Rwanda marks genocide anniversary

[USAcommitteeX]

The government wants to dignify the memory of those killed
Rwanda is marking the 10th anniversary of the 1994 genocide.
The slaughter was triggered by the shooting down of a plane with Rwanda's Hutu President Juvenal Habyarimana onboard on 6 April 1994.

Along with the Jewish Holocaust, it is one of the worst atrocities of the last century.

Ahead of ceremonies to mark the event, the former UN commander in Rwanda said Western states were "criminally responsible" for the genocide.

Romeo Dallaire Head of UN peacekeepers in 1994
Canadian General Romeo Dallaire said France, which led the small international peacekeeping force at the time of the genocide, the UK and the US in particular did not care enough to stop the killing.

"It's up to Rwanda not to let others forget they are criminally responsible for the genocide," he told a genocide conference in Kigali on his first visit to the country since 1994.

"There is no country today... which can wash its hands of Rwandan blood just by saying sorry."

Hutu extremists unleashed a genocide in which 800,000 people were murdered in one hundred days.

Originally posted by USAcommitteeX
, it is one of the worst atrocities of the last century.

Ahead of ceremonies to mark the event, the former UN commander in Rwanda said Western states were "criminally responsible" for the genocide.

Ah yes. No Rwandan has the wherewithall to be expected to refrain from murdering his neighbor. It is the fault of the West for not preventing the criminals from going on their rampage.

Is this to be taken for real?

Does this person truly wish to demean the people of Rwanda so much as to claim they cannot be responsible for their own atrocities?

[USAcommitteeX]

800,000 Tutsis slaughtered by the Hutu's, blame the West for not getting involved, they say the West is just as guilty as the Tutsis who committed the genocide.

[johnny861]

What pisses me off, is the US did nothing about it...

Originally posted by johnny861
What pisses me off, is the US did nothing about it...

But the people killing their neighbors are compartively excusable?

Who do you think deserves to be blamed for the killings?

[Krash]

Originally posted by xiannaix
But the people killing their neighbors are compartively excusable?

Who do you think deserves to be blamed for the killings?

I don't think anybody is saying that though - of course the Hutu's are accountable, however we knew it was happening - we COULD of done something about it.

But we didn't.

And for that we must share some of the blame.

[johnny861]

Originally posted by Krash
I don't think anybody is saying that though - of course the Hutu's are accountable, however we knew it was happening - we COULD of done something about it.

But we didn't.

And for that we must share some of the blame.

Exactly. It's the proverbial woman who gets raped in the ally while the people in the apartments above do nothing about it, not even call the cops.


This is one of the reasons why US or Britain are quick to be blamed when they call other engagements a police action...

Why Bosnia and not Rwanda? etc...

And no, we shouldn't go into every single country all at once, but when the body count reaches that high, it's the responsibility of the world community to stop it by all means necessary regardless of the cause.

If it's an AIDS empedemic, send in doctors, medicines and retro-viral drugs, if it's genocide, send in peace keepers...

Our role in the world should not be to micro-manage issues in countries, but rather to curb problems when that get way out of control.

Originally posted by johnny861
Exactly. It's the proverbial woman who gets raped in the ally while the people in the apartments above do nothing about it, not even call the cops.


This is one of the reasons why US or Britain are quick to be blamed when they call other engagements a police action...

Why Bosnia and not Rwanda? etc...

Although never a justification prior to the war.....you may add Iraq as well.

If saving the Iraqi's from Saddam's death squads had been a stated purpose of the war would it have received support?

Originally posted by johnny861
And no, we shouldn't go into every single country all at once, but when the body count reaches that high, it's the responsibility of the world community to stop it by all means necessary regardless of the cause.

If it's an AIDS empedemic, send in doctors, medicines and retro-viral drugs, if it's genocide, send in peace keepers...

Our role in the world should not be to micro-manage issues in countries, but rather to curb problems when that get way out of control.

That last bit there is quite well said.

[USAcommitteeX]

Some in Rwanda blame the French for arming and training the Hutu's

[Krash]

Originally posted by USAcommitteeX
Some in Rwanda blame the French for arming and training the Hutu's

Yeah, strange that.

[Adam D]

Originally posted by xiannaix
Although never a justification prior to the war.....you may add Iraq as well.

If saving the Iraqi's from Saddam's death squads had been a stated purpose of the war would it have received support?

No.

I think there's a big difference between a war of aggression and sending in international peacekeepers to stop a war.