“The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference. The opposite of art is not ugliness, it's indifference. The opposite of faith is not heresy, it's indifference. And the opposite of life is not death, it's indifference.” -Elie Wiesel, Holocaust Survivor

Genocide?After the systematic killings of millions of Jews in Europe during the Holocaust, Raphael Lemkin (Jewish scholar) gave the atrocities a name: GENOCIDE

Defined as being…Genocide is a term created during the Holocaust and declared an

international crime in the 1948 United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. The Convention defines genocide as any of the following acts committed with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such:

a. Killing members of the group;b. Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;c. Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; d. Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;e. Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.

The specific "intent to destroy" particular groups is unique to genocide. A closely related category of international law, crimes against humanity, is defined as widespread or systematic attacks against civilians.

• After the Holocaust the world said NEVER AGAIN.

• It happened again… and again…and again…and again…it’s still happening today.

Picture of the memorial at Dachau Concentration Camp in Germany.

The countries on the next slide are ones that either CURRENTLY are

engaging in genocide or are at risk…

Country Genocide Watch April 2010

7-Current Massacres Victims Killers

DR Congo 7 Women, civilians, Congo Tutsis Ex-Rwandan genocidists, LRA

Sudan 7 Darfurese, southerners Sudan army,Arab militias

Somalia 7 Opposing clans Al Shabaab

Afghanistan 7 Gov’t supporters Taliban, Al Queda

Pakistan 7 Gov’t supporters Taliban, Al Queda

North Korea 7 Gov’t opponents Korean Army

Burma 7 Shan, Karen, Rohinga, democrats

Burmese Army

Ethiopia 7 Gov’t opponents Tigrean Army

6-Potential Massacres

Nigeria 6 Ethnic, religious Ethnic, religious

PRChina 6 Falun Gong, Uighers Chinese army

Yemen 6 North Yemen South Yemen

Colombia 6 Gov’t officials Drug gangs, FARC

Equatorial Guinea 6 Bubi minority Gov’t police

Uganda, Eastern Congo, Sudan

6 Civilians Lord’s Resistance Army

Chad 6 Zaghawas Sudanese raiders

Central Afr. Rep. 6 African farmers Arab militias

5-Polarization

Iraq 5 Kurds, Shia, Sunni Ethnic, religious

Iran 5 Bahais, Sunnis Revolution Guard

Zimbabwe 5 Matabele Shona

Sri Lanka 5 Tamils Sinhalese

Nepal 5 Royalists Maoists

Guinea 5 Democrats Guinea Army

Uzbekistan 5 Tajiks Uzbek Army

Egypt 5 Copts Islamists

Kenya 5 Luos, Kikuyus Kikuyus, Luos

Côte d’Ivoire 5 Northerners Southerners

Burundi 5 Tutsis, Hutus Hutu extremists

Angola 5 Cabindans Angolan Army

Algeria 5 Berbers Algerian Army

Philippines 5 Gov’t supporters Abu Sayyef, Moro

Lebanon 5 Christians, Druze Hezbollah

Bosnia 5 Bosnian Muslims Serbs

Israel/Palestine 5 Palestinians/Jews Israelis/Hamas

India 5 Muslims Hindu Extremists

Indonesia 5 Christians Islamists

South Africa 5 Boers/refugees Black racists

Russia 5 Ingush,Chechens Russian Army

Rwanda: 1994• Between April and June 1994 an estimated ONE

MILLION Rwandans were killed…

• …in 100 days

The world did nothing to stop it

Rwanda: Background• Rwanda was a Belgian colony until 1962• There were two predominant ethnic groups in

Rwanda: the Hutus and the Tutsis• When the Belgian’s arrived in 1916 they made

and had all Rwandans carry identity cards which classified them according to their ethnicity

• The Belgians preferred the Tutsis (they thought they were superior to the Hutus)

Tutsis vs. Hutus (Ethnicity)• Tutsis are said to be taller, thinner with their

roots in Ethiopia• The Hutus are said to have their roots in Chad• The Belgian’s thought the Tutsis were superior

so they gave them better jobs/educational opportunities, put them as overseers to the Hutus (European colonial powers creating a divide between two ethnicities…sound familiar?)

