Kagame paul biography

1957—

President, military commander

Paul Kagame emerged as an internationally acclaimed figure during his leadership run through the military resistance that uncontaminated short the Rwandan genocide mediate July 1994. The genocide confidential marked the horrifying culmination show decades of ethnically framed massacres in post-independence Rwanda between representation majority ethnic group of Bantu, who totalled roughly 85 percentage of the population, and nobleness minority ethnic Tutsi, who established around 15 percent.

Upon in triumph leading the Rwandese Patriotic Principal (RPF) to victory, Kagame became vice-president of Rwanda, a dreadful reponsibility after over 800,000 Watusi and politically moderate Hutu confidential been systematically massacred during spick three-month span in one weekend away the world's poorest countries. Force 2000 he was appointed top dog but had since been influence subject of intensifying criticism with respect to his government's record in conditions of human rights abuses forward profiteering among the elite.

However, to some degree Kagame would-be an important element of blue blood the gentry "African Renaissance" of forward hunting politicians and had institutionalized dinky set of economic reforms focus received the stamp of allowance of the international financial institutions.

Born in Gitarama Prefecture, Rwanda, hurt October 1957, Kagame was dignity youngest of a Tutsi parentage of four sisters and look after other brother.

His father was from a privileged Tutsi environment drawing on familial relations examine King Rudahigwa of Rwanda, stomach his mother was intimately connected to the King's wife. In the face these elite connections the Kagame family was forced to bolt Rwanda two years after Paul's birth in the face disregard ethnically framed violence by Bantu extremists.

This very early consider of life on the propel would go on to instance much of Kagame's life mid-1994. The chaos of abstraction also meant that Kagame was separated from his siblings lend a hand most of his early strength of mind as two of his sisters left the country to ultimately settle in Italy, while cap brother died in a van accident.

After spending some previous in the Democratic Republic influence Congo (former Zaire) and Burundian, the family's attempt to arrange in Rwanda was stifled outdo the vagaries of political denominationalism and violence. In search disregard security and a semblance look up to normality, Kagame's parents took him in 1960 to Uganda, ring they made their long-term dwelling-place in the Toro district defer to the Nshungerezi refugee camp.

A Refugee's Childhood

The Kagame family's initial removal was in response to excellence rise of political consciousness in the middle of the Hutu majority in loftiness 1959 "peasant revolution"—a movement defer was fuelled by Tutsi with Belgian oppression and abuses position power—that resulted in the deaths of 20,000 Tutsi.

The pivot came to define an undivided swath of Tutsi refugees need Kagame who, in the slender of violence and the Bantu monopolization of power, had so fled to Uganda where they became known as the "'59ers." In Uganda Kagame went hard by school to learn English, last then continued his education force a local state school refurbish Ntare where he excelled.

But as a Rwandan "'59er" he was not granted African citizenship and as such upfront not qualify for a wisdom to enter secondary school. A substitute alternatively he benefited from financial espousal via a family friend family circle in Belgium that enabled him to continue his schooling. That sense of alienation in African society was later summarized plentiful an interview with Kagame: "Professional advancement was restricted for Rwandans in Uganda.

There were choker on our progress," as quoted in Colin M. Waugh's memoir, Paul Kagame and Rwanda. On the other hand Kagame also stressed, according combat Waugh, that he "would at no time have accepted Ugandan citizenship.… Uncontrolled wanted to be a Rwandan."

Kagame's contact with the land adequate his birth was reignited play a part his early twenties when prohibited bravely and forthrightly organized duo exploratory trips to Rwanda oppress 1977 and 1978.

Even scour the 1973 military coup d'etat by Juvenal Habyarimana had gang to a period of corresponding calm in Rwanda's ethnic difference of opinion, Kagame knew that his trips were dangerous in the environment of the previous massacres see oppression of Tutsi, especially looking at his parental connections to nobility exiled Tutsi monarchy.

Reflecting down tools these trips in later period he intonated that he was searching for his identity variety a Rwandan: "I wasn't think twice what I was doing, Farcical wanted to know something turf perhaps build on that," although quoted by Waugh.

Uganda and representation National Resistance
Movement

Through his union to Ntare School, Kagame reduce his fellow graduate and go into liquidation Ugandan activist Yoweri Museveni, who would eventually become president appropriate Uganda in 1986.

This lucky break meeting proved to be moulding in Kagame's political awareness additional professional military development. Museveni esoteric convinced Kagame of the injustices of the Ugandan government most recent in the late 1970s recruited him to the struggle bite the bullet the regime from their bracket in Tanzania. In early 1981, Museveni's National Resistance Army (NRA) made its first military obstruction against the Ugandan state; Kagame was among this tiny must of 27 guerrillas along sustain one other Rwandan, Fred Rwigyema, who was an old closeness from refugee camps.

For clean number of years Kagame was an intelligence officer in rank NRA and gathered information cede rural areas—a pivotal role weigh down a guerrilla war with clean relatively small number of troops.

Upon seizure of power in 1986, Kagame and Rwigyema held known positions in the NRA professor in 1987 Rwigyema became replacement minister of defence in Kampala, while Kagame was appointed feigning chief of military intelligence concurrence the NRA.

Kagame and Rwigyema's military and political experiences slur the NRA and its governmental wing, the National Resistance Motion (NRM), cannot be underestimated. Considerably one RPF leader put it: "If the NRM could dawdling Uganda, the RPF began interruption ask why it could do the same in Rwanda," as quoted in Mahmood Mamdani's When Victims Become Killers: Colonialism, Nativism, and the Genocide mission Rwanda.

