Rwanda's Reconciliation

In the weeks following the genocide, approximately 120,000 people were arrested for perpetrating the killings. At this time, it was estimated that only ten Rwandan lawyers remained in the country.  With a prison system built to hold only around 10,000 inmates, it became clear that it would take over 150 years to officially try all those incarcerated.  With little hope for full justice, Rwandans turned to a different solution: reconciliation.

Killers Let Loose

In 2003, Rwandan President Paul Kagame announced that the government would begin releasing more than 40,000 genocide prisoners who had confessed to their crimes.  To bring about justice and reconciliation on a grassroots level, the government reestablished a traditional community court system called "Gacaca" (pronounced gah-chah-chah). 

Gacaca: Justice on the Grass

The Gacaca courts allow individual villages to hold trials for returning prisoners, giving victims an opportunity to hear the truth of how their families were killed.  Oftentimes confessing prisoners are allowed to return home without further penalty, although many are given community service sentences, and in some cases, killers are convicted and sent back to federal prison.  Meeting each week under trees in each community across the country, Gacaca courts have helped promote reconciliation by giving perpetrators a chance to confess and ask for forgiveness, while victims have learned the truth about their loved ones' death.

A Movement of Reconciliation

While Gacaca has served as the first step toward national reconciliation, there have been many other efforts to help Rwandans achieve peace since the genocide. The Rwandan National Unity and Reconciliation Commission and many development and faith-based organizations have engaged communities in reconciliation workshops where survivors and ex-prisoners meet together to hear one another's stories and attempt to reconcile. Additionally, the terms "Hutu" and "Tutsi" have been officially banned from public use in an effort to promote Rwandan unity.  The government conducts reintegration and "re-education" camps for returning prisoners, and has built in a curriculum promoting Rwandan unity in public schools.  These steps, along with President Kagame's push for economic growth and poverty reduction, have helped Rwanda rebuild at an impressive pace in the 15 years since the genocide.