Bugesera invasion: Difference between revisions

[[File:Epinglette Kigeli V 01.JPG|left|thumb|Brass lapel pin ''Vive [[Kigeli V Ndahindurwa|Kigeli V]]'' "Long Live Kigeli V" from the time of the revolution.]]▼

In January 1961 thousands of Ruandan municipal officials gathered in [[Muhanga|Gitarama]] and, acting as a constituent assembly, [[coup of Gitarama|voted to dissolve the monarchy]] and replace it with a presidential system. The proposed president, [[Dominique Mbonyumutwa]], then requested that Kayibanda form a new government.{{sfn|Mamdani|2002|p=124}}{{sfn|Lemarchand|1970|p=193}} This arrangement was later altered to give Kayibanda the presidency.{{sfn|Lemarchand|1970|p=193}} In the September [[1961 Rwandan parliamentary election]], PARMEHUTU won an overwhelming majority of the seats in the [[Parliament of Rwanda|Legislative Assembly]]. Concurrent to the elections was a referendum on the decision to abolish the monarchy; the population voted in favour of abolition.{{sfn|Harroy|1989|p=475}} In February 1962 the United Nations brokered a compromise, the New York Accord,{{sfn|Mushemeza|2007|p=65}} in attempt to ensure Rwandan politics remained inclusive. The agreement called for Kayibanda and PARMEHUTU to form a coalition government with UNAR,{{sfn|Mamdani|2020|pp=126–128}} guaranteeing the latter two ministerial portfolios in the government.<ref name= emmanuel/> The accord split UNAR into an accommodationist faction committed to working through the coalition, and a restorationist faction intent on using armed force to attack the new government.{{sfn|Mamdani|2020|pp=126–128}} On 17 May 1962 [[Michel Rwagasana]], a leader of UNAR's accommodationist faction, declared before the Legislative Assembly that UNAR was committed to working with the Rwandan government. The restorationists were deeply angered by this statement and it resulted in a total fracture in the party between those who remained in Rwanda and those in exile.{{sfn|Lemarchand|1970|pp=202–203}}▼

Ruanda-Urundi became independent as the two states of [[Rwanda]] and [[Burundi]] on 1 July 1962.<ref name = nyt/> Kayibanda became President of Rwanda. Fearful of majority rule and facing violence, thousands of Tutsis fled to neighbouring countries. Burundi, which retained a Tutsi monarchy, was the most welcoming for the refugees.{{sfn|Stapleton|2017|p=39}} The UNAR restorationists formed a government-in-exile, with [[François Rukeba]] as Prime Minister.{{sfn|Lemarchand|1970|p=203}}{{efn|After the Bugesera invasion, the Rwandan military claimed to had captured "two red-and‐white guerrilla flags reputed to belong to a revolutionary government".<ref name = nyt/> }} They hoped to place King [[Kigeli V Ndahindurwa]] back on the throne through force.<ref name = nyt>{{cite news |title=Savagery Marks Tribal Warfare in Rwanda; Watasi, Once Feudal Lords, Flee to Neighboring Lands —Bahatu Kill Thousands; Regime Said to Permit Raids as Reprisals for Terrorism by Monarchist Guerrillas |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1964/02/09/archives/savagery-marks-tribal-warfare-in-rwanda-watasi-once-feudal-lords.html |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |page=1 |date=9 February 1964 }}</ref> However, the exiled UNAR elements were deeply divided, fragmented and disorganised. As they were spread across several countries, communication was arduous and slow, making coordinated actions difficult.{{sfn|Paulmichl|1998|p=26}} The party organisation was also weak, and rivalries between different factions hampered the resistance against the Rwandan government: While the UNAR exiles were led by Kigeli and reactionary monarchists, a substantial left-leaning group existed at the basis. In exile, the UNAR's [[Marxism|Marxist]] wing gradually grew more influential.{{sfn|Paulmichl|1998|pp=26–27}} Internal disagreements led to a reforming of the government-in-exile in May 1963 with [[Michel Kayihura]] as Prime Minister and Rukeba retained as Minister of Defence.{{sfn|Lemarchand|1970|p=204}} In February 1963 Kayibanda dropped the UNAR ministers from his government.<ref name= emmanuel>{{cite web| url = https://www.sciencespo.fr/mass-violence-war-massacre-resistance/en/document/rwanda-chronology-1867-1994| title = Rwanda - A Chronology (1867-1994)| first = Emmanuel| last = Viret| date = 1 March 2010| website = Mass Violence & Résistance| publisher = [[Sciences Po]]| access-date = 8 June 2021}}</ref>▼

Early UNAR Tutsi insurgent activity was confined to acts of terrorism against specific individuals and families. As more Tutsi refugees fled Rwanda, UNAR's exile ranks grew, and more systematic attempts were made to raise bands of combatants to launch raids on targeted areas. Violence in Rwanda dramatically increased as Tutsis fled ''en masse'' in early 1960; the first acts of violence were retaliatory attacks by Tutsis against Hutu officials who had mistreated them, but by early 1962 planned raids had become predominant. These were intended to inflict maximum damage to the Hutu-dominated administration and were generally conducted without consideration for government reprisals on local Tutsis.{{sfn|Lemarchand|1970|p=217}} By 1963, about 60,000 Tutsi refugees were living in the [[Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville)|Republic of the Congo]], 48,000 in Uganda, 25,000 in Burundi, and 16,000 in [[Tanganyika (1961–1964)|Tanganyika]].<ref name = nyt/> As the insurgents were known to attack at night, they were called Inyenzi, meaning "cockroaches". It is unknown whether the rebels themselves or officials of the Kayibanda regime coined the term. While later used in a derogatory sense against Tutsis generally, most contemporary sources refer to the exile rebels with the term in a non-pejorative fashion.{{sfn|Straus|2013|p=184}} The [[People's Republic of China]] also provided the guerillas with training opportunities and financial support.{{sfn|Stapleton|2017|pp=39–40}}{{efn|The People's Republic of China reportedly chose to support the rebels as a response to Kayibanda's denunciations of communism and his recognition of [[Chiang Kai-shek]]'s [[Taiwan|rival Chinese government]].<ref>{{cite news| last = Sulzberger| first = C. L.| title = Foreign Affairs: Prince Charlie and the Cockroaches| newspaper = The New York Times| page = 30| date = 6 April 1964}}</ref>}} The Tutsi rebels reportedly also enlisted some defectors of the [[Armée Nationale Congolaise]] (National Congolese Army),<ref name = nyt/> and were known to cooperate with [[Lumumbism|Lumumbist]] factions in the Congo in the hopes of achieving future assistance against the Rwandan government.{{sfn|Lemarchand|1970|p=214}} However, the Congolese, Ugandan, and Tanganyikan governments were opposed to the radicalisation of the refugees, and tried to curb Inyenzi acitivity on their soil.{{sfn|Onoma|2013|p=204}} In February and March 1962 Inyenzi conducted two raids in the prefecture of Biumba, killing several Hutu policemen and civil servants. From 26–27 March the Hutu population of the prefecture retaliated by killing 1,000–2,000 Tutsi civilians, burning their homes, and looting their property.{{sfn|Lemarchand|1970|pp=217, 219}}▼