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Tutsi

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Peoples

                                  Tutsi
             Total population
   Regions with significant populations Rwanda, Burundi, Eastern
                                        Democratic Republic of the Congo
                 Language               Kirundi, Kinyarwanda
                 Religion               Catholicism
          Related ethnic groups         Hutu, Twa

   The Tutsi are one of three native peoples of the nations of Rwanda and
   Burundi in central Africa, the other two being the Twa and the Hutu.
   The Twa (or Batwa) are a pygmy people and the original inhabitants. The
   Hutu (or Bahutu) are a people of Bantu origin, and since they moved
   into the area they dominated the Twa. Large numbers of all three were
   slaughtered in the Rwandan Genocide of 1994.

Origins

   The ideas surrounding real and supposed ethnic groups in Rwanda have a
   long and complicated history. The meaning of "Hutu" and "Tutsi" have
   changed through time and from place to place. In one instance, one
   finds that Tutsis were associated with the ruling class and king of
   Rwanda, but in another instance a so-called Tutsi could be impoverished
   and indistinguishable from so-called Hutus. In another setting, one
   finds Belgian colonists conducting a census, and defining "Tutsi" as
   anyone with more than ten cows or a long nose, while a "Hutu" meant
   someone with less than ten cows and a blunt nose. In yet another
   context, German colonists amazed by the prominent "European-like" noses
   of some Rwandans; they wove fanciful historical and racial theories to
   explain how some Africans acquired such noses. In addition, they were
   amazed by the organized society existing in the Kingdom of Rwanda.
   According to these early twentieth-century Europeans such organization
   and such noses could only be explained by European descent, transmitted
   by way of Ethiopia.

Racial

   Today there is considerable debate about the racial validity of the
   term Tutsi as distinct from Hutu. Some researchers believe there is no
   genetic difference between the two supposed groups, and that what
   difference did exist can be explained by social and procreative
   patterns within the Great Lakes region. At one time, there may have
   been economic and cultural differences in the Rwandan population,
   although this is also disputed. One such difference was occupational.
   Some people were farmers and ate a varied diet. Others were cattle
   keepers and had a diet that consisted of mainly dairy and meat
   products. The so-called "Hutus" were formerly associated with the
   former characteristics, and the so-called "Tutsis" with the latter
   characteristics. Since there weren't any blood or cultural differences
   between the two "groups", it was easy for them to change their supposed
   identity or to confuse the two. A Hutu could become a Tutsi simply by
   raising cattle, and a Tutsi could become a Hutu by working in
   agriculture. In most circumstances, a foreigner (and even native
   Rwandans and Burundians) cannot tell the difference simply by looking
   at a Tutsi or Hutu. This view has become popular since the genocide,
   with the current regime at pains to portray itself as being merely one
   group within a homogenous population, rather than an ethnic minority
   dominating an ethnic majority.

   Other researchers (and local tradition) indicate that the ethnic divide
   was real, and that the Tutsi were a Nilotic warrior/cattle herder tribe
   that invaded several hundred years ago, conquering the more sedentary
   agricultural (Bantu) Hutu, and establishing a quasi-feudal system in
   the country, with the mwami (king) and landlord structure. Under this
   structure, it was possible for a favored Hutu or Twa to become an
   honorary Tutsi by decree of the mwami, which might account for the
   crossovers noted. It is also understood under this view that in the
   course of time the invaders' language was submerged in the majority
   Hutu language, somewhat modifying the latter (similar to the way in
   which Norman French became subsumed by the Germanic Anglo-Saxon in
   England, while modifying it also). Thus the commonality of language is
   not necessarily an argument for tribal identity. Local comment
   indicates that while it was not uncommon for a Tutsi woman to marry a
   Hutu man, it was very rare for a Tutsi man to marry a Hutu woman.

   The stereotype is that Tutsis tend to be taller, with relatively thin
   or "lanky" frames, and have pointed noses and more " European" facial
   features and sometimes lighter skin; whereas, Hutus are more average in
   height and stocky in body frame. Another difference is supposed to be
   that Tutsis have dark oral mucosa (gums) while Hutu have lighter
   coloured oral mucosa. While many do fit the stereotype, there are Hutu
   who look like Tutsi, Tutsi who look like Hutu, and there are many
   Rwandans and Burundians don't really fit either description . In any
   case, Hutu and Tutsi commonly intermarry.

