A Psychosocial Examination of Rwanda's National Unity
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BETWEEN RHETORIC AND REALITY: A PSYCHOSOCIAL EXAMINATION OF RWANDA’S NATIONAL UNITY AND RECONCILIATION POLICY by Catherine Vergos Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts at Dalhousie University Halifax, Nova Scotia December 2011 © Copyright by Catherine Vergos, 2011 DALHOUSIE UNIVERSITY DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE The undersigned hereby certify that they have read and recommend to the Faculty of Graduate Studies for acceptance a thesis entitled “BETWEEN RHETORIC AND REALITY: A PSYCHOSOCIAL EXAMINATION OF RWANDA’S NATIONAL UNITY AND RECONCILIATION POLICY” by Catherine Vergos in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts. Dated: December 9, 2011 Supervisor: _________________________________ Readers: _________________________________ _________________________________ Departmental Representative: _________________________________ ii DALHOUSIE UNIVERSITY DATE: December 9, 2011 AUTHOR: Catherine Vergos TITLE: BETWEEN RHETORIC AND REALITY: A PSYCHOSOCIAL EXAMINATION OF RWANDA’S NATIONAL UNITY AND RECONCILIATION POLICY DEPARTMENT OR SCHOOL: Department of Political Science DEGREE: MA CONVOCATION: May YEAR: 2012 Permission is herewith granted to Dalhousie University to circulate and to have copied for non-commercial purposes, at its discretion, the above title upon the request of individuals or institutions. I understand that my thesis will be electronically available to the public. The author reserves other publication rights, and neither the thesis nor extensive extracts from it may be printed or otherwise reproduced without the author’s written permission. The author attests that permission has been obtained for the use of any copyrighted material appearing in the thesis (other than the brief excerpts requiring only proper acknowledgement in scholarly writing), and that all such use is clearly acknowledged. _______________________________ Signature of Author iii This thesis is dedicated to the advancement of the reconciliation process in Rwanda. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT --------------------------------------------------------- vii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS USED ---------------------------------viii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ---------------------------------------------ix CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION -----------------------------------1 1.1 Objective and Rationale ------------------------------------- 2 1.2 Research Questions ------------------------------------------ 3 1.3 Hypothesis and Thesis Statement -------------------------- 4 1.4 Approach ------------------------------------------------------ 5 1.5 Procedure ----------------------------------------------------- 6 1.6 Limitations ---------------------------------------------------- 8 1.7 Chapter Outline ----------------------------------------------10 CHAPTER TWO: POLITICAL AND HISTORICAL CONTEXT-------13 2.1 History of the Genocide -------------------------------------13 2.2 Achievements of the Post-Genocide Government ------- 14 2.3 Image Control ----------------------------------------------- 16 2.4 Control of Political Space -----------------------------------17 2.5 Genocide Ideology Laws ------------------------------------18 2.6 Concluding Remarks ---------------------------------------- 25 CHAPTER THREE: REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE ----------------26 3.1 Theoretical Approaches to Reconciliation -----------------26 3.2 Retributive and Restorative Justice ----------------------- 27 3.3 Retributive Justice and Reconciliation -------------------- 28 3.4 Restorative Justice ------------------------------------------ 30 3.4.1 Restorative Justice and Reconciliation ------------------------- 33 3.4.2 Truth Telling as Restorative: Truth and Reconciliation Commissions ----------------------------------------------------- 34 3.4.3 Strengths of Truth Telling --------------------------------------- 36 3.4.4 Weaknesses of Truth Telling -------------------------------------38 v 3.5 Ownership of the Process of Reconciliation ------------- 39 3.6 Reconciliation and Interpersonal Relationships ---------40 3.7 Reconciliation in Rwanda --------------------------------- 42 3.8 Concluding Remarks ----------------------------------------49 CHAPTER FOUR: THE PSYCHOLOGICAL NEEDS-BASED MODEL OF RECONCILIATION ------------------------------------ 51 4.1 Psychological Considerations Regarding Reconciliation -51 4.2 Instrumental versus Socioemotional Reconciliation --- 53 4.2.1 Instrumental Reconciliation ------------------------------------- 53 4.2.2 Socioemotional Reconciliation --------------------------------- 54 4.3 Unpacking the Needs-Based Model of Reconciliation -- 55 CHAPTER FIVE: ANALYSIS OF RWANDA’S NATIONAL UNITY AND RECONCILIATION POLICY ---------------------------------- 