• The Hutus did not like this • There was a tension between the two ethnic

groups as a result of this Belgian imposed status

Belgium Leaves…• In 1962 Belgium relinquished power and left Rwanda• The Hutus took control (there was a series of revolts and

uprisings prior to Belgium leaving)• Over the next few decades (decade = 10 years) many

Hutus blamed the Tutsis for everything, they were the scapegoats

• This is a result of the resentment the Hutus built up for the Tutsis when they were the ‘preferred’ ethnic group by the Belgian’s

• Some RADICAL Hutu’s have some repressed animosity toward Tutsi minority– Not all Tutsi’s and Hutu’s hated one another, in many cases they

were neighbors, coworkers, friends or even relatives by marriage

A Nail in the Coffin…• The Hutu president’s airplane was shot down

(Habyarimana) killing the president and other officials• Who do you think was blamed for this assasination?• The Tutsis.…within hours of the president being killed the retribution

and mass killing of Tutsi CIVILIANS began…((It is commonly believed that it was actually a Hutu

extremist who shot the plane down to incite the genocide))

Cockroaches• The presidential guard and radio propaganda

encouraged Hutus to mobilize• The radio broadcasts called for a final war to

‘exterminate the cockroaches’… during the genocide it gave names of Tutsis and instructed the killers on where to find them

• The Interahamwe was the main Hutu group carrying out the killings

• The US evacuates all Americans and all French, Italian, and Belgians are evacuated by troops from their countries…those troops did not stay to help the conflict. They did not stay to stop the genocide.

Weapons of Mass Destruction• The Hutus primarily used machetes, clubs, sticks, grenades

and guns to carry out their mass genocide• Some of the worst massacres took place in churches• The cries for help from the Tutsis and those UN

peacekeepers on the ground went unheeded• The world watched as one-tenth of the Rwandan population

was executed• The Tutsis were helpless.• No one does anything while innocent men, women and

children are being killed every second of every day• Often times the Hutu’s who participated in the genocide were

civilians promised Tutsi land/fields (crops to feed their families)…they frequently had to kill their OWN Tutsi neighbors and friends

((pause to hear testimony of survivors))

Machetes used in the attacks

TimelineApril 7: 8,000April 9: 32,000April 15: 64,000April 16: 72,000April 19: 100,000April 21,22: 112,000April 25: 144,000April 27: 160,000April 28: 168,000May 1: 200,000May 3: 216,000May 5: 232,000May 13: 296,000May 17: 328,000May 25: 392,000June 22: 616,000

July 17: Day 100: Between 800,000-1 MILLION RWANDANS KILLED

The Genocide Ends…in Rwanda

• The genocide of the Hutus against the minority Tutsis ends with the Tutsi RPF (RPF: Rwandan Patriotic Front– Tutsi exiles and descendents, refugees)

• The RPF took over Kigali (the capital), the Hutu govt collapsed and a ceasefire was established

• An International Tribunal in Tanzania has been established to try the higher up officials who participated in the genocide…

• Since the atrocities 34 have been convicted and there are still roughly 30 on trial

“Between 800,000 and 1,071,00 Tutsis, including

some moderate Hutus, were murdered.

Many more were mutilated, maimed or physically

scarred for life. The mental anguish and the trauma cannot be

measured” – Holocaust Memorial

Museum

What can WE do?

??

What about

DARFUR?

Resources• BBC has very comprehensive Rwandan genocide resourceshttp://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/3594187.stmhttp://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/africa/2004/rwanda/default.stm

• The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum has fantastic resources on genocide

http://www.ushmm.org/genocide/take_action/genocide

• Hotel Rwanda is an excellent movie BUT you need to watch it with a parent/guardian

• Ghosts of Rwanda is a documentary on the genocide but is very difficult to watch and again, you need to watch it with a parent/guardian and I would advise waiting until you are older so you can fully process everything