AEGIS ECAS 2007 - View abstract

Panel	35. Reconstruction, Reconciliation and Development in the African Great Lakes Region
Paper ID	700
Author(s)	McLean Hilker, Lyndsay
Paper	No paper submitted
Abstract	This paper argues that gaining a better understanding of the perpetration of violence and genocide in Rwanda and how to encourage 'reconciliation' in its aftermath requires us to examine more closely the significance and operation of the categories Hutu, Tutsi and Twa in Rwandan society. Drawing on an extended period of ethnographic research in Kigali a decade after the 1994 genocide, this paper firstly investigates how these categories are understood, used and experienced in the daily lives of young Rwandans with very different social backgrounds and past experiences of war, genocide and exile. Exploring their narratives, practices and social interactions, it demonstrates that despite current state policies of unity and reconciliation that seek to de-emphasise ethnic identities, the categories Hutu, Tutsi and Twa remain extremely salient in contemporary Rwanda. Although other social subjectivities are important and many young Rwandans are beginning to forge inter-ethnic ties, there is a persistent concern to know the ethnic identity of others and to categorise them. An investigation of these processes of categorisation reveals the worrying persistence of certain myths and stereotypes about the differences between behaviour and experiences of Hutu and Tutsi, most of which do not match the more complex and contradictory social and political reality. The paper then considers why this ethnic logic persists in Rwanda today and what this implies for current efforts to prevent future violence and foster reconciliation. In many ways, the salience of ethnicity in contemporary Rwanda seems unsurprising given the impact of colonial rule and history of political competition and violence on ethnic lines. The 1994 genocide demonstrated how deeply embedded particular ideas about differences and past conflict between Hutu, Tutsi and Twa had become embedded in the minds of Rwandans and certainly entrenched these further. However, this paper also argues that, despite significant progress in many areas, current social and political circumstances in Rwanda often serve to perpetuate this ethnic logic. It examines the perspectives of young people on social relations and reconciliation in Rwanda today and reveals a climate in which people are generally fearful to talk openly about any issues considered sensitive including politics, ethnicity or their past experiences. This often acts as a barrier to improved social relations and leaves many ethnic myths and stereotypes unchallenged. Furthermore, current approaches to reconciliation “inadvertently or not" often entrench this ethnic logic further. Perhaps most worrying is the pessimistic outlook of many young Rwandans about the future and an often deep-seated fear of a return to violence. In conclusion, the paper argues that further progress with reconciliation and the prevention of future violence will require a far greater effort to address this ethnic logic in particular to challenge certain myths and stereotypes about the categories Hutu, Tutsi and Twa that persist in Rwanda today. These alone will not produce further violence, but suggest that any recurrence of violence is likely to once again have ethnic targets and if unchecked could again take place on a large scale.

Living Beyond Conflict? Identity, alterity and reconciliation among Rwandan Youth