What caused the Rwandan Genocide? - Susanne Buckley-Zistel

譯者: 穎君 紀 審譯者: Helen Chang

For 100 days in 1994, the African country of Rwanda

1994 年的一百天裡， 位在非洲的盧安達

suffered a horrific campaign of mass murder.

面臨了一場駭人的大屠殺。

Neighbor turned against neighbor as violence engulfed the region,

原本親暱的鄰居反目成仇， 暴力吞噬整片國土，

resulting in the deaths of over one-tenth of the country’s population.

致使全國的人口損失超過十分之一。

The seeds of this conflict were planted a century earlier,

這場悲劇的火種早在一世紀前，

first when German, and later Belgian, colonizers arrived in the country.

德國、比利時兩個殖民國踏上 盧安達國土時便已種下。

At the time, Rwanda was ruled by a monarchy of Tutsi,

當時盧安達由圖西人的王朝統治，

one of the three ethnic groups comprising the population.

是該國人口三大族群的其中之一。

Tutsi and the even smaller Twa communities were minority groups,

圖西族和另一個人口更少的 特瓦族是該國的少數族群，

while Hutu composed the majority.

胡圖人則是該國人口數最多的族群。

Many Hutus and Tutsi civilians were on good terms,

大多胡圖人跟圖西人相處融洽，

but colonial powers encouraged political division.

但殖民國煽動了族群間的對立。

Belgians enforced record keeping around ethnic identity,

比利時強制每位國民登記自己的種族別，

and created a public narrative that cast Tutsi as elite rulers

營造出圖西是社會菁英，

and Hutu as ordinary farmers.

胡圖人則下等農民這樣的社會氛圍。

Over time, this propaganda led to intense political hostility.

久而久之，該論述 使種族間的仇恨膨脹。

And while colonial powers had largely withdrawn by 1959,

1959 年殖民力量大半淡出的同時，

lingering anger motivated a Hutu revolt,

縈繞不散的怒火 點燃胡圖人起義的火種，

forcing many Tutsi leaders to flee the country.

領導階層的圖西人紛紛逃離祖國。

Over the following decade,

下一個十年，

Rwanda transitioned to an independent republic with a Hutu government.

盧安達轉變政體，成為 由胡圖人組成政府的共和國。

This new administration argued that as the majority group,

新政府主張胡圖作為國家的主要族群，

Hutu deserved exclusive access to political power.

理所當然可以獨佔政治權力。

They excluded the Tutsi minority by appointing offices based on population

胡圖人以族群人口的多寡 來分派公職，排除圖西人，

and prohibited the return of Tutsi families that had fled years earlier.

並禁止之前流亡海外的圖西人返國。

Hutu extremists also circulated propaganda

胡圖極端份子還散播一種說法，

blaming Tutsi for the country’s economic, social, and political problems.

說圖西人是盧安達 經濟、社會、政治問題的禍根。

Discontent with their life in exile,

對自己流亡他鄉的命運感到不滿，

a small group of Tutsi insurgents invaded Rwanda in 1990,

一小群圖西人成立反抗軍， 在 1990 年侵略盧安達，

beginning a violent civil war.

拉開內戰悲劇的序幕。

The conflict lasted three years before it was resolved with a formal peace accord.

這場內戰持續了三年 才以正式的和平條約告終，

But the war’s aftermath was rife with insecurity.

但內戰為全國帶來的恐懼無法抹滅。

While some civilians in both groups remained amicable,

即使一些胡圖人和圖西人仍和睦相處，

the treaty intensified political polarization.

和平條約卻激化了種族間對立。

And in 1994, when a plane carrying the Hutu Rwandan president was shot down,

1994 年，載著胡圖人 盧安達總統的飛機被擊落，

the conflict broke out anew.

爭執旋即再次開始。

This time, Hutu officials had prepared a deadly response

這次，胡圖政府採取 極為駭人的方法，

to ensure they stayed in power.

來保護胡圖族的掌權地位。

Working off a list of targets,

為了除掉政府眼中釘，

government-funded Hutu militias flooded the streets,

政府資助大量的胡圖民兵， 讓他們在大街上

perpetrating acts of physical and sexual violence

對圖西人政敵和平民

against Tutsi political enemies and civilians.

犯下各種形式的暴力。

Over the chaotic following months,

在接下來幾個月的混亂中，

over 1 million Hutu civilians joined their ranks due to coercion,

超過一百萬名胡圖平民 在被脅迫、為了自保，

self-preservation, or the pursuit of personal agendas.

或有個人盤算的情況下， 加入殘忍的迫害行動。

Tutsi victims sought refuge at churches and schools

圖西受害者向教堂和學校尋求庇護，

where they hoped international organizations would protect them,

希望國際組織能前來救援，

but no outside party came to their aid.

但沒有任何外界勢力來協助他們。

UN soldiers who’d overseen the Peace Accord

監督當地和平協約 落實情況的聯合國軍隊

were instructed to abandon Tutsi civilians,

被命令棄圖西人於折磨中不顧，

and UN leadership refused to acknowledge the genocide taking place.