   Tutsi is actually an indeterminate term. In the Kinyarwanda language, a
   single Tutsi is called umututsi, and more than one (the plural) are
   abatutsi.

Culture

   There is little difference between the cultures of the Tutsi and Hutu;
   both groups speak the same language. Traditionally the rate of
   intermarriage has been very high, and relations between the groups were
   generally peaceful until the 20th century. Interracial marriages result
   in the race of their fathers. These significant similarities lead many
   to conclude that Tutsi is mainly an expression of class or caste rather
   than ethnicity. Experts dispute whether similarities between Hutus and
   Tutsis are from common ancestry, frequent intermarriage, or both. The
   separation of the groups are sufficiently profound that in any
   community in Rwanda, everyone knows who is Hutu and who is Tutsi; the
   genocide demonstrated a level of ethnically-based hatred that is hard
   to explain simply on colonial "definitions".

   One cultural difference noted by school principals during the 1980s was
   that although secondary school intakes were governed by quotas mandated
   by the Habyarimana government (in line with the proportions of the
   tribes within the country), and by competition within tribes, the
   students of Tutsi origin (14% of intake) on average demonstrated a much
   stronger drive to succeed, with the result that by the end of secondary
   school, the Tutsi usually were nearer 50% of graduands. This tended to
   result in accusations of "favouring the Tutsis", and was a contributor
   to the animosity of some in the genocide.

   The Tutsi were ruled by a king, the mwami, from the 15th century until
   1961. The monarchy was abolished by the Belgians, in response to the
   desires of both Tutsi and Hutu.

Colonial influences

   Both Germany (before World War I) and Belgium ruled the area in a
   colonial capacity. It was Belgian colonialists who created the notions
   of two different races rather than castes. When the Belgians took over
   the colony in 1916 from the Germans, they felt that the colony would be
   better governed if they classified the different races in a
   hierarchical form. They felt that the Hutu were children who needed to
   be guided, and saw the Tutsi as the superior race. In fact they
   couldn't believe that the Tutsi were part of the African race at all.
   They thought that they had immigrated from somewhere else, or were
   survivors of the lost continent of Atlantis. Interestingly in 1959 the
   Belgian established racial hierarchy was reversed with the Hutu being
   considered the superior group and taking the prime positions in
   society. This increased oppression of the Tutsi by the Hutu, and led to
   many cultural conflicts, including the Rwandan Genocide.

Genocide

   The Rwandan Genocide was the organized murder of up to one million
   Rwandans in 1994. Although Rwanda's bifurcated society was relatively
   stable until the 1970s, the following two decades saw many members of
   both tribes die in bloody fighting in Burundi, Rwanda, and Congo. By
   early August 1994, an estimated 1/4 of the pre-war population of Rwanda
   had either died or fled the country. International relief efforts were
   mobilized to care for the refugees, but available supplies were
   inadequate and outbreaks of disease were widespread. More than 20,000
   refugees died in a cholera epidemic in the camps set up to receive
   them. Today there remain approximately 130,000 people in prison waiting
   to be tried for their part in the genocide, and well over 300,000
   children with no relatives to care for them.

   The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda was established to
   convict those involved in the Rwandan genocide. The ICTR's landmark
   decision in Prosecutor v. Akayesu in 1998 made it the first tribunal
   ever to convict for genocide. The tribunal struggled with fitting the
   Hutu and Tutsi into distinct groups - a requisite element for a finding
   of genocide - but ultimately decided to classify the Hutu and Tutsi as
   distinct ethnic groups. This classification was not based on real
   ethnical differences between the two groups. The Chamber noted that the
   Tutsi population does not have its own language or a distinct culture
   from the rest of the Rwandan population. Instead, the Chamber found
   that because the Hutu and Tutsi were treated as distinct ethnic groups,
   that was enough to fulfill the requirement.
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