Name: ______
1994 Genocide in Rwanda- Questions
Rwanda is a relatively small country, with rich farmland, located near the center of Africa, just south of the equator and it is densely populated. Today, Rwanda is a thriving country, rich with natural resources and often visited by tourists. However, this wasn’t always true.
Rwanda has traditionally been made up of two major groups of peoples, the Hutus and the Tutsis. Hutus are in the majority and the Tutsis are the minority in Rwanda. The two groups share a common language and have common religions.
When Germany colonized Rwanda in the 1800s, they used upper-class Tutsis to help rule over lower-class Tutsi and Hutus. Over time, this created hard feelings between the Hutus and the Tutsis.
After the Germans lost World War I, control of Rwanda passed to the European country of Belgium. The Belgians kept in place the system of using the Tutsis to help run the country. Belgian began a process to “scientifically” identify and label Hutus and Tutsis. This created more of an ethnic divide between groups. Today, scientists dismiss these attempts to identify the two groups based on physical characteristics or any sort of “test.”
Rwanda gain independence from Belgian in 1962. Elections were held in Rwanda before the Belgians pulled out and Hutus were swept into power. Top officials in the Rwandan government – most of them Hutus – started to train informal, armed soldiers. Government officials also started a radio station that regularly broadcast hate-filled, anti-Tutsi propaganda.
A Rwandan rebel group largely consisting of Tutsi, called The Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) formed in nearby Uganda. On October 1, 1990, the RPF invaded Rwanda causing a civil war. A “final” cease fire was issued in 1993.
In 1994, hard feelings and the struggle for power, boiled over. Prior to 1994, Rwanda was probably best known outside of Africa for its mountain gorillas as depicted in the movie Gorillas in the Mist. After 1994, sadly, Rwanda becomes known for the unspeakable violence that unfolded that year.
On April 6, 1994, the President of Rwanda was assassinated when his plane was shot down. The violence in Rwanda escalated into genocide. (Genocide means the systematic killing of a racial or cultural group.) Over the next 100 days, spurred on by radio propaganda, Hutus killed thousands upon thousands of people, mostly Tutsi.
The movie, Hotel Rwanda, is about Paul Rusesabigina, a Hutu. He was the assistant manager of a hotel when the genocide broke out in 1994. The movie is based on the amazing, real-life story of what Mr. Rusesabigina did during this unimaginable horror and how he risked his own life to save hundreds of others’ lives.
- What is genocide?
- What were the causes of the genocide in Rwanda?
- Paul Rusesabagina is a Hutu; however as manager of the Sabena Hotel, he is concerned about both the Tutsi and Hutu peoples and the tension between them. Why is he concerned about both groups and not just his “own” group – the Hutus?
4.Why do many more refugees come to Paul’s Hotel?
- Who were the Interahamwe?
- Why was Paul bribing people of influence with money and alcohol?
- Why were Colonel Oliver (played by Nick Nolte) and the UN Peacekeeping forces unable to take assertive action against the Interahamwe?
- Why did Paul and the refugees have to turn back?
- In a last –ditch effortto save his family and refugees, what does Paul decide to do?
- How did Paul and the refugees finally escape the besieged hotel?
- Some consider this movie one of the most inspirational movies of all time, do you agree? Why or why not?
- What could you learn from this movie and apply to how you live your life?