August 2015, I found myself in the beautiful Central African Republic of Rwanda. It was my first time of visiting any other African country other than the one I reside in. As you can imagine I was excited but not only because of the new experience but for the awesome camp I would be participating in for three short weeks.
Whiles in Rwanda I got the chance to visit the memorial for the genocide. Seeing the gory details graphically really set me thinking. What does it mean when a genocide occurs? What causes a genocide? And in the wake of a genocide what follows? Does it have only negative effects or can it also drastically change our society for the better? What are the sociological implications of a genocide? And finally how does genocide affect the way the world views a people and their society?
For starters, a genocide is an act that wipes out a whole race, generation or breed of people. Often at times we misunderstand the fact that a genocide is not just a matter of a single event where soldiers dressed in fancy uniforms bearing state-of-the-art weapons shooting at a hoard of running people. In reality, a genocide is not one singular occurrence, no, far from it. It is a buildup of events leading to a climax and a very depressing, morbid insalubrious anticlimax.
A genocide often begins with any situation where there are differences in class or ethnicity on the basis of economic or social distinguishers. A good example of this is in post-World War I period in Germany, when most Jews were mostly unaffected by the severe economic conditions in the country whiles non-Jews were severely affected with some spending nearly all their savings on a single loaf of bread. It was the same in Rwanda where The Belgians favoured the wealthy and influential Tutsis placing them in positions of power and mandate whereas the Hutus who were originally farmers and had very little mandate before the arrival of The Belgians were kept as laborers, oppressed and suppressed. Often at times differences that are exaggerated or emphasized tend to create and deepen depressions amongst people which then results in a cycle I like to describe as a cycle of hatred. The cycle of hatred begins with discrimination on the basis of economic and social class differences, and then the tender embers of dislike which are quickly fed by distrust and ethnic and racial differences to become full-blown hatred which after years of evolution develops into what we term as genocide. Sometimes, it may not even be because of unfair and unequal distribution of wealth in a state or economy but as a result of the fact that a race of people a stand between another factions chance of getting richer, a genocide is bound to happen.
We see an instance of this with the Native American Genocide which occurred as a result of the not very caring Indians who were compelled by disease and mass murder to surrender their land which was abundant in resources greatly in demand in the never ending hunger of Europe. Parallelism to this situation is seen in the pygmy genocide which occurred in Congo around the 1998 and 2003 where they stand in the way of the government expanding its resource base. The main issue is that they reside in the forests which provide over 25 million dollars’ worth of forest products mainly timber. They had the option of kill pygmies and get rich or deny yourself and allow them live. What they chose? I am sure we all know.
Irrespective of what causes a genocide, often at times the effects tend to be dire and severe that last for years to come. As the rivers of Uganda and Burundi flowed crimson from the spilt blood in Rwanda and the Aborigines mourned for their stolen children, such periods of time can be described as the darkest times in the history of such people even darker than The Black Death. Most people are left emotionally and physically scarred and never heal. The most shocking thing about genocides is how unexpected it is. In the case of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, it was most surprising since the Hutu and Tutsi were merely name tags as they both had the same culture and traditions. It is extremely sad as ethnocentrism, which we don’t give much thought to can evolve into something as profound as a genocide. What often surprises me is the power of brainwashing. Other times the presence of inequalities makes brainwashing easy, thus all the blame cannot be lamed upon the brainwasher since to each man is given free will. Nelson Mandela had the chance to start a completely justified war but since he had free will which we are glad can only be influenced by ourselves, he didn’t. And thank God too!
When the dust has settled and the perpetrators gradually see the horrid picture they have put together the only thing they can do is hide their face in shame and wonder what went wrong. The victims are too distraught and hurt to fathom all that is happening as they are standing there hungry, diseased and broken. The confusion and retrogression that ensues as a product of genocide is intriguing. What is even more incredible is how a people or a country can shake the dust off their feet and pick up the remains, string them together and rebuild their nation. My visit to Rwanda left me in awe since the only image I ever had of Rwanda was the one I had seen in Hotel Rwanda starring Don Cheadle. I was obviously shocked at the spotless streets and law abiding nature of the citizens. Seeing how far Rwanda has come after over ten years after genocide begs the question whether genocide can bring positive effects. I like to think of it as the Rwandan renaissance after a Rwandan dark age. In Europe, during the 15th Century there was economic decline, disease and above all mass death which was followed by a burst of new creative energy and boom. It sounds very sinister to think that a genocide can be associated with anything positive, yet it is true to a certain extent. The economy of Rwanda is healthier than most economies in Africa despite the relatively short period of political and social stability. In the words of a Rwandan, “The country retrogressed to an extent that Rwandans cannot see anywhere to move on the scale of development except forward.” The economic, social and political change that has taken place amongst the people and in the country as a whole is phenomenal. There are no longer any class divisions and segregations and the spirit of unity that binds them, I believe, is the sordid memory of the 1994 genocide.
Whether a genocide is considered a good or bad occurrence that is up to our individual discretion and opinions. However, every single individual will agree that a genocide is a gruesome, vexatious and complex event and is a grave crime against humanity. Well, at least, it is capable of teaching the following generations the importance and need for us to embrace diversity and avoid segregation on any bases at all cost.
By:Isabelle Quaye