The genocide of the Tutsis and the massacres, which claimed almost a million lives in Rwanda between April and July 1994, are the result of a variety of interdependent factors. Reading the literature on the subject, we are left with one basic question: how can we comprehend the mass slaughter of men, women and children, primarily as a result of their belonging to a particular ethnic group? Observers believe that the genocide and its consequences, which still reverberate today, are to be understood in the context of the ethnic conflict (between Hutu, and Tutsi), which has been a feature of Rwanda's history since the late 1950s (pp 86-87).

Republic of Rwanda has been the victim of Ethnic violence since its independence in 1962. Two predominant ethnic groups namely the Hutu and the Tutsi have clashed with each other resulting in large-scale massacres and flight of millions of people to

Rwanda has been a Tutsi kingdom from 16th to the last quarter of the 19th century. In 1890 it came under German rule. After the First World War in 1919 it was administered by Belgium under the League of Nations Mandate System. Then after 1945 it became a UN trust territory. In 1959 the Hutu majority overthrew the Tutsi kingdom and proclaimed Rwanda a Republic. Belgium recognized its independence on July 1, 1962. In 1963 Rwanda witnessed an invasion by Tutsi exiles, which resulted in their large-scale massacre at the hands of the Hutu. In July 1973 Maj. General Juvenal overthrew the government in a bloodless coup. The military rule continued from 1973 to 1990 when a multi-party democracy was installed in the country. The civil rule was marked by a short-lived peace, which was soon broken by a renewed wave of ethnic strife. The government and the Tutsi-led rebels of Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) signed a new peace accord in August 1993. This agreement lasted till April 6, 1994

Some common words found in the essay are:
Hutu Tutsi, Civil War, April July, Maj Juvenal, Republic Rwanda, President Rwanda, Republic Belgium, Similarly UN, Pamphile Sebahara, Front RPF, hutu tutsi, namely hutu tutsi, tutsi kingdom, french troops, rwandan patriotic, republic rwanda, patriotic front, pp 86-87, 19th century, rwandan patriotic front, sebahara 1998, ethnic division,
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Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)