Tutsi genocide in Rwanda: when horror engulfed everything
April 7, 1994: the day everything changed
The day after the assassination attempt on President Juvénal Habyarimana‘s life, Rwanda plunged into horror. April 7, 1994 marked the start of the Tutsi genocide, one of the most tragic episodes of the 20th century. In the space of a hundred days, between 800,000 and 1 million people were massacred.
A crime committed with unprecedented barbarity, often with machetes, by neighbors, colleagues, sometimes members of the same community. Guided by ” Hutu Power ” propaganda and framed by the Interahamwe militia, ordinary men plunged into inhumanity.
An essential memory: thirty years on
In April 2024, Rwanda commemorates the thirtieth anniversary of the genocide. To mark the occasion, Jeune Afrique is opening up its archives, in order to better understand what happened, by looking back at the facts, the silences and the responsibilities.
From the accounts of survivors to investigations into the role of the international community – including the controversy surrounding France and Operation Turquoise – this retrospective sheds light on the dark corners of history.
To bear witness, to understand, never to forget
Through these archives, we hear the voices of survivors, witnesses and analysts, as well as those fighting to ensure that truth and memory are never buried.
Conclusion: a painful but vital memory
Thirty years on, remembering the Tutsi genocide remains a collective duty. Remembering means honoring the victims, but also preventing abuses, combating Holocaust denial and ensuring that such a tragedy never happens again, anywhere.
