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The Role of Narrative in Healing in Rwanda

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The Role of Narrative in Healing in Rwanda UNIVERSITY OF KWAZULU-NATAL THE ROLE OF NARRATIVE IN HEALING IN RWANDA by Corianne Wielenga 982186146 A dissertation submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Conflict Resolution and Peace Studies School of Economics and Finance Faculty of Management Studies Supervisor: Prof. Geoff Harris 2010 DECLARATION I ………………………………………………………………declare that (i) The research reported in this dissertation/thesis, except where otherwise indicated, is my original research. (ii) This dissertation/thesis has not been submitted for any degree or examination at any other university. (iii) This dissertation/thesis does not contain other persons’ data, pictures, graphs or other information, unless specifically acknowledged as being sourced from other persons. (iv) This dissertation/thesis does not contain other persons’ writing, unless specifically acknowledged as being sourced from other researchers. Where other written sources have been quoted, then: a) their words have been re-written but the general information attributed to them has been referenced: b) where their exact words have been used, their writing has been placed inside quotation marks, and referenced. (v) This dissertation/thesis does not contain text, graphics or tables copied and pasted from the Internet, unless specifically acknowledged, and the source being detailed in the dissertation/thesis and in the References sections. Signature: i Abstract In 1994, almost a million Tutsi and some Hutu were massacred in Rwanda during the 100 day genocide. Between 1995 and 1998, nearly the same number of Hutu and some Tutsi died, while in flight, primarily in the former Zaire. In the years following genocide, hundreds of thousands of Rwandans have been accused of genocide related crimes. There is not a person in Rwanda who is not directly affected by past violence and the country is in a process of healing and reconciliation. Much of the violence in Rwanda can be traced to perceptions of history and identity. This thesis seeks to unearth narratives of history and identity as a way of exploring possibilities for healing and reconciliation. Through an in-depth examination of four life stories, interviews with leaders in the field of reconciliation in Rwanda and informal interviews with a broad spectrum of Rwandans, this research sheds light on the challenges and opportunities in terms of healing. It finds that through critical engagement with our own and broader socio-political narratives we can expand the possibilities of our own narratives, allowing scope for personal healing as well as leading to a deeper understanding of the other. This can form the basis for sustainable reconciliation. ii Acknowledgements This thesis is primarily about hope. The question predominant on my mind from the moment I started was, is there hope for Rwanda? And perhaps the question behind that was, is there hope for the world? Perhaps this is the central theme of Conflict Resolution and Peace Studies. It is the unwavering hope that the world can be a better place, a different place, if we but make it so. In the beginning I was shocked to the core of my being as I immersed myself in the horror of the violence in Rwanda, described by many as the worst since the holocaust. I knew I would be shocked, yet there is no way to prepare oneself for the experience. At this stage I grappled deeply with what one might call the horror of the human condition. But amidst this I felt very confident of a different Rwanda, because I was interacting with Rwandans who seemed to represent to me the possibility of a different Rwanda. These Rwandans were, after all, good, kind, people who valued human life and were kind to their neighbours. But as I explored the Rwandan situation more deeply, and unearthed not only complex political intrigue and manipulation within Rwandan but within much higher levels of governance, including powerful first world states, I began to feel increasingly more overwhelmed and hopeless. If something like the Rwandan violence found its roots in such complex things as thousands of years of human history, colonialism, political manipulation, the involvement of greedy, self- interested super powers and the continued hidden agendas of so many players, what hope was there for the ordinary Rwandan, or planet dweller, to ever begin to create that better world? And yet. And yet amidst all the chaos over our heads there are so many individuals and small groups of people saying, “we don't care what happens over our heads, we are going to carry on the good work here on the ground”. It is those individuals that restored my hope; NGO leaders who worked day and night to bring reconciliation between one peasant widow and another, young Rwandans prepared to put their lives at risk for the truth, families deciding to make a life for themselves in a country that seemed hardly to welcome them, and a wide diversity of Rwandan friends who spoke with passion about a Rwanda beyond ethnic division. iii Through the process of this thesis my hope was shattered and then restored. The hope I hold within me now is deep and cannot be shaken. It keeps believing even when everything around us is screaming something different. It says, quietly and unendingly, the world would be a better place were we only to make it so. My thanks go to all those many friends – Burundian, Rwandan and South African – who have participated in this project and have helped me to see hope in so many ways. My thanks also to my supervisor, Geoff Harris, not only for all his input to this thesis but also for believing so absolutely in a better world and reminding us of the role we have to play in making that a reality. To my good friends, Kevin Parry and Jacomien van Niekerk, endless gratitude for your constant, steady support and presence over the five years it has taken me to complete this. iv CONTENTS Abstract ................................................................................................................ ii GLOSSARY .......................................................................................................... IX CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ............................................................................. 1 1.1. Understanding narrative .................................................................................. 1 1.2. Narrative and dialogue .................................................................................... 3 1.3. Narrative and history ....................................................................................... 4 1.4. Narrative and identity ...................................................................................... 5 1.5. Narrative and Rwanda .................................................................................... 8 1.6. Overall aims and objectives ............................................................................ 9 1.7. Overview of the chapters ................................................................................ 9 CHAPTER 2: BEFORE THE GENOCIDE .......................................................... 11 2.1. Introduction ................................................................................................... 11 2.2. The roots of Rwandan identity ...................................................................... 12 2.3. Rwandan identity before colonialism ............................................................. 19 2.4. Rwandan identity during colonialism ............................................................. 23 2.5. Rwandan identity after colonialism ................................................................ 27 2.5.1. The 1959 Revolution .............................................................................. 27 2.5.2. The First and Second Republic .............................................................. 30 2.5.3. Between peace and genocide ................................................................ 33 2.5.4. The Diaspora and the RPF ..................................................................... 36 2.6. Identities internalized .................................................................................... 40 2.7. Concluding thoughts ..................................................................................... 44 CHAPTER 3: DURING THE GENOCIDE ............................................................ 47 3.1. Reasons for the genocide ............................................................................. 47 3.2. The genocide strategy ................................................................................... 49 3.3. Normalizing genocide .................................................................................... 51 3.4. Narratives underlying genocide ..................................................................... 55 3.4.1. The Hamitic hypothesis and foreign invasion ......................................... 55 3.4.2. The ‘revolution’ narrative ........................................................................ 57 v 3.4.3. Cultural narratives .................................................................................. 58 3.5. By-narratives during genocide ...................................................................... 61 3.5.1. The role of class ..................................................................................... 61 3.5.2. The role of region ................................................................................... 62 3.5.3. The role of gender .................................................................................
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