RWANDA: POST-GENOCIDE RECONCILIATION AND DEVELOPMENT

PROFESSOR CHERYL BECKETT

The 1994 Genocide It is a crime against humanity to be

killed for being born.

“We are reminded of the capacity of

people everywhere . . .to slip into pure evil. We cannot abolish that capacity but we must never accept it. . . .Genocide can

occur anywhere. It is not an African phenomenon. We must have global

vigilance. And never again must we be shy in the face of the evidence.” President William J. Clinton

March 24, 1998

The Legal Challenge

• “There was no hope of a tomorrow. . . .Those not killed, fled. . . .Dogs and birds were everywhere, feeding off bodies.” “This was a total destruction of our social fabric. . . .Over 900,000 killed, over 200,000 needed to be tried and then convicted or acquitted. . .. But how could we do this?. . . The legal challenge was immense. . .there was no longer a legal system. . .all the prosecutors and judges were killed or fled.” Minister of Justice, Tharcisse Karugarama

Genocide Criminals

Four categories of criminals

1. Masterminds.

2. Local leaders promulgated the propaganda.

3. Spurred on by propaganda-killed many (genocidaires).

4. Did not kill, but led killers to victims; stole from victims.

Gacaca Courts

• Traditional community courts to handle social conflicts.

• Now used to handle Categories 2-4 genocide criminals.

• Judges elected by the community; trials in community where crimes occurred; sentences up to 30 years.

• Accused represent themselves; no lawyers.

• Reduced sentences in exchange for admission of guilt and information leading to victims and evidence.

Gacaca Courts

• Those accused of a Category 1 crime are not eligible for gacaca system; tried by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), a UN-mandated court in Arusha, Tanzania.

• If rape was a part of any Category 2-4 crime, then those accused are not eligible for gacaca; instead tried by formal criminal court in Rwanda.

Gacaca Courts

• Over 12,000 gacaca courts set up in some 750 villages.

• Criticized by Int’l Community.

• Function: Truth and Reconciliation

– Punish crimes committed during genocide

– Establish a truthful history

– Eliminate a “culture of impunity”

– Reconcile Rwandans with each other

Minister of Justice, Tharcisse Karugarama

The Legal Aid Forum

• Goal: A Rwanda where the indigent and vulnerable groups have equitable access to justice.

o A membership-based network of 34 organizations: 22 national NGOs/Trade Unions and 6 International NGOs/Organizations; the Bar Assoc. & the Corps of Judicial Defenders; 4 University Legal Aid Clinics.

Core Values of The Legal Aid Forum

• Establish Abunzi (binding mediation) throughout the country for social, property, family, and other civil disputes. – Respect People in their Diversities

– Accountability and Transparency

– Independence

– Innovation

– The Best Interests of the Member Organizations

RWANDA IN TRANSITION

• Economic Development- 7% economic growth (avg. nat’l income less than $50/month); in 2011 World Economic Forum ranked Rwanda first among E. African nations in economic innovation; 40% of Rwandans own cell phones, fewer than 10% own cars; potable water and sanitation remain major problems.

RWANDA IN TRANSITION

• 2003 Constitution includes fundamental human rights, no longer legal to identify as Tutsi, Hutu, or Twa; compulsory primary education (more than 50% of population is under age 20);working on compulsory secondary education provisions.

• Protective Legislation-gender mandates (more than 50% female Parliament), girls enrolled in secondary school same rate as boys, Gender Monitoring Office; fierce anti-corruption/transparency laws.

• Building Community- mandated monthly neighborhood projects.

UN Millennium Villages Project, Vision 2020 Umurenge Village, in the Bugesera

District • Many people live on less than the equivalent

of $1.00 per day.

• The UN Millennium Villages Project (MVP)is an African-wide partnership of the UNDP, the Earth Institute at Columbia University, Millennium Promise, ten African governments, and a variety of private donors.

• Objective: Economic development over the course of five years.

Gashora

• In Rwanda, the MVP has been working in various Districts since 2005. With this success, the Gov’t has now designated the poorest village in every Rwandan District to copy the UN Model under the title Vision 2020 Umurenge.

• Gashora is the designated poorest village in Bugesera District, severely affected by the genocide, ecological disaster, and extreme poverty.

Development in Gashora

• Corn grown for self-sufficiency and to be sent for hunger relief projects (Somalia).

• School for girls focusing on math, science, and economics.

• Basket-weaving and pottery cooperatives.

• Health clinic.

• Coffee and tea cooperatives.

Kanembwe

• Founded two years ago, currently houses just over 300 families - relocated from major forest located on the mountain chain that is known as the Congo-Nile Divide.

• In Busigari cell near Gisenyi in northwestern Rwanda.

• Intense agricultural use and heavy rains resulted in frequent landslides and loss of land and lives.

Kanembwe

• In an effort to protect the lives of these people and the environment, the Gov’t relocated the people to Kanembwe, which is in a different sector.

• Offered wood to build houses, but only a fraction of the land they owned in the forest. The land is not suited for agriculture- made up of volcanic rock.

Kanembwe

• Sanitation is a major problem-- no plumbing, no electricity.

• Closest water source and health clinic is more than a half-day walk away.

• School available only up to fourth grade level.

Les Enfants de Dieu

• Unique project for street children modeled after the Rwandan Gov’t into seven ministerial offices with the children making decisions through their ministries on matters regarding education, sports, culture, their farm, purchases, etc.

• Compound effect of War, Poverty, HIV/AIDS (in 1998 70% of pop. HIV positive).

• The number of homeless children exceeds the capacity of adoptions and community support groups.

Les Enfants de Dieu

• Mission: To effect a transformation in the lives of Rwandan street children by alleviating their hardships and providing them with opportunities to mature into valued and respected individuals who can be integrated into society and can contribute their skills, knowledge, and ideas.

• “We have many needs, but not all needs are priorities.” Student Prime Minister.

• Director- Rafiki Callixte- former Rwandan lawyer.

STREET SCENES

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The Countryside

Active, Dormant, and Extinct Volcanoes

Tea and Coffee Plantations

Hotel Milles Collines

The real “Hotel Rwanda”