1972 Genocide of Burundian Hutus

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Since Burundi's independence in 1962, there have been two events called genocides in the country. The 1972 Genocide of Burundian Hutus by the Tutsi-dominated army, [1] and the 1993 Genocide of Burundian Tutsis by the majority-Hutu populace are both described as genocide in the final report of the International Commission of Inquiry for Burundi presented to the United Nations Security Council in 1996. [2]

Burundi Country in Africa

Burundi, officially the Republic of Burundi, is a landlocked country amid the African Great Lakes region where East Africa converge. It is bordered by Rwanda to the north, Tanzania to the east and southeast, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west; Lake Tanganyika lies along its southwestern border. The capital is Gitega, having moved from Bujumbura in February 2019.

Genocide is intentional action to destroy a people in whole or in part. The hybrid word "genocide" is a combination of the Greek word γένος and the Latin suffix -caedo. The term genocide was coined by Raphael Lemkin in his 1944 book Axis Rule in Occupied Europe.

The Tutsi, or Abatutsi, are a social class or ethnic group of the African Great Lakes region. Historically, they were often referred to as the Watutsi, Watusi, Wahuma, Wahima or the Wahinda. The Tutsi form a subgroup of the Banyarwanda and the Barundi people, who reside primarily in Rwanda and Burundi, but with significant populations also found in Uganda and Tanzania.

Contents

Background

The demographics of Burundi through the 1960s and 1970s were roughly 86 percent Hutu, 13 percent Tutsi, and 1 percent Twa. [3] For most of this period, the Tutsi maintained a near monopoly on senior government and military positions. Burundi gained its independence from Belgium in 1962, and in May 1965 the first post-independence elections were held. The Hutu candidates scored a landslide victory, capturing 23 seats out of a total 33. But, instead of appointing a Hutu prime minister, the king Mwambutsa IV appointed a Tutsi prince, Léopold Biha, as Prime Minister. On October 18, 1965, Hutus, angry with the king's decision, attempted a coup. The king fled the country, but the coup ultimately failed. [ citation needed ]

Great Lakes Twa ethnic group

The Great Lakes Twa, also known as Batwa, Abatwa or Ge-Sera, are a Bantu ethnic group native to the African Great Lakes region on the border of the Central and East Africa. As an indigenous pygmy people, the Twa are generally assumed to be the oldest surviving population of the Great Lakes region. Current populations are found in the states of Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda and the eastern portion of the Democratic Republic of Congo. In 2000 they numbered approximately 80,000 people, making them a significant minority group in these countries.

Prince Léopold Biha (1919–2003) was a Burundian politician and a Tutsi. He was appointed Prime Minister 13 October 1965 following the 10 May 1965 legislative election. He was the personal secretary of King Mwambutsa IV previous to his appointment as Prime Minister. He was Prime Minister until a coup on 8 July 1966 when Prince Ndizi overthrew his father and became King. Ntara V installed Michel Micombero to the post of Prime Minister.

Years later, the weeks approaching April 29 in 1972 were rustling with political interest from the events related to the return of the former king, Ntare V. From complex of elements agitated with Byzantine intrigues, Ntare went to Uganda first. Uganda’s president, Idi Amin, claimed he received a written guarantee from president Micombero that Ntare could return to Burundi and live there as a private citizen. Using the helicopter at his disposal from the Uganda chief of state, Ntare arrived where he and his ancestors had ruled as kings, in March 1972. Within a few hours he was put under house arrest in the former palace in Gitega. Soon after, an official radio broadcast proclaimed that Ntare was trying to instigate a mercenary invasion of Burundi to take back rule. Some ministers favored that he would be kept under restricted protection in Gitega, while others wanted him dead. The situation was unofficially resolved when Ntare was assassinated sometime between Saturday evening, April 29, and the following morning, under circumstances which are still unclear. Whether there was a conspiracy or his death was involved with a violent outbreak in Gitega has not been determined. [4]

Uganda Republic in East Africa

Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a country in East-Central Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the south by Tanzania. The southern part of the country includes a substantial portion of Lake Victoria, shared with Kenya and Tanzania. Uganda is in the African Great Lakes region. Uganda also lies within the Nile basin, and has a varied but generally a modified equatorial climate.

Idi Amin Third president and dictator of Uganda (1925–2003)

Idi Amin Dada Oumee was a Ugandan military officer who served as the President of Uganda from 1971 to 1979. Popularly known as the "Butcher of Uganda," he is considered one of the cruelest despots in African history.

Gitega Capital city in Gitega Province, Burundi

Gitega is the capital and one of the largest cities in Burundi. Located in the centre of the country, in the Burundian central plateau roughly 62 kilometres (39 mi) southeast of Bujumbura, Gitega was the seat of the Kingdom of Burundi until its abolition in 1966. In late December 2018, Burundian president Pierre Nkurunziza announced that he would follow on a 2007 promise to return Gitega its former political capital status, with Bujumbura remaining as economical capital and centre of commerce. A vote in the Parliament of Burundi made the change official on 16 January 2019, with all branches of government expected to move in over three years.

