The Role Of The United Nations In The Inter-Ethnic Conflict Of Rwanda

Abstract

The inter-ethnic conflict in Rwanda led to the deaths of over 800,000 people,
particularly the Tutsis. It was a testament to the failure of the international
community, particularly, the United Nations. Goal 16 of the United Nations
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) emphasizes on the promotion of peaceful
and inclusive societies for sustainable development. This study will hereby examine
the role of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Rwanda (UNAMIR), which
was deployed to maintain peace and stability in Rwanda, exploring the organization’s
response to the crisis and the factors that contributed to its ineffectiveness. This study
employs the qualitative approach analyzing primary sources through the use of
snowballing for identification of six (6) key stakeholders of the Nigerian Institute of
International Affairs (NIIA) as in-depth interviews for primary data collection while
the secondary sources include UN documents, reports, newspapers, and academic
literature. The study finds out that the role of the United Nations in Rwanda was
marked by various challenges including: inadequate mandate and resources for
UNAMIR, failure to respond to early warning signals of the genocide, ineffective
communication and coordination among UN agencies, lack of cultural
understanding and contextual knowledge on the ability to navigate the conflicts in
Rwanda. The UN’s failure in preventing the inter-ethnic conflict in Rwanda was due
to a combination of factors including inadequate resources, poor decision-making
process and lack of political will, although, there were some post-genocide events
which was successful. The paper recommends that the tragedy highlights the need for
the UN to reassess the strategies in its peacekeeping mandates and improve its
responses to early warning signs of the conflict.