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The Assassination of President Juvenal Habyarimana Essay

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This investigation studies two of the causes of the 1994 genocide of Rwanda. The two causes are examined in order to see to what extent each contributed to the genocide. The social and ethnic conflicts between two Rwandan groups called the Hutus and the Tutsis caused violent disputes and riots. The assassination of President Juvenal Habyarimana is often thought of as the event that sparked the mass murders. Did the assassination of President Juvenal Habyarimana influence the Rwandan genocide of 1994 more than the ongoing social and ethnic conflicts?

Both the short and long term causes are studied. The genocide could have resulted from numerous built up problems or one specific event. It is clear that for hundreds of years, the Hutus …show more content…

It is important to study the immediate and gradual causes of the genocide. A good understanding of the devastating Rwandan genocide can help prevent a repeat of such violent events. There were numerous situations that led to the murders, but some could have had a greater impact than others. Two of the biggest causes of the genocide were the assassination of Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana and the hostility between the Hutus and Tutsis. The animosity between the two groups was built up over hundreds of years, while Habyarimana’s assassination was an incident that took place within hours of the beginning of the genocide. Habyarimana’s death seemed to be a trigger for the genocide, but the conflicts between the Hutus and Tutsis could have played an even larger role in the mass murders of thousands of Rwandans. The past relationship between the two groups must be studied in order to understand how they were able to reach a genocide.

The History of Rwanda

The first known inhabitants of Rwanda were the Twa. They may have been there as early as 30,000 B.C. The Hutus arrived sometime between the seventh and tenth century, and later the Tutsis arrived around the fourteenth century. The Hutus were the majority and made up about eighty-five percent of the population. The minorities were the Tutsis, who made up fourteen percent of the population and the Twa, who were about one

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