聯合國高層也拒絕承認 盧安達國內有悲劇正在上演。

The violence didn’t end until mid-July,

血腥的屠殺直到七月中旬才劃下句點，

when the Tutsi army— who instigated the previous civil war—

那時，發起前一場內戰的圖西勢力

seized control of the country.

已經控制整片國土。

By the time the fighting was over,

鬥爭結束時，

roughly 800,000 Rwandans had been killed,

約八十萬人在戰火中犧牲，

and only a small fraction of the Tutsi population was left alive.

其中圖西族生還者更是少之又少。

In the months that followed,

屠殺結束後幾個月，

there was no easy strategy for bringing the killers to justice.

將殺手們繩之以法 可說是難如登天。

The UN established a special tribunal in Tanzania to try the key perpetrators.

聯合國在坦尚尼亞設立一座特別法庭 來審判這人道悲劇的關鍵加害者。

But Hutu civilians from every level of society had committed atrocities

但社會各個階層的胡圖平民 都曾參與慘絕人寰的殺戮，

against their neighbors, friends, and even family members.

殺死鄰居、朋友，甚至自己的家人。

There were roughly 120,000 Rwandans awaiting trial,

當時大約有十二萬名 盧安達人等著接受審判，

and inmates were dying from overcrowding and poor hygiene.

因人數過多和衛生條件惡劣， 監獄裡的囚犯一個個離世。

The new Rwandan government estimated it would take 100 years to prosecute

盧國新政府推算，需要整整一百年

every accused civilian in national court.

才能審判完所有被告。

So officials determined the best path forward involved

所以官員們確定

最好的前進道路是回顧該國的過去。

looking to the country’s past.

Rwanda has a traditional process

盧安達有個傳統手法，

for resolving interpersonal conflicts called gacaca.

用來解決人際紛爭， 叫做「嘎卡卡」“Gacaca”。

Roughly translating to “justice on the grass,”

字面上翻譯做「在草原上審判」，

gacaca had long been used to address offenses within villages.

「嘎卡卡」長久以來被用在 解決村與村之間的紛爭。

Local witnesses would offer testimony

當地居民提供證詞之後，

and could then speak for or against the accused.

表明自己是站在被告還是原告那方。

Then, appointed lay judges would determine an appropriate penalty

隨後交由法官定罪，並沿襲當地做法

within the community’s means.

下達適當的處罰。

In the hope of trying perpetrators more quickly,

為了把所有加害者快速審判完畢，

the government adapted gacaca for their formal courts.

政府將「嘎卡卡」視為正式法庭。

These hybrid trials had no professional attorneys or judges,

這帶有地方元素的法庭 不需要專業律師或法官，

and no evidence outside the spoken word

也不需要口述證詞以外的證物，

and a case file detailing the crimes of the accused.

和充滿案件細節與被告罪行的事件檔案。

All charges were then divided into four categories:

所有的控告共分成四種：

masterminding the genocide and committing acts of sexual violence,

策劃大屠殺罪、性侵害罪、

participating in the killings, physical assault,

參與殺人或傷害罪，

or destroying Tutsi property.

及破壞圖西人財產罪。

Those found guilty of the first two categories

以前兩項罪行定罪的被告

were entered into the traditional court system,

會進入傳統的法庭系統；

but the other crimes were assigned set penalties

而其他罪行會受到固定的處罰，

which could be reduced if the accused pled guilty.

如果被告認罪，可以減輕處罰。

Beginning in 2002, thousands of gacaca courts convened every week.

從 2002 年開始，一週 就要開幾千場嘎卡卡法庭，

The process proved faster than conventional courts,

嘎卡卡確實比一般法庭審得快一點，

but Rwandan opinion on the trials was mixed.

但盧安達人對嘎卡卡的意見分裂不一。

Some didn’t want to accuse their neighbors in a community setting,

有些人不想在社區氛圍 濃厚的法庭裡審判被告，

and many potential witnesses were intimidated to prevent their testimony.

而許多可能目擊到犯案的證人 被威嚇不准出庭作證。

Additionally, while the trial showed that not all Hutu participated in the killings,

還有，雖然這些審判顯示 並不是所有胡圖人都參與屠殺，

the courts only reviewed cases with Tutsi victims,

但法院只審有圖西人受害的案子，

ignoring the Hutu casualties incurred during the genocide

忽視了在屠殺中和接踵而來的 內戰中受害的胡圖人。

and the preceding civil war.

When the trials concluded in 2012,

審判在 2012 年結束，

the courts had convicted 1.7 million individuals.

法院共審判了 170 萬名被告。

For some families, these verdicts helped restore the dignity

對某些家庭來說，

這判決帶給在屠殺中 過世的親屬們尊嚴。

of those lost in the violence.

For others, the trials were a decade-long reminder

對其他人來說，這次審判 在他們心中刻下

of a past they were desperate to leave behind.

想忘記也無法忘記的歷史事實。