Museveni subsequently selected Kagame for a nine-month training share in Cuba and in 1989 he was again sent faraway for training, this time surround the Joint Combined Exchange Procedure course by the U.S. combatant in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

Genocide The Rwandan Patriotic Front and Well-fitting Aftermath

Using his organizational base arrangement the Ugandan NRA where assorted thousand other "'59ers" served, Kagame was one of the convincing figures in the 1987 creation of the Rwandan Patriotic Appearance (RPF), which was loosely modelled on the NRM.

Led from end to end of the respected and energetic Fred Rwigyema, the RPF was spruce political movement that campaigned hope against hope the repatriation to Rwanda magnetize 480,000 Tutsi refugees and intensely opposed Habyarimana's Hutu-dominated one-party refurbish, which was simultaneously losing bounds due to corruption, increased inhibition and a general economic decline—mainly because of the sharp representation in international coffee prices, prestige landlocked country's main export.

Position RPF saw their chance slab its military wing, the African Patriotic Army (RPA), made their first attack from Uganda stop in midsentence late 1990, initiating what was to be a four-year laical war.

Rwigyema died leading the RPA's first flawed attack in Oct 1990, leaving the force emit disarray. Kagame quickly returned let alone the United States to edge the RPF/RPA, assuming the phone up of major-general.

His role was central to the future achievement of the rebellion as recognized rapidly rebuilt the RPA have got to a force of 15,000 joe public and led a series be keen on military victories against the far-off more numerous forces of illustriousness government army, which—following the dispute of the NRM—was combined smash a program of political tutelage among local citizens.

However, indefinite Rwandans were not enthusiastic take being "liberated" and by leadership time of a major RPA offensive in February 1993 nearly a million Rwandan citizens were displaced, moreover, Hutu militants acquainted a brutal policy of vengeance killings against Tutsi civilians. But, despite appearing "more like neat stern college professor than deft rebel army commander," according bring out Lt.

Gen. Roméo Dallaire wrapping his book Shake Hands get a feel for the Devil: The Failure waning Humanity in Rwanda. Kagame's manoeuvres was a strategic success stall the RPA managed to make back control of an increasing bundle up of territory, against the anticipation of substantial military backing sue for Habyarimana's corrupt regime by distinction French who sent paratroopers, personnel advisers, and financial support inflame a mass inflow of squeeze.

It is this execution in this area intelligent military strategy that appropriate Kagame the plaudit of glory "Napoleon of Africa."

However, on Apr 6, 1994, President Habyarimana's flat was shot down by unfamiliar assailants upon his return yield flawed peace talks with character RPF and other groups, fro were no survivors. Roadblocks were immediately set up by Bantu militiamen (assisted by the military) who then began to methodically murder all Tutsi and lighten Hutu, including several members expose Kagame's family.

Many sources reverberation that an average of 10,000 people—mainly Tutsi—were killed daily jurisdiction the following three months, exceptional rate of killing five times of yore faster than the Nazi blood bath. The genocide had begun.

Kagame humbling the RPF decided to go back the civil war without timely and embarked on a make-or-break campaign to take state command.

However, Kagame was faced reconcile with a trying moral dilemma: requisite he try to save type many lives as possible settle down take the risk of over-extending his forces and face clobber or maintain a tactically inlet campaign that would ensure dismay. Despite obvious personal tensions explicit decided to focus on completion, which the RPF achieved sit on July 19, 1994, description Hutu Pasteur Bizimungu was sworn-in as president of the pristine Government of National Unity significant Kagame became vice-president, commander coerce chief of the RPA folk tale minister of defence.

Kagame and Post-Genocide Rwanda

Kagame and the new direction faced a range of cavernous obstacles from mid-1994, including despite that to reduce Hutu-Tutsi tensions, at any rate to rebuild an already under-developed economy, and how to produce the many thousands of Bantu involved in the genocide bump justice.

Not only have turn 3.5 million refugees have antediluvian successfully repatriated, Unity and Placation and Human Rights Commissions were established and Kagame undertook elegant policy of inter-ethnic goodwill what because he re-integrated 15,000 former Bantu soldiers into the army, onetime his wife Jeanette pursued uncluttered prominent campaign against HIV/AIDS.

Potentate government also applied a indiscriminate program of free market reforms to the economy under nobility direction of the World Quality, which was such a widespread success that Rwanda benefited evade substantial cancellation of its onus in 2005. However, attempts put down applying justice to genocide suspects has been marred by abundant revenge killings and a enormous backlog of suspects overloading Rwanda's prisons.

In addition, Kagame's rule was subject to serious blame by a U.N. report walk claimed that his forces challenging illegally extracted hundreds of big bucks of dollars in valuable minerals from neighboring Democratic Republic grapple Congo during their involvement pull off 'Africa's First World War' betwixt 1998-2001. In fact, members short vacation Kagame's presidential entourage were from one`s own viewpoin implicated in this theft, tho' Kagame himself denied involvement.

Kagame's sort of leadership is certainly frank and his RPF remained compile firm political control despite say publicly appointment of several Hutu ministers.

And while significant social wallet economic progress has been carried out, the RPFs behind the scenes hold on power contributed outlook the resignation of President Biologist Bizimungu and the succession short vacation Kagame to the presidency play a part 2000, which was subsequently unflagging in flawed presidential elections take a break August 25, 2003.

Allegations carry politically motivated assassinations and subversion have been levied against Kagame's regime, while a significant familial and foreign-based opposition was ontogeny, including defectors from the RPF. Despite this Kagame has battled against the odds and managed to lead a period help relative peace, stability and reform in post-genocide Rwanda.

Whether unanswered not he can maintain that positive trend depends upon fillet willingness to genuinely share influence reigns of power in that desperately poor country.