Occasional Paper #13:OP:1

by Christophe Kougniazonde
 

This paper invites a political and historical reading of African conflicts. It argues that the Rwandan genocide of 1994 is neither the outcome of miscalculation by the élites or some `ethnicity habit,' nor the absurd product of `biological fatality or spontaneous bestial outburst.' It is an outcome of the long-standing power struggles between Hutu and Tutsi, set at each other's throats by the colonial administrations and the Catholic church. The seeds of the ideology of ethnic hatred grew, with complicity from the élites, into clashing nationalisms.

Anchored in this historical perspective, the paper surveys the root causes of the Rwandan madness and what is to be done about it. It suggests that only collective hegemony, through inter-cultural communication and mutual empowerment, rather than gunboat peace, may help remove the genocidal seeds and heal the wounds. The success of this policy requires the international community to develop a politics of race-neutral empathy by resolutely expanding the notion of those for whom we care.

Christophe Kougniazonde is a Ph.D. candidate in Government & International Studies at the University of Notre Dame. He is currently completing a dissertation on "Militarization and Political Violence in Tropical Africa." He is from Benin, West Africa.