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Rwanda Genocide Research Paper

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Rwanda Genocide Research Paper
The Rwandan Genocide was a genocide, or the deliberate killing of a large group of people, that took place in the East African country of Rwanda from April 1994 through July 1994. While not many people are aware of the Rwandan Genocide, it greatly impacted world history. The Rwandan Genocide influenced world history by causing the death of the majority of the Tutsi people, the establishment of the International Criminal Tribunal, and the spread of HIV in Rwanda and the surrounding area.
The racial tensions that fueled the mass killing of the Tutsi people began long before April 1994. The majority Hutu and minority Tutsi and Twa people of Rwanda lived in relative peace until their country came under Belgian rule in 1916. In an effort to retaliate …show more content…
The goal of the Rwandan Patriot Front was to return Tutsi refugees to Rwanda. When the Rwandan Patriot Front attacked Rwanda in October of 1990, all Tutsis within Rwanda were labeled accomplices of the Rwandan Patriot Front. Despite efforts to establish peace, the Rwandan Patriot Front and the Rwandan Government continued to attack each other. On April 6, 1944 the Presidents of Burundi and Rwanda died in a plane crash caused by a rocket attack. As soon as the next day, mass killings of Tutsi people began. It is estimated that nearly one million people were killed in the Rwandan Genocide (United Nations, n.d.). The Genocide ended when the Rwandan Patriot Front gained control of the Rwandan Government in July of 1944. Many Hutus then fled Rwanda, seeking refuge in Congo.
As a result of the Rwandan Genocide, the majority of the Tutsi population was killed. The Tutsi people were targeted by the Rwandan Government because of their association with the Rwandan Patriot Front, the group blamed for the deaths of the Presidents of Burundi and Rwanda. According to the United Nations, more than 75% of the Tutsi population was killed (The United Nations, n.d.). This influences world history because the Genocide nearly eliminated a culture and a population that was already a …show more content…
During the Rwandan Genocide, women were often the subjects of sexual assault and rape. According to Binaifer Nowrojee of the Women's Rights Project,”Victims of sexual abuse during the genocide suffer persistent health problems. According to Rwandan doctors, the most common problem they have encountered among raped women who have sought medical treatment has been sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS,” (Nowrojee, 1996). This influenced world history because this caused about 10% of the Rwandan population, a very large amount, to be living with HIV/AIDS, (Nowrojee,
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