Proaganda and rape in the Rwandan genocide

Abstract

Rape as a tool of warfare has been a near universal phenomenon. One form of warfare in which rape is prevalent is genocide, the analysis of which is the primary purpose of this thesis. Additionally, the formation and transformation of discourses have the capacity to construct individuals and groups such that violence toward them is deemed not only permissible but necessary according to genocide perpetrators. The question that drives this project is, what was the identity construction of Tutsi women, created by Rwandan media propaganda, and how did it affect their sexual victimization during the Rwandan genocide? In order to answer this, I will analyze colonial, and eventually genocidal discourses in Rwanda using historical texts and state enforced Rwandan media sources. This analysis maps a trajectory of discourses of race, class and gender that began as a foundation for class oppression and eventually erupted into the genocide of 1994.