On
6 April 1994, the President of Rwanda, a Hutu, was killed in a missile attack
on his aircraft. This led to the murder of the Prime Minister who was a Tutsi
- and to the failure of the UN peacekeeping mission. Thereupon, an organised massacre
of the minority Tutsi community and moderate Hutus started. 10
years later, the film "Hotel Rwanda" depicts the true-life story of
Paul Rusesabagina, a hotel manager who housed over a thousand Tutsis refugees
during their struggle against the Hutu militia. This
tragic genocide is also topic of essays and books, here some recommended reads.
Online
essay with further links: The
roots of the conflict
Stories
from Rwanda, by Philip Gourevitch: We
wish to Inform you that tomorrow we will be killed with our families
A
book by R. Dallaire, head of the UN mission: Shake
hands with the devil
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