and even more has been written, about the 1994 Rwandan Genocide. Some blame the Germans for consciously creating a hierarchical difference between the Hutus and the Tutsis, others blame the Belgians for fostering this policy and further aggravating the difference, and then there’s the current Rwandan administration who blame the French for backing the Hutu militias. However, blaming certain groups does not change history and certainly does nothing to change the fact that the entire world allowed 1 million Rwandans to kill each other in 100 days without as much as lifting a finger to stop it. Are the Rwandan’s also to blame? Of course they are, but I’m afraid that, ultimately, privileged society has never understood, nor can they even comprehend today the catastrophic influence they wield over the vulnerable people of the world. The pictures below are of the Genocide Memorial in Kigali. The concrete slabs cover the final resting place for 250,000 genocide victims, only a quarter of the total killed.


Rwanda has made an astounding economic recovery, but I cannot even imagine the physical and emotional scars that will linger for generations from this pinnacle of human tragedy. Kigali (the Capital) is a remarkably clean and orderly city that achieved 10% economic growth last year; they have even gone as far as banning the use of plastic bags in the entire country, both of which are unprecedented on this continent.I am desperately trying to believe in some leader, or some government, here that actually cares about the people more than enriching themselves or their cronies. They are hard to come by and Uganda’s Museveni is certainly not one of them. I have admired the practicality and confidence that the President of Rwanda, Paul Kagame, has shown in reviving his country, yet it is almost certain that much of Rwanda’s recovery has occurred through the systematic raping of the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s vast mineral resources. Don't even get me started on the idiotic African policies that the United States has implented: pick any corrupt leader past or present, and guaranteed the US has backed him at one point or another. It's truly detestable. The problem with trying to believe in someone or something is that there is always another version of the story that is far less appealing than you wanted or expected. I will keep searching in hopes that other countries and other leaders will follow the example of Ghana, for instance, who is in the midst of completing another free election, the third since 1992, where the former leader actually stepped down peacefully upon completion of the allowable two terms. Go Ghana!!