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WORK TITLE: Rwanda’s Popular Genocide
WORK NOTES:
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BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE:
CITY:
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COUNTRY:
NATIONALITY: Rwandan
“Jean-Paul Kimonyo is a senior adviser in the Office of the President of Rwanda and also a fellow at the Rift Valley Institute.” * https://www.linkedin.com/in/jean-paul-kimonyo-4a48b63a/ * http://riftvalley.net/directors-governance
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL EDUCATION:
University of Quebec at Montreal, Ph.D., 2002.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Author; senior advisor, Office of the President, Kigali, Rwanda, 2009–.
WRITINGS
SIDELIGHTS
Jean-Paul Kimonyo serves as an advisor to the president of Rwanda, and his research concentrates on the affairs of that country and its neighbor Burundi. He is the coauthor of Réformes de la filière café au Burundi: perspectives d’avenir pour la participation, la prosperité et la paix, and the sole author of Revue critique des interprétations du conflit rwandais and Rwanda, un génocide populaire (which was translated by Wandia Njoya as Rwanda’s Popular Genocide: A Perfect Storm).
Much of Kimonyo’s work—including his doctoral thesis, which he completed at the University of Quebec at Montreal—concentrates on the civil war and genocide that consumed Rwanda during the 1990s. Rwanda’s Popular Genocide tells the story of how the genocide began on the local level in Butare prefecture, near the Burundi border. “The book is a systematic study of the causes of the last genocide of the twentieth century, in which more than one million people perished,” explained Thierry Kevin Gatete in the New Times. “It derives from a doctoral thesis and is in essence a dispassionate observation of unfolding political adventures and misadventures, with thirty pages of scholarly endnotes to suggest that it is the twilight of sound and lengthy research. It is a captivating read, for theories are processed through the author’s beautiful mind.” Writing in Choice, P.G. Conway stated: “Kimonyo persuasively refutes arguments that such a policy was decisively provoked by the president’s death, [or] radio propaganda.”
The civil war marked by the genocide began early in 1994, when an airplane carrying Rwandan president Juvénal Habyarimana and Burundian president Cyprien Ntaryamira was shot down near the capitol city of Kigali. Habyarimana had been president of Rwanda for twenty years and had exercised dictatorial powers over the country. A member of the majority Hutu ethnic group, Habyarimana had maintained an uneasy peace between the Hutu and the next largest group, the Tutsi. Tutsis were held responsible for the crash, which caused the deaths of both Habyarimana and Ntaryamira, and Hutus launched massive attacks on Tutsi groups, as well as on Hutus that were believed to be sympathetic to the Tutsis. Rebel Tutsis responded with attacks on the Hutu, and the violence quickly spiraled out of control. Kimonyo’s Rwanda’s Popular Genocide examines the situation of Butare prefecture at the time the violence began to spread. The area is the site of the city of Butare, which had been the capitol of the colony of Rwanda after it was seized by Belgian forces during World War I. He looks at the ways in which civilized society broke down in Butare, leading to massive numbers of crimes against humanity. “Rwanda’s Popular Genocide,” concluded an Internet Bookwatch reviewer, “is worthy of the highest recommendation.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Choice, June, 2016, P.G. Conway, review of Rwanda’s Popular Genocide: A Perfect Storm, p. 1540.
Internet Bookwatch, March, 2016, review of Rwanda’s Popular Genocide.
Jeune Afrique, December 11, 2015, Mehdi Ba, author interview.
New Times, April 20, 2016, Thierry Kevin Gatete, review of Rwanda’s Popular Genocide.
ONLINE
Rift Valley, http://riftvalley.net/ (May 12, 2017), author profile.
Jean-Paul Kimonyo
Jean-Paul Kimonyo is policy advisor in the Rwandan presidency. He is the author of Rwanda, un génocide populaire (2008), based on his research on the genocide in Butare and Kibuye. He has a PhD from the University of Quebec.