61 5.1 State-Led Knowledge Construction ----------------------- 61 5.1.1 Official Historical Narrative of Pre-Colonial Rwanda ------------ 62 5.2 Enforcing State-Led Reconciliation ------------------------ 67 5.2.1 Memorial Sites --------------------------------------------------- 67 5.2.2 Gacaca ------------------------------------------------------------ 70 5.2.3 Ingando ----------------------------------------------------------- 76 5.3 Identity as Citizenship: The Project of De-Ethnicization 81 5.4 Official Omission of RPA/F Crimes ----------------------- 83 5.5 Concluding Remarks -----------------------------------------87 5.6 Reconciliation from a Psychological Perspective ---------88 CHAPTER SIX: CONCLUSION --------------------------------------90 6.1 Rwandan Resistance to the Current Approach ----------- 90 6.2 Concluding Remarks -----------------------------------------92 REFERENCES --------------------------------------------------------98 vi ABSTRACT The policy of National Unity and Reconciliation in Rwanda has been the subject of much heated debate in recent years, prompted by the uncovering of repressive techniques of the current government. As the policy is designed to enhance the legitimacy of this government, the national rhetoric must be compared to its actions where reconciliation is concerned. Instead of promoting national unity and reconciliation, this thesis will show that the government actively obstructs Rwandan interpersonal reconciliation through the denial of acceptance and empowerment. The analysis is informed by the psychological needs-based model of reconciliation, bringing in aspects of psychological theory into a field largely dominated by law and political science. vii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS USED AI: Amnesty International CEDAW: Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women DRC: Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire) FAR: Rwandan Armed Forces GDP: Gross Domestic Product GNU: Government of National Unity GoR: Government of Rwanda HRW: Human Rights Watch ICTR: International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda ICTR: International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda ICTY: International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia MDR: Mouvement Democratique Republicain NGO: Non-Governmental Organization NURC: National Unity and Reconciliation Commission RPA: Rwandan Patriotic Army RPF: Rwandan Patriotic Front TRC: Truth and Reconciliation Commission UNDP: United Nations Development Programme WFP: World Food Programme viii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I’d like to first thank my parents, Glenda and Spiros Vergos. Your unrelenting love and support helped me to persevere when I thought that I did not have it in me. You have always been willing to help me whenever you could, and even when you could not. You mean the world to me and I am lucky and proud to have you both as my parents. To my sisters Marie, Patty, Carly, Sarah, and Kristine: Thank-you for being the source of support and confidence when I needed it most – thank-you for believing in me and encouraging me to push myself. I could not ask for better sisters. To my grandparents, Ruth and Glen Fryer: Thank-you for your love, thoughts and prayers. Thanks for coming to Halifax and showing me around Nova Scotia! To Mike: Your continued patience and unconditional love throughout this whole process has been incredible. If I ever began to lose confidence, you were always right there beside me, building me back up. You helped me to believe that I could finish this, and I cannot really express in words how much your love and support truly means to me. Thank-you. I’d also like to say thank-you to Margaret Denike, who helped me to regain perspective and focus. I simply would not have been able to do this without your help. To Ruben Zaiotti: Thank-you for coming onto my committee as second reader, and being available throughout this process, always willing to assist me where I needed clarification. ix CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION The Rwandan genocide of 1994 is one of the most gruesome displays of human evil that this world has ever known. Not only did the genocide result in the deaths of hundreds of thousands, but it also destroyed fundamental social, political, and judicial institutions on which to base any kind of reconstruction after the violence. The social fabric, bonded by mutual trust and cooperation, had been viciously ripped apart. Human rights were non-existent or purposefully violated, and there certainly was no popularly sanctioned government that could be said to represent its people (the first post-genocide elections happened nine years after 1994). Finally, the judicial apparatus, including judges and lawyers, had been broken – many of those who held titles in the legal profession were either killed or had fled the country during the violence. The country