The Genocide

Initial violence preceding '72 killings

On April 27, 1972, a rebellion led by some Hutu members of the gendarmerie broke out in the lakeside towns of Rumonge and Nyanza-Lac declaring the establishment of the Martyazo Republic. [5] [6] Countless atrocities were reported by eyewitnesses, and the armed Hutu insurgents proceeded to kill every Tutsi in sight, as well as the Hutus who refused to join the rebellion. [7] It is estimated that during this initial Hutu outbreak anywhere from 800 to 1200 people were killed. [8]

Rumonge Place in Rumonge Province, Burundi

Rumonge is the capital of Rumonge Province, Burundi, and is located on the shores of Lake Tanganyika. The 2008 census recorded a population of 35,931 in Rumonge, making it Burundi's fourth largest city. It had a big Arab (Sharji/Azri) presence before Burundi's independence in 1962.

Martyazo former country

The Republic of Martyazo was a secessionist state proclaimed by Hutu rebels in Burundi in early May 1972 at Vyanda during the Burundian genocide. The state was located inside the mountainous Vugizo commune, between Makamba and Nyanza Lac. A few days after the republic was declared, forces of the Tutsi-dominated government of Michel Micombero occupied the region, ending the rebellion and the existence of Martyazo. The number of people to have perished in the rebellion is believed to have ranged between 800 and 1200.

Genocidal massacre of Hutus in '72

Responding to the violence president Michel Micombero (Tutsi) proclaimed martial law. His armed forces killed Hutus en masse. [9] The initial phases of the genocide were clearly orchestrated, with lists of targets including the Hutu educated—the elite—and the militarily trained. Once this had been completed, the Tutsi-controlled army moved against the larger civilian populations.

Michel Micombero President of Burundi

General Michel Micombero was a Burundian politician and soldier who ruled the country as its first president and de facto dictator for the decade between 1966 and 1976. He was a member of the Tutsi ethnic group.

Martial law temporary state of government typically involving curfews; the suspension of civil law, civil rights, and habeas corpus; and the application of military law to civilians

Martial law is the imposition of direct military control of normal civilian functions by a government, especially in response to a temporary emergency such as invasion or major disaster, or in an occupied territory.

Number of victims of the '72 genocide

The Tutsi-controlled government authorities originally estimated that roughly 15,000 had been killed, while Hutu opponents claimed number was much closer to 300,000. [10] Today, estimates hover in between these two figures, at between 80,000 and 210,000 killed. [10] [11] Several hundred thousand Hutu are estimated to have fled the genocide into Zaire, Rwanda, and Tanzania. [11] [12]

Zaire Country in Africa now known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Zaire, officially the Republic of Zaire, was the name of a sovereign state between 1971 and 1997 in Central Africa that is now known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The country was a one-party totalitarian dictatorship, run by Mobutu Sese Seko and his ruling Popular Movement of the Revolution party. Zaire was established following Mobutu's seizure of power in a military coup in 1965, following five years of political upheaval following independence known as the Congo Crisis. Zaire had a strongly centralist constitution, and foreign assets were nationalized. The period is sometimes referred to as the Second Congolese Republic.

Rwanda Country in Africa

Rwanda, officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a country in Central Africa and one of the smallest countries on the African mainland. Located a few degrees south of the Equator, Rwanda is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Rwanda is in the African Great Lakes region and is highly elevated; its geography is dominated by mountains in the west and savanna to the east, with numerous lakes throughout the country. The climate is temperate to subtropical, with two rainy seasons and two dry seasons each year.

Tanzania Country in Africa

Tanzania, officially the United Republic of Tanzania, is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands at the Indian Ocean to the east; Mozambique and Malawi to the south; Zambia to the southwest; and Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west. Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa's highest mountain, is in northeastern Tanzania.

Counterattacks by the Hutus after '72 genocide

During 29–30 April, Burundi (Hutu) armed rebels allied with Zairian (Zaire) exiles (mulelists) and attacked southern Burundi, Gitega, and Bujumbura. They were trying to make a Hutu-dominated republic and get rid of the Tutsis. The Hutu government states there were about 50,000 deaths, the majority being Tutsis. However, most observers of the event believe that the figure of 50,000 is greatly exaggerated. Observers also concluded evidence that there was an attempt of Hutu elements to overthrow the government of Micombero. There was around 4-5 thousand Hutus involved in this attack. They did not have a count, but estimated 3,000 Tutsis killed within the first week. There is no evidence that Mulelists were involved with the violence but Mulelists signs, garb, and chants were used. This was part of a historical pattern of majority group resenting domination by a minority. [13]

Foreign aid during the '72 violence

Burundi was declared to be a disaster area on May 1. After using $25,000 from the aid contingency fund of the World Disaster Relief Account, Burundi asked the United States for another $75,000, which was immediately granted. Most of the money was used to purchase goods locally or from nearby countries; items included blankets, two ambulances, food, clothes and transportation. [14]