Jean-Paul Kimonyo
Expert on conflict and post-conflict reconstruction; Sr Advisor on NEPAD Office of the President, Rwanda
Office of the President Universite du Quebec a Montreal
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I have a strong and varied experience in both policy and strategy analysis and
implementation on post conflict reconstruction. For the four past years I have been
a senior strategy and policy advisor to the President of Rwanda where worked on policy
reform and got invaluable experience in practical policy implementation. I was the head of the Strategy and Policy Unit in the Office of the President in Rwanda. Prior to that, I
started my career by working on conflict analysis and post conflict reconstruction as an
academic researcher. I was the founding director of the Center for conflict Management at the National University of Rwanda. Then I worked as a lead consultant in Rwanda and other African
countries on reconciliation issues, post conflict democratisation, judicial reform and more
and more on socioeconomic reconstruction. I was the lead author of the UNDP 2005
Burundi National Development Report on “Burundi post conflict reconstruction”. In 2009 I
drafted the “National Reconciliation Policy” of Cote d’Ivoire that predicted the 2010 postelectoral
conflict. I have a strong ability of conducting complex projects involving a
big team of analysts of different levels. See lessSee less of undefined summary
Experience
Office of the President
Researcher & Author, Conflict & Post Conflict-Reconstruction; Sr Advisor Presidency (Rwanda)
Company NameOffice of the President
Dates EmployedFeb 2009 – Present Employment Duration8 yrs 3 mos
LocationKigali, Rwanda
Rwanda Representative for NEPAD; Working on a book on Rwanda's reconstruction (1994-2014) in a comparative prespective, Author of 'Rwanda: un genocide populaire'
See less See less about Researcher & Author, Conflict & Post Conflict-Reconstruction; Sr Advisor Presidency (Rwanda), Office of the President
Education
Universite du Quebec a Montreal
Universite du Quebec a Montreal
Degree Name Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Field Of Study Political Science and Government
Dates attended or expected graduation 1998 – 2002
Kimonyo, Jean Paul. Rwanda's popular genocide: a perfect storm
P.G. Conway
CHOICE: Current Reviews for Academic Libraries. 53.10 (June 2016): p1540.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2016 American Library Association CHOICE
http://www.ala.org/acrl/choice/about
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Kimonyo, Jean Paul. Rwanda's popular genocide: a perfect storm. L. Rienner, 2015. 404p bibl index afp ISBN 9781626371866 cloth, $65.00; ISBN 9781626375420 ebook, contact publisher for price
53-4568
DT450
MARC
This belated, revised publication, first released in French in 2008, is an important contribution to the voluminous literature on Rwanda. Accomplished scholar Kimonyo (Rift Valley Institute) has also been senior adviser to President Kagame. Kimonyo's research mainly attempts to explain how and why such a significant proportion of the Hutu population facilitated the mass murder of Tutsi and moderate Hutu as well. To a great extent, he is successful. Historical memories of mass violence that benefited Hutus in 1959, extreme land and food shortages that came to a head in the 1980s, and divisive "ethnic" practices under President Habyarimana led to a collapse of traditional civility by 1994. By then, the potential for a policy of total genocide was rooted in the political culture. But Kimonyo persuasively refutes arguments that such a policy was decisively provoked by the president's death, radio propaganda, or even fears of Rwanda Patriotic Front aggression in this exhaustive, theoretically grounded analysis. The book includes well over three dozen tables with demographic and economic data as well as maps to clarify the presentation. Academics may disagree on some aspects of the catastrophe, but all should find this book useful. Summing Up: *** Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above.--P. G. Conway, SUNY College at Oneonta
Conway, P.G.
Rwanda's Popular Genocide
Internet Bookwatch. (Mar. 2016):
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2016 Midwest Book Review
http://www.midwestbookreview.com
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Rwanda's Popular Genocide
Jean-Paul Kimonyo
Lynne Rienner Publishers
1800 30th Street, Suite 314, Boulder, CO 80301
9781626371866 $65.00 www.rienner.com
Rwanda's Popular Genocide: A Perfect Storm is a scholarly and studious cross-examination of the most vile aspects of human psychology. What motivated entire Hutu communities to perpetrate genocide against their Tutsi neighbors, and also against those moderate Hutus who objected to mass rape and murder? Author Jean-Paul Kimonyo draws upon research, testimonies of genocide survivors (and perpetrators), anthropology, and history to present a meticulous account of how the nightmare of Rwandan genocide came to be, in the hope that learning from this horrific event of world history will prevent it from being repeated. Rwanda's Popular Genocide is worthy of the highest recommendation, especially for college and academic library collections.
Wednesday April 20th, 2016
[BOOK REVIEW] Rwanda's Popular Genocide: A Perfect Storm
By: Thierry Kevin Gatete
Published: April 20, 2016 Opinions Print Email
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THIERRY KEVIN GATETE
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We are on the 25th May 1989 and the third edition of the Francophonie conference is taking place in Dakar, Senegal. All French-speaking heads of state are in attendance including Presidents Mitterrand of France and Rwanda’s Habyarimana.
