Understanding the event

The forces at play

Detail of the militia loincloth Interahamwe, militia of President Habyarimana’s party. This cloth is the emblem of the "Hutu Power" gathering extremist activists against the Tutsi "hereditary enemy" and against traitors to the Hutu Nation, namely, opponents of the Habyarimana regime and moderate supporters advocating for power sharing with the RPF.

Since 1992, the radicalization of the political game has led to the creation of militias tasked with "defending" the interests of their respective political parties. These are established on the basis of the various existing youth bodies and quickly become arms of their party.
Among them, two militias stand out; the Interhamwe ("those who attack together") attached to the presidential party of the MRND and the Impuzamugambi ("those who pursue the same goal") related to the Coalition for the Defense of the Republic (CDR), party of Jean-Bosco Paragwiza also a shareholder of the main extremist broadcasting organ, Radio Télévision Libre des Mille Collines (RTML). Assisted by the official army (FAR) and under the aegis of the MRND, all the racist movements united at the end of 1993 under the banner of "Hutu Power".