Rwanda and radicalization

In this thesis, the radicalization that took place in the process leading to the Rwandan genocide and the effect of colonial powers on this radicalization are examined. Radicalization emerges as a process that does not occur suddenly, arises from the power demands and needs of individuals and groups, and contains many factors that feed and form a basis for itself. Radicalization, a process in which extremist views are adopted and one can move towards violent actions, has resulted with genocide in Rwanda in the historical process. Considering the history of Rwanda, although there were minor conflicts before the colonial period, the real conflict environment started with the application of policies of western colonial powers to the country after the colonization. The changes and sanctions made by the Western powers in all areas from state administration to social life have led to the identification of ethnic discrimination in Rwanda and then its radicalization within the framework of this identity. Radicalization resulted in a genocide in Rwanda in which nearly a million people were killed in a short period of 100 days. In this study, the effects of the Western colonial powers on long-lasting radicalization and the genocide events that emerged as a result of this radicalization in Rwanda are examined. Radicalization is examined in terms of how it emerged in Rwanda and its development process by examining the factors that feed and support it. In this process, the extent to which internal and external factors contribute to the process is analyzed. The processes of radicalization, which can lead to different results and in different forms, have led to the inability to reach a consensus on the meaning of the iv concept. It is observed that there are not enouh studies in the history of Rwanda that reveal the events and developments of the ethnic groups in the history of Rwanda, which events caused the increase in hatred and violence in the country, and the effects of the policies implemented by the Western colonial powers in the country along with the colonization on the genocide events that occurred as a result of a long-term radicalization. The aim of this study is to contribute to filling the academic gap about the direct and indirect effects of western colonial powers on the radicalization in Rwanda, especially in our country. Keywords: Radicalism; Radicalization; Rwanda; Hutu; Tutsi; Power Seeking; Colonial Powers.