On the second day, they find on their tables a letter titled: ‘The Rwandan question’. The letter canvasses succinctly the Tutsi refugees’ issues, then concludes with one specific question to Habyarimana: Mr. President, it goes, what makes you think that the fate you are imposing on the Tutsi exiles will not be visited upon you one of these days?
How did this letter get there? As it turns out, a young Rwandan student in the faculty of Journalism at the Université Cheikh Anta Diop, saved two months worth of his refugee stipend to seduce a young Abdou Diouf’s assistant and charmed her into slipping the letter into every guest’s file.
The young man eventually came of age and wrote a book: ‘Rwanda’s Popular Genocide: A Perfect Storm’. You have guessed right, the young man was Dr. Jean-Paul Kimonyo.
The book is a systematic study of the causes of the last genocide of the 20th century, in which more than one million people perished.
146110123912998466_10209989447879174_2359742829150336067_n
It derives from a doctoral thesis and is in essence a dispassionate observation of unfolding political adventures and misadventures, with 30 pages of scholarly endnotes to suggest that it is the twilight of sound and lengthy research.
It is a captivating read, for theories are processed through the author’s beautiful mind. He succeed in turning a boring 400-pager academic thesis into an enticing, intriguing coffee-table book.
The story reveals some intriguing anecdotes, almost farfetched political deals and volt-faces that have characterized Rwandan power brokerage.
An iconoclast writer, he does not agree with Nyakizu sages such as Prof. Laurent Nkusi on the role played by the infamous Gitera and his APROSOMA, nor does he settle into the correctness of current political discourses.
Yet seasoned scholars, Senator Nkusi included, unanimously applauded his work. So do younger peers such as Dr. Phil Clark, author of ‘Justice Without Lawyers…’ (2011) and Dr. Francois Masabo, Head of the Centre for Conflict Management of the University of Rwanda.
‘When I wrote the book, I was a political scientist; After the experience, I have become an economist’; he says, ‘for the only chance we have at lasting peace in this country, is to put money into the Rwandan people’s pockets’
It is an important book to read, especially for politicians and aspirant cadres, to understand the causes and effects of political decisions. Researchers and commentators such as myself as well as scholars out there, before they start calling themselves ‘experts and specialists on Rwanda’.
It is an account of a deeply ethicized nation, the perversion of the state and its leaders and the systemic inefficiency to govern. The book exposes the sublimation of real socio-economic issues with distractive divisive politics.
It is yet another compelling endorsement of the Kinyarwanda aphorism,‘abasangiraubusa, bitanaibisambo’(those who share less call each other thieves)
Interviewing one perpetrator, one survivor and one by-stander, in every cell, every sector he immerses himself into the environment and ambiance of the time, to acquire a triangulated, multifaceted account of what transpired.
‘Knowing Jean Paul and reading the book, one is really impressed by the laborious fieldwork. There is a stark contrast between the elitist analyst, presidential advisor, with the patient, grassroots data collector.’ Dr. Phil Clark confides to me at the book launch…
The author conducts a ‘micro’ analysis. Unmoved by simplistic explanations of the causes of the Genocide perpetrated against the Tutsi, namely: ‘The killings were driven by public anger following the downing of Habyarimana’s plane, having been told that Tutsis killed him’;‘people were asked to kill and they did because they blindly obeyed government authority’ and ‘The invasion of the RPF triggered people’s revenge’ – in fact he demonstrates that there is prevailing civic disobedience and the rise of all genres of political opposition in times leading to the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.
‘He went into the thought process of the ordinary man and built his thesis organically from the ground up. This is an original approach that will be utilized in the future by other researchers.’ Commented Eugene Ntaganda, a seasoned Political Scientist of the Great Lakes Region.
The conclusion of the book thus emerges in timely fashion having built up the appropriate anxiety in the reader.
In the end, one understands the choices of the current government more. One understands why the rejection of yesteryears’ ethnic-based politics, born and nurtured by the former ruling elite.
Reading the book in these times of the Burundi crisis though, one gets depressed by the all too familiar patterns, tragically leading to human catastrophe just off our shores: yet again.
Copies of the book are available at Ikirezi book store.
Thierry Gatete is a Senior Research Fellow, Governance, at the Institute of Policy Analysis and Research (IPAR).
