Rwanda

Timeline 1300’s – Tutsis move into what is now Rwanda, already occupied by Hutu and Twa 1800’s – Tutsi Kind Kigeri Rwabugiri establishes a unified state with a centralized military structure 1858 – First European explorer to set foot in Rwanda 1890 – Rwanda part of German East Africa

1916 – Belgian forces occupy Rwanda 1923 – Belgium granted League of Nations mandate to govern Ruanda-Urundi and rules it through the Tutsi King 1946 – Ruanda-Urundi becomes UN trust territory governed by Belgium

Independence 1957 – Hutus issue manifesto calling for a change in Rwanda’s power structure to give them a voice according to their numbers and Hutu political parties were formed 1959 – Interethnic violence between Hutus and Tutsis forced Tutsi King Kigeri V along with 10,000’s of Tutsis into exile in Uganda 1961 – Rwanda proclaimed a republic

1962 – Rwanda an independent country with Hutu Kayibanda as President, many Tutsis leave the country 1973 – President Kayibanda ousted in a military coup led by Habyarimana 1978 – Habyarimana elected as President 1988 – 50,000 Hutu refugees flee to Rwanda from Burundi following ethnic violence 1990 – Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) a Tutsi rebel force invades Rwanda from Uganda

1992 July - RPF and Hutu Government agree to peace deal 1993 Feb. – Negotiations suspended after RPF breaks cease fire 1993 Mar. – Peace talks resume 1993 Aug. – Habyarimana and RPF sign Arusha Peace Agreement – stipulating a 22 month transitional government within 37 days, elections by 1995 and deployment of an international peacekeeping force

1993 Oct. 5th – UN Security Council creates the United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda UNAMIR – 6 month deployment 1993 Dec. – 1994 Apr. – Transitional government for Rwanda fails to evolve 1994 Apr. 6th – Habyarimana and Ntaryamira (Burundi’s pres.) killed when a rocket hits their plane near Kigali, sparks violence and refugee exodus, more than 1 million refugees flee Habyarimana Ntaryamira

1994 Apr. 7th – Presidential Guards kill Rwandan Prime Minister Agathe Uwibiyiyimana 1994 Apr. 14th – Belgium withdraws troops 1994 Apr. 21st – UN Security Council votes to withdraw 90% of UNAMIR peacekeepers, only 270 troops remain 1994 May 17th – UN Security Council says “acts of Genocide may have been committed” 1994 June 22nd – UN authorizes member states to intervene France and Senegal send troops

1994 July – RPF take control of Kigali, drive Hutu dominated RGF to Burundi, Tanzania, and Zaire (DRC), ceasefire occurs and RPF form government At this point over 800,000 Tutsis have been killed along with some Hutus with little international intervention 1997 Dec. – Rwanda’s first genocide trial under the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda ICTR opens in Arusha 2000 – President Bizimungu resigns, replaced by Kagame a Tutsi RPF commander during the genocide

2003 Aug. 25th – Kagame elected as president in Rwanda’s first popular vote It has been suggested but not proven that it was Kagame himself who gave direct orders to shoot down Habyarimana’s plane in 1994

Murdock’s Map of Africa – depicting the tribal breakdown of Africa prior to colonization. Present day boundaries were created by Europeans and divided many tribes and forced many others to live as neighbors.