Interahamwe

Interahamwe
Participant in Rwandan Genocide
First Congo War
Second Congo War

Flag
Active 1994–present
Ideology Hutu Power
Leaders Augustin Bizimungu
Tharcisse Renzaho
Idelphonse Hategekimana
Idelphonse Nizeyimana
Protais Mpiranya
Callixte Nzabonimana
Aloys Ndimbati
Area of operations Jungles of Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo; formerly Rwanda
Strength 100,000 (1994)
20,000 (1998)
6,500 (2012)
Allies Zaire Zaire (1996–1997)
Rwanda Army for the Liberation of Rwanda (1996–2001)
Democratic Republic of the Congo DR Congo (1998–2003)
FDLR (2000–present)
Opponents Rwandan Patriotic Front Rwandan Patriotic Front (1994)
 Rwanda (1994–present)
Democratic Republic of the Congo AFDL (1996–1997)
Uganda Uganda (1996–present)
Democratic Republic of the Congo DR Congo (2003–present)

The Interahamwe is a Hutu paramilitary organization. The militia enjoyed the backing of the Hutu-led government leading up to and during the Rwandan Genocide. Since the genocide, they have been driven out of Rwanda, mainly to Zaire (present day Democratic Republic of the Congo). They are predominantly considered a terrorist organization by most western governments, as well as several countries in Africa (including Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and several others).

Etymology

The name Interahamwe can be translated as "those who work together" or loosely as "those who fight together".[1] Work was used as slang on racist radio broadcasts during the genocide—"working" meant using machetes to kill.[2] Interahamwe can be broken up this way: intera is derived from the verb gutera, meaning "to work"; hamwe means "together" and is related to the word rimwe for "one".

English speakers usually pronounce it as /ˌɪntərəˈhɑːmweɪ/, though it is pronounced [inhêːɾɑhɑ́mwe] in Kinyarwanda. However, when speaking English, Rwandans will sometimes pronounce it in the English manner. The difference can be observed by listening to Paul Rusesabagina in the Return to Rwanda feature of a Hotel Rwanda DVD, and to the translator for a survivor of the Nyarubuye massacre in "Frontline" Ghosts of Rwanda. In Hotel Rwanda, the name is consistently erroneously spelled and pronounced as "Interhamwe".

Organization and history

Robert Kajuga, a Tutsi (unusual for this group),[3] was the President of the Interahamwe. The Vice President of Interahamwe was Georges Rutaganda. The Interahamwe was formed by groups of young people of the MRND party. They carried out the Rwandan Genocide acts against the Tutsis in 1994. The Interahamwe formed RTLM, a radio station that projected racist propaganda against the Tutsis, moderate Hutus, and Belgians, and was a genocidal radio station which was used to broadcast where the Tutsis were fleeing to.

Following the invasion of the Rwandan capital Kigali by the Tutsi Rwandese Patriotic Front (RPF), many Rwandan civilians and members of the Interahamwe fled to neighbouring countries, most notably to what at the time was Zaire, now Democratic Republic of Congo, and Tanzania. Sudan welcomed former Interahamwe to Juba, and in March 1998, Colonel Tharcisse Renzaho, the former prefect of Kigali, and Colonel Ntiwiragabo, the former Rwandan Presidential Guard commander, arrived in Juba from Nairobi to organize them.[4] It has been nearly impossible to bring the Interahamwe to justice because they did not wear uniforms or have a clearly organized group of followers. They were the neighbours, friends, and co-workers of Tutsis. Throughout the war, members of the Interahamwe moved into camps of refugees and the internally displaced. There the victims were mixed in with the enemy making it difficult to prosecute members of the Interahamwe. But the Gacaca court was put in place to at least attempt to get the killers in jail. But the has seen criticism from many different sources for being flawed with the judges having inadequate training and many different parties in the court system being corrupt. This problem has led to many innocent people being put in jail and has caused the prisons to become overcrowded.

During the war, millions of Rwandan Hutu refugees fled to Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo), along with many members of the Interahamwe, Presidential Guard, and the Rwandan Government Forces (RGF). Following the recruitment of significant numbers of Congolese Hutu the organization took the name Armée de Libération du Rwanda (ALiR). With the Kagame regime still in power, members still take part in border raids from the refugee camps.

Post–Rwandan Genocide

In 1999, Interahamwe attacked and kidnapped a group of 14 tourists in Bwindi National Park, Uganda. Eight of the tourists were killed.[5] The story was featured on National Geographic, Locked Up Abroad: Uganda.[6]

Prosecution

Leaders of the Interahamwe have been primarily prosecuted through the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda in Arusha, Tanzania. The tribunal has convicted at least 41 persons, often with life sentences, including former interim Prime Minister Jean Kambanda and Georges Rutaganda.[7] Fugitives have been captured and prosecuted in other countries, including Jean-Marie Vianney Mudahinyuka (a.k.a. "Zuzu"), an Interahamwe leader found hiding in Chicago Illinois in January 2011.[8][9]

References

  1. ↑ "Rwanda: How the genocide happened". BBC News. 17 May 2011.
  2. ↑ Bührer, Michel (1996). Rwanda : Memoire d'un génocide. Paris: Editions UNESCO. p. 12.
  3. ↑ Vasagar, Jeevan (16 February 2005). "The hotel that saved hundreds from genocide". The Guardian.
  4. ↑ Gérard Prunier, From Genocide to Continental War: The "Congolese" Conflict and the Crisis of Contemporary Africa, C. Hurst & Co, 2009, ISBN 1-85065-523-5, p. 193
  5. ↑ "BBC News - Africa - Kidnap tourist tells of ordeal". Retrieved 20 January 2015.
  6. ↑ "Locked Up Abroad". National Geographic Channel. Retrieved 20 January 2015.
  7. ↑ "Home - United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda". Retrieved 20 January 2015.
  8. ↑ https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/ice-deports-rwandan-wanted-committing-war-crimes-during-1994-genocide
  9. ↑ Guzzardi, Will (2 February 2011). "Suspected Genocide Leader Deported From Chicago To Rwanda". Huffington Post.
Hutu militants
Rwandan Genocide (1994)
Impuzamugambi
Interahamwe
Rwandan Armed Forces
Refugee crisis
RDR (1995–1996)
1st and 2nd Congo War
ALiR (1996–2001)
FDLR (2000–present)
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