Rwanda was first a kingdom divided into three ethnic groups: Tutsi, Hutu, and Twa. The Tutsis (14% of the population) were the in charge of the cattle, the Hutus (85% of the population) were the farmers, and the Twa (1% of the population) were the servants. The Tutsis were the upper class and the Hutus were vassals. Cattle measured wealth in Rwanda, the more cows you had the richer you were considered. During the late 19th Century, Rwanda was still considered a kingdom and it was lead by Kigeli IV Rwabugiri.
Kigeli was important because he was the first king to come in contact with a European (German) called Count von Gotzen. This meeting took place in 1894 and one year later King Kigeli dies. After his death there was confusion about who would be the next leader. Germany took advantage of this confusion and moved into Rwanda. “At the same time they claim Burundi, a separate kingdom to the south. The entire area is treated as one colony, to be known as Ruanda-Urundi. ” With the Germans in power they kept the Tutsis superior to the Hutus.
Germans colonized Rwanda from 1897 until the Belgium’s took control in 1916. The Belgians kept on with the separation of Hutus and Tutsis. They actually decided to go a step further and create national cards that were based on racial identification. These cards said weather you were Hutu, Tutsi, or Twa. The Germans separated “Rwandese” by skin color, height, skull size, and the size and shape of ones nose. The Twa were pygmies and hunters. The Hutus were stocky, strong and had a wider nose. The Tutsi were tall, they had a lighter skin tone, and onsidered smarter. Due to the Tutsi’s skin ton the Belgians assumed that their ancestors were from a Caucasian race so they made the Tutsis dominate. The Belgians educated the Tutsis more than the Hutus and this angered the Hutus. Over time the Hutus became more powerful and still held a grudge towards the Tutsis. There were small attacks and altercations where the Hutus would kill Tutsis. Democracy came to Rwanda and because Hutus were 85% of the population the majority rule played a huge role in selecting the next president.
In 1960 a Hutu leader by the name of Gregoire Kayibanda became the first president of Rwanda. Somewhere between 1961 and 1962 Ruanda-Urundi won their independence and later on separated into two countries Rwanda and Burundi. After the independence in Rwanda, Tutsis kept getting killed and bodies were found in rivers, this scared a lot of Tutsis and most of them fled to Uganda. In Burundi the opposite was happening. It is said that in 1972 the Tutsi Burundian army killed over two hundred thousand educated Hutus to avoid them from trying to take over.
In 1992 angry Hutu refugees from Burundi fled to Rwanda. April 6th 1994 a plane carrying Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana and Burundian president Cyprien Ntaryamira was shot down and the Tutsis were blamed. The Hutus started genocide by tried to kill the whole Tutsi race, they killed over 8000 Tutsis everyday for 100 days until the RPF (Rwandan Patriotic Front) Army took power back. “You will never see the source of a genocide. It is buried too deep in grudges, under an accumulation of misunderstandings that we were the last to inherit.
We came of age at the worst moment in Rwanda’s history: we were taught to obey absolutely, raised in hatred, stuffed with slogans. We are unfortunate generation. ” Joseph-Desire, killer The RPF formed this group in Uganda while they were in exile; it was lead by Paul Kagame. In 2000 Paul Kagame became president of Rwanda. Under his leadership Rwanda’s government became a unitary state, Republic, Presidential system, and Parliamentary system (CIA). Kagame is still the current president of Rwanda and has managed to keep the government stable. Rwanda is a landlocked country with 90% of its people in agriculture.
Rwandans main exports are coffee and tea but they also have a few minerals like tin, tantalum, and many more. All in all Rwanda imports more than they export. The Rwandan government is big on development, they emphasize on gender equality; Rwanda’s government has the largest percent of women in government. The women make up over 60% of the government. The government also emphasizes on reducing crime; they want to make it so that foreigners can feel safe, and can invest more in the country. Rwanda’s crime index is 23. 37 (crime). Rwanda is developing at a very high rate and it has all the institutions needed.
Some are stronger than others. Their strongest institution is the law enforcement mechanism or rule of law. Their weakest is Media: there is not a lot of freedom of speech. The competition and regulation of the industry is strong. Legal institution is average, financial and banking institution is average but has high interest rates. And political institution is average as well. Official website: http:// www. gov. rw/home/ http://primature. gov. rw/index. php? id=97 Section 2. It is illegal and offensive in Rwanda to call someone Hutu, Tutsi, and Twa.
Dividing people into those three ethic groups is what has held Rwanda back. Now everyone is called Rwandan/ Rwandese/Umunyarwanda. They have gotten ride of the ethic groups and everyone is united. In Rwanda 56% of the population are Catholics, 26% Protestant, 4% Muslim, 11% Seventh-day Adventist, and 3% others. Rwanda population is a little under 12 million people. The Urban population is made up of 28% of the population and the rural population is made up of 72% of the population. Even though the rural population is high it has been decreasing at a steady pace over the years.
From the year 2010-2014 the urban population in Rwanda increased from 18. 9% t 0 27. 8%. The languages spoken in Rwanda are mainly Kinyarwanda, English, and French but there is another immigrant language that is spoken especially in the military and that is Swahili. The population density in Rwanda is 459. 73. If compared to the state of Georgia that has a density of 173. 7 it is a lot more. In Rwanda most people especially in rural areas live in individual family compounds that are fenced and are mainly filled with banana plantations.
Lower class Rwandese mainly eat bananas, potatoes, and beans. When the head of the house (Father/ husband) dies his assets are to be divided evenly between his sons but if he chooses he can also have his daughters and wife included. The oldest son is to take care of his mother and unmarried sisters incases their father dies. Rwandans usually try to have as many children as they can, so that when they get older their children can take care of them. The life expectancy for a Rwandan male is 60 years and 66 years for a female. Section 10.
Corruption According to Transparency international, In 2014 Rwanda was given a CPI score of 49. In 2013 it scored 53, Rwanda’s corruption score is getting worse. I believe the reason why Rwanda’s CPl is dropping is because presidents Paul Kagame is planning to run again in 2017. This is a problem because the constitution has a two-term limit and in 2017 he will be trying to run for his 3rd term. Most people want him to run because he has helped the country develop but others think he is taking on the legacy of most African presidents that come on and do not want to leave power.
In December 2015, they had a vote to change to constitution so that he can run again he won by over 98% of Rwandese voted for the constitution to change. So this makes it “legally” possible for him to run again. There a few people that claim the elections are rigged. “You are either with us, or against us” this is the quote that can define the Rwandan government. Rwandan president Paul Kagame runs the country with an iron fist and will not hesitate to fight against anyone who is trying to threaten his country.
Rumor has it that former General Kayumba Nyamwasa was abusing his power so the president decided to demote and make him an ambassador to India. Kayumba got off lightly because he fought beside President Kagame in the 1994 war. In 2010 Kayumba fled to South Africa where he met up with former Colonel Patrick Karegeya who went into exile in 2007. In February 2010 there were three terrorist grenade attacks in Rwanda. The Rwandan government blamed Kayumba for the attacks. June 2010 Kayumba was shot in the stomach. This would be the third assassination attempt on his life.
Kayumba blamed the Rwandan government for the assassination attempts. He said that Kagame wants him dead because Kayumba accused him for shooting down the plane of the former president in 1994, which started the genocide. After the attempt on Kayumba’s life a journalist called Jean-Leonard Rugambage decided to investigate and ask questions on the assassination attempt he was found shot dead just a few days later. January 1st 2014 Patrick Karegeya was found murdered in a hotel room in South Africa, and of course all fingers pointed to President Kagame.
After his death Rwandan foreign minister tweeted “This man was a self-declared enemy of my Gov & my country, U expect pity? ” after that the Rwandan defense minister James Kabarebe said, “Keep away from those making noise saying that someone was strangled with a rope in the seventh floor in a certain country; if you choose to be a dog you die like dog and cleaners will remove the trash. Those that have fallen victim, it’s because they have chosen that path, there is nothing we can do about it and we cannot be held”. With all this said some people could say President Paul Kagame and the Rwandan government are corrupt.
The Rwandan government denied killing Karegeya and there wasn’t any liable proof to connect the killings to President Kagame, but the President did not take pity on his death. Kagame ensures that whoever betrays Rwanda must expect consequences. Is he a good leader or a bad leader? It is a matter of opinion but no one can deny that he is a tough leader and runs Rwanda with an iron fist. Some people think that that is what the country needs. Looking at his stats he has bought the country a long way and helped it develop but some people question what goes on behind closed doors.