Assessment of the '72 violence as a genocide

If only because of its "selective" character – the elimination of an ethnically defined elite group – the case of Burundi does not fit into the Holocaust (or the Rwanda) paradigm. It cannot be described as a total genocide, and for that reason, some may quibble about the appropriateness of the genocide label. Jacques Sémelin’s definition – "that particular process of civilian destruction that is directed at the total eradication of a group, the criteria by which it is defined as being determined by the perpetrator" (Sémelin 2007, 340) – might conceivably offer conceptual ammunition to those who would challenge the view that anything like a genocide has been committed against Tutsi or Hutu. By the same token, as defined by the perpetrator as the group to be eradicated, there can be little doubt that the extermination of the Hutu elites stands as a tragic illustration of the genocidal urge to "purify and destroy"(Ibid.) Once all is said and done, no amount of retrospective ratiocination about the applicability of the genocide label can ever erase from their collective memories the agonies suffered by Hutu and Tutsi in the time of ikiza.

—  René Lemarchand (2008) [15]

Rwandan connection

The genocide of 1972 left a permanent mark in the collective memory of the Hutu population, both in Burundi and in neighbouring countries. Tens of thousands of Hutu civilians fled the country during the violence into their northern neighbor: Rwanda. The increased tensions in Burundi and Rwanda sparked episodes of civil and cross-border violence in Burundi. These precipitated large-scale killings by both sides of the conflict. These episodes further radicalized elements of the Hutu population in Rwanda, who also faced pressure from a militant Tutsi opposition, Rwandan Patriotic Front. In 1994, the Hutus led a genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda. Thousands of Tutsi refugees sought safety in Burundi.

In the press there was a report on May 1973, that young militant Hutu student leaders in Rwanda, Tanzania and Zaire had inspired and coordinated a three-pronged attack on Burundi. [16]

Notes

  1. ↑ Staff. pastgenocides, Burundi resources on the website of Prevent Genocide International lists the following resources:
    • Michael Bowen, Passing by;: The United States and genocide in Burundi, 1972, (Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 1973), 49 pp.
    • René Lemarchand, Selective genocide in Burundi (Report - Minority Rights Group ; no. 20, 1974), 36 pp.
    • Rene Lemarchand, Burundi: Ethnic Conflict and Genocide (New York: Woodrow Wilson Center and Cambridge University Press, 1996), 232 pp.
    • Edward L. Nyankanzi, Genocide: Rwanda and Burundi (Schenkman Books, 1998), 198 pp.
    • Christian P. Scherrer, Genocide and crisis in Central Africa : conflict roots, mass violence, and regional war; foreword by Robert Melson. Westport, Conn. : Praeger, 2002.
    • Weissman, Stephen R. "Preventing Genocide in Burundi Lessons from International Diplomacy", United States Institute of Peace
  2. ↑ "International Commission of Inquiry for Burundi" (PDF). United Nations. 22 August 1996. pp. 19, 75. S/1996/682. Retrieved 15 September 2017: Paragraphs 85 and 496.
  3. ↑ Mann, M. (2005). The Dark Side of Democracy. p. 431.
  4. ↑ Melady, Thomas (1974). Burundi: The Tragic years. New York: Orbis Books. pp. 5–6. ISBN   0-88344-045-8.
  5. ↑ Lemarchand (1996), p. 89
  6. ↑ Lemarchand, (2008). Section "B - Decision-Makers, Organizers and Actors"
  7. ↑ Totten, p. 325
  8. ↑ Lemarchand, (2008). Section "B - Decision-Makers, Organizers and Actors" cites (Chrétien Jean-Pierre and Dupaquier, Jean-Francois, 2007, Burundi 1972: Au bord des génocides, Paris: L’Harmattan. p. 106)
  9. ↑ Lemarchand (1996, p. 97
  10. 1 2 White, Matthew. Death Tolls for the Major Wars and Atrocities of the Twentieth Century: C. Burundi (1972-73, primarily Hutu killed by Tutsi) 120,000
  11. 1 2 International Commission of Inquiry for Burundi (2002). Paragraph 85. "The Micombero regime responded with genocidal repression that is estimated to have caused over a hundred thousand victims and forced several hundred thousand Hutus into exile"
  12. ↑ Longman, p. 12
  13. ↑ Melady, Thomas (1974). Burundi: The tragic years. New York: Orbis Books. pp. 11–12. ISBN   0-88344-045-8.
  14. ↑ Melady, Thomas (1974). Burundi: The Tragic Years. New York: Orbis Books. p. 13. ISBN   0-88344-045-8.
  15. ↑ Lemarchand (2008) cites: Sémelin, Jacques, 2007, Purify and Destroy : The Political Uses of Massacre and Genocide, London: Hurst and Company.
  16. ↑ Melady, thomas (1974). Burundi: The Tragic Years. New York: Orbis Books. pp. 80–81. ISBN   0-88344-045-8.

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