RwandaGenocide or Civil War Essay Example For Students

RwandaGenocide or Civil War Essay The current state of affairs in Rwanda constitutes a catastrophe that never should have happened. Unfortunately, it has happened, but do the circumstances and outcomes warrant using the term genocide? Based on facts about the ethnic make up of Rwanda, there is abundant proof that this is actually a case of violent, ongoing civil wars, and the use of the term genocide is not justified. The major crime problem in Rwanda since 1994 has been mass murder, officially know as genocide, which has been prevalent in this country in the mist of years of civil war. Genocide is defined as the methodically planned eradication of a racial, political, or cultural group. The United Nations (1998) has declared in the Convention on the Punishment and Prevention of the Crime of Genocide of 1946, that genocide means any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group (p. 1). Genocide represents a horror so special that the term has previously been used to described only two events in the twentieth century: the massacre of Armenians by Turks in 1915, and the Nazi Holocaust against the Jews. The United Nations (1998) stated that any persons committing genocide or any of the other acts enumerated in article III shall be punished(2). The Convention on the Punishment and Prevention of the Crime of Genocide hammere d out the statutes concerning genocide, which went into force January 12, 1951. These are still considered law. How or what the specific punishment is or should be is not defined in these articles. Since most members of the United Nations do not practice the death penalty, the most common punishment for genocide is life in prison without parole. The population of Rwanda is estimated at 8,154,933 (Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), 1999, p.2). Rwanda is one of the most densely populated countries in Africa, with the approximate population density of 302 persons per square kilometer (Rwanda, 2000 p.1). A majority of Rwandans live in a rural setting. There are three main ethnic groups that make up the population: the Hutu (approximately 80 percent), the Tutsi (around 19 percent), noted as primarily farmers and cattle herders, and the Twa (1 percent), a pygmoid people thought to be the original inhabitants of the region (CIA, 1999, p.3). The religions of Rwanda include Catholicism, Protestant, Islam, and other indigenous beliefs (Rwanda, 2000 p 1). Most Rwandans live in round grass huts in farms scattered over the countrys many hills. Family life is central to society (Rwanda, 2000 p 1). Rwanda is a landlocked, mountainous country in east central Africa. The neighboring countries include Uganda to the north, Tanzania to the east, Burundi to the south, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which borders Rwanda to the west (Rwanda, 2000 p.1). Rwanda is one of Africas smallest countries, covering an area of only 10,169 square miles (Rwanda, 2000 p.1). The government of Rwanda is a multiparty democracy with a limited presidential term. Agriculture, manufacturing, and trade compose the majority of the economy. Close to one half of the land is used for farming coffee, tea, beans, potatoes, sorghum, bananas, and livestock. The natural resources of Rwanda are reserves of gold, beryl, cassiterite (tin ore), wolframite (tungsten ore) and methane (natural gas). Due to the dense population with terrible poverty and tense ethnic composition, there have been pressures to boost exports to make up for the amounts of imported products need to survive. This puts a strain on the la borers of Rwanda to increase the amount of goods produced for export in order to pay for all the imports.According to the CIA (1999), 1998 records list the country of Rwanda debt was $1.2 billion (p. 7). The economic strain places the Tutsi and the Hutu at even greater level of hostility. This strain is due in part to the fact that the Hutu are the majority and are predominantly agriculturist. The Tutsi, on the other hand, are primarily cattle herders. In this society owning cattle is a symbol of superior status. Computer, Internet, Privacy INTERNET REGULATION: POLICING CYBERSPACE T EssayThere have been some speculations as to whether the people being charged are the ones truly responsible for the injustices. Hutu extremists have long been thought responsible for killing Habyarimana in a bid to sabotage his efforts to implement a power-sharing deal with the Tutsis (Cohen, 2000, p.1). Are the Rwandans trying the right people for the crime committed?There are several proposed solutions for the problems of the ethnic conflict in Rwanda. First, Rwandan and international authorities should deal more openly with ethnic issues. Secondly, Rwanda and the international community should accept a degree of voluntary social and/or ethnic segregation in some areas of Rwanda. Another solution would be for the United Nations and their allies to show a stronger presence in Rwanda to help settle disputes until Rwanda is able to establish a system that works for that country. An additional solution to Rwandas problems is to establish a more organized and monitored employment structure. A further resolution to Rwandas tribulations would be to set up a type of reeducation camp, held by the U.N. to help teach Rwandans about their humanitarian rights. The best solution would be, for the United Nations and its members, to relieve Rwanda of its debts and send as much relief support as possible to enable Rwanda to get on its feet and start over. This might not be feasible in application, but in theory it is what Rwanda needs, as well as better ethnic relations. The notion that genocide was committed in Rwanda ultimately rests upon the argument that the 1994 massacres were pre-planned military operations. The kills were more accurately a retaliatory response to the killing of the president than premeditated genocidal killings. There is no proof of the deliberate plan to wipe-out the Tutsis or the Hutus. True enough there were unnecessary mass killings of different ethnic groups, and genocide was a part of the bloody civil war, but there are no findings that point to an all out genocidal killing of either ethnic group. Americans killed each other during our Civil War, but we do not look at it as The Genocide between the North and South. It was just a war, as is this injustice. Bibliography: