On February 11th, 1994, the Canadian Major-General in charge of UN Peacekeeping forces in Rwanda faxed a chilling prediction to UN headquarters in New York; he believed that preparations were in hand for a massacre of Tutsi tribesmen by Hutu militias. The head of UN Peacekeeping in New York did nothing; he didn't even raise the possibility that trouble was brewing in the region with the Security Council.
On April 16th the Hutu president of Rwanda was assassinated and the country exploded into violence - in the next fourteen weeks more than 800,000 people were murdered; mostly Tutsis and Hutu moderates. It was the largest mass-killing since the Second World War. Two weeks into the slaughter the security council met to discuss the situation and agreed to reduce the number of peacekeepers in Rwanda from 5,000 to 270, effectively allowing the slaughter to continue. Once again, the head of UN peacekeeping did nothing to prevent this.
The name of this head of peacekeeping, who sat on his hands and whistled during the biggest mass slaughter in modern history whilst being the person most able to prevent it taking place?
Kofi Annan, now Secretary-General of the United Nations and loud-voiced critic of Western indifference to African suffering.
It's a funny old world, isn't it?
On April 16th the Hutu president of Rwanda was assassinated and the country exploded into violence - in the next fourteen weeks more than 800,000 people were murdered; mostly Tutsis and Hutu moderates. It was the largest mass-killing since the Second World War. Two weeks into the slaughter the security council met to discuss the situation and agreed to reduce the number of peacekeepers in Rwanda from 5,000 to 270, effectively allowing the slaughter to continue. Once again, the head of UN peacekeeping did nothing to prevent this.
The name of this head of peacekeeping, who sat on his hands and whistled during the biggest mass slaughter in modern history whilst being the person most able to prevent it taking place?
Kofi Annan, now Secretary-General of the United Nations and loud-voiced critic of Western indifference to African suffering.
It's a funny old world, isn't it?