UN General Assembly Moves to Recognise Hutus Killed in Rwandan Genocide

The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has adopted a resolution seeking the recognition of Hutus who were killed in the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

In 2018, the General Assembly adopted a decision designating 7 April as the International Day of Reflection on the 1994 ‘Genocide against the Tutsi’ in Rwanda.

Introducing the decision, Rwanda’s Ambassador Valentine Rugwabiza said the resolution sought to “correct inaccuracies” in the Assembly’s 2003 resolution establishing the International Day of Reflection on the 1994 ‘Genocide in Rwanda’.

She said the new resolution captured the historical facts of what happened in 1994 — genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda — and left no room for ambiguity.

“The tactics of genocide denial and revisionism were well known and documented.  Some people promoted the theory of double genocide in the futile belief that it might divert their own responsibility.  The more than 1 million people who perished in the genocide were killed in the most horrendous conditions because they belonged to a group that was dehumanized and targeted for total extermination,” she asserted.

US, UK Letters

However, after intense mobilisation and lobbying by activists and opposition members in the diaspora, the General Assembly this April passed a resolution seeking a review of the text, “1994 genocide against the Tutsi” to capture Hutus who were also killed in the slaughter.

“We strongly support the remembrance of victims of the 1994 Rwandan genocide and believe it is important to ensure that these commemorations recognise all victims,” said UK in a letter to Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, President of the United Nations General Assembly.

“Whilst we did not break silence on the text, we would like to use this opportunity to express some reservations on the text. These reservations relate to the substance – we disagree with the framing of the genocide purely as the “1994 genocide against the Tutsi”. As noted in previous resolutions, we believe that Hutus and others who were killed should also be recognised.’”

Previous calls by sections of the media and activists to recognise Hutus during the genocide have been met with stiff resistance by the Rwandan government.

The UK was supported by United States, which said, it was “concerned that changes made to the text – starting in 2018 and extended today – narrow the focus of the resolution to the Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, and fail to fully capture the magnitude of the violence that was committed against other groups.”

Ambassador Kelly Craft, Permanent Representative of the U.S. Mission to the United Nations, said, “Many Hutu and others were also killed during the genocide, including those murdered for their opposition to the atrocities that were being committed.  Failing to honor and remember these victims presents an incomplete picture of this dark part of history.”

He added: “Revising the language used to describe past genocides sets a dangerous precedent and risks leading to revisiting other days of reflection.  We support the resolution’s overall aim to reflect on the genocide in Rwanda, but also must underscore that our understanding of the circumstances of the genocide in Rwanda has not changed.”

ChimpReports has learned that African states, including Uganda, backed the resolution “on principle” when it was taken to the General Assembly for a vote.

More than 800,000 people – overwhelmingly Tutsi, but also moderate Hutu and others who opposed the genocide – were systematically killed in less than three months.

The United States said it “firmly believes that respect for all human rights, including freedom of expression, is critical in the prevention of genocide and other mass atrocities.  We reiterate that any efforts to counter incitement and hate speech should respect freedom of expression.”

“We must also express our disappointment in the negotiation process that led to this resolution.  The result is a weaker text that strips out references that would have benefited the Government of Rwanda in its efforts to seek accountability, while forcing Rwanda’s allies, including the United States, to accept language we find concerning.  While we are not calling for a vote lest others get the wrong impression about our unwavering support for justice for victims of the genocide, we are concerned that the negotiation process potentially weakened the text, limited the impact, and added unexpected costs.”

In his commemoration speech this year, President Paul Kagame said Rwanda “will continue to educate new generations of Rwandans about what happened to our country, and what we learned from it. We are putting those lessons into practice for the benefit of those who come after us. The lessons of our history have united us. They teach us the value of good leadership that cares for the well-being of all citizens.”