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Rwanda – Jean-Paul Kimonyo : « Ntaganzwa est soupçonné d’avoir été l’un des principaux artisans du génocide à Butare »
11 décembre 2015 à 16h53 — Mis à jour le 11 décembre 2015 à 17h38
Par Mehdi Ba
@mehdiba
184 partages
Arrêté en RD Congo après 19 années de cavale, le Rwandais Ladislas Ntaganzwa, qui avait rejoint la rébellion des FDLR, est soupçonné d'avoir été l'un des fers de lance du génocide dans la préfecture "rebelle" de Butare, en 1994. Historien et politologue, Jean-Paul Kimonyo – par ailleurs conseiller à la présidence rwandaise –, revient sur le rôle que Ntaganzwa est accusé d'avoir joué.
Son nom n’est pas aussi connu que celui des principaux organisateurs du génocide. Pourtant, Ladislas Ntaganzwa, l’ancien bourgmestre de Nyakizu, qui vient d’être arrêté en RDC, est soupçonné d’avoir été un protagoniste majeur, en 1994, du génocide des Tutsis du Rwanda. Inculpé par le Tribunal pénal international pour le Rwanda (TPIR), qui demande aujourd’hui qu’il soit extradé vers le Rwanda pour y être jugé, il figurait en outre sur la liste des fugitifs dont la capture est récompensée par les autorités américaines à hauteur de 5 millions de dollars.
Au moment où le génocide démarre, en 1994, la préfecture « rebelle » de Butare, au sud du pays, où se trouve Nyakizu, a un statut particulier. Parce qu’elle concentre une large population tutsie. Parce que l’organisation des milices Interahamwe et la présence de l’armée hutue y est moindre, et les tensions entre Hutus et Tutsis moins exacerbées. Pour toutes ces raisons, le génocide y débutera plus tardivement que dans le reste du pays.
Historien et politologue, Jean-Paul Kimonyo – par ailleurs conseiller à la présidence rwandaise –, est l’auteur d’un ouvrage de référence sur la mise en œuvre du génocide au niveau local, en particulier dans la préfecture de Butare, dont il est originaire : Rwanda, un génocide populaire (Karthala, 2008)*. Il revient pour Jeune Afrique sur les accusations qui pèsent sur Ladislas Ntaganzwa.
Jeune Afrique : Le TPIR, en charge de juger les principaux responsables du génocide, a inculpé Ladislas Ntaganzwa en 1996. Quel rôle ce simple bourgmestre est-il accusé d’avoir joué ?
Jean-Paul Kimonyo : Il est accusé d’avoir joué un rôle important dans la mise à mort de plusieurs dizaines de milliers de personnes dans la préfecture de Butare. Nyakizu est la première commune de la région où les massacres ont débuté, dès le 15 avril, alors qu’ailleurs la population n’avait pas encore basculé. Cela a créé un effet de contagion dans d’autres communes, au sud-ouest de Butare. Nyakizu était à la limite méridionale de la grande région historique de Nyaruguru, à cheval entre les préfectures de Butare et Gikongoro.
D’après les récits des rescapés, il s’est montré déterminé, très violent, et a dépensé beaucoup d’énergie pour tuer
Que sait-on sur son rôle personnel ?
D’après les récits des rescapés, il s’est montré déterminé, très violent, et a dépensé beaucoup d’énergie pour tuer non seulement dans sa commune, mais aussi pour coordonner les tueries et le blocage des fugitifs qui tentaient de rejoindre le Burundi. Il se serait notamment concerté avec le Palipehutu burundais, de l’autre côté de la frontière. Nyakizu est située au point de rencontre entre le Nyaruguru et le Burundi.
En contrôlant ce point de passage névralgique, Ntaganzwa a donc joué un rôle crucial pour empêcher la fuite des personnes menacées. La tâche était difficile car dans cette région, il n’y avait pas de milices Interahamwe organisées et que les effectifs militaires étaient faibles. Les tueurs devaient absolument s’assurer que le flux ne passe pas. Et selon les témoignages, Ntaganzwa s’est beaucoup dépensé pour cela.
D’autant que dans cette région, les Tutsis étaient plus nombreux qu’ailleurs…
C’était la région du pays qui comprenait la plus forte concentration de Tutsis. Officiellement, ils représentaient, selon les communes, entre 25% et 60% de la population . Mais des données solides montrent que ces chiffres étaient sous-évalués. C’était une région de culture pastorale forte, qui avait été un foyer de résistance contre la révolution sociale hutue de 1959, et qui avait conservé cette tradition. Ntaganzwa est soupçonné d’avoir été l’un des principaux artisans du génocide dans cette région, c’est pourquoi il est important qu’il soit jugé au Rwanda.
___________________
* Le livre vient d’être traduit en anglais sous le titre Rwanda’s Popular Genocide. A Perfect Storm, Lynne Rienner Publishers.