Ethnic divide blights hope for the future of Rwanda

LIKE many a country with a turbulent past, Rwanda cannot decide whether to remember or to forget.

A visit to the splendid national museum in Butare will tell you everything about the country's geography, wildlife, climate and customs - but nothing about its tragic recent history.

But at the national genocide commemoration site in nearby Murambi, no-one wants to forget. Up to 40,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were killed here in three days of genocidal slaughter two years ago.

What remains of the corpses are laid out on the concrete floors of this former technical college. Their flesh has rotted away, but the skeletons clearly reveal the last agonies of these victims, hands reaching over their heads for protection against the blow of the machete, jaws opened in a last cry of anguish.

The curator, himself a genocide survivor, is going to extraordinary lengths to preserve these gruesome remains. The corpses have been salted down, and an embalmer has been called in to advise on how to preserve the remains as long as possible.

Meanwhile, a team of women uses toothbrushes and soapy water to clean the skeletons of newly disinterred victims.

While the past is still being dug up, the future of Rwanda is being planned. At last, international aid is flowing into the country, correcting the shameful imbalance which saw five times as much aid given to refugees outside Rwanda as to the country itself

The government is strong and purposeful and has forged an effective alliance with the US. At the same time, it has encouraged and welcomed the return of the refugees from Zaire, and says it will accommodate the expected new arrivals from Tanzania.

It might seem that the prospects for Rwanda are improving. And in many ways, they are, aided by the defeat of the extreme Hutu militias in Zaire and the resultant creation of a buffer-zone protecting Rwanda from further attacks from the east.

Yet important though events in Zaire are, the key to any lasting solution lies in the relations between Hutus and Tutsis within the country. Here, in spite of the governments repeated appeals for national reconciliation, observers see few signs of a willingness to forgive or forget.

Each day brings a new account of a murder by one side or the other. The assassination of genocide survivors is not a new phenomenon, but the pace of killing seems to have increased recently as the refugees stream home and old scores are settled.

There are reports too of killings by the army of suspected genocidaires or members of their families. Few of these murders have received widespread publicity, but they appear to signal the beginning of a new phase of low- level conflict in the countryside.

The precarious political situation is leading to uncertainty and hesitation on all sides. In various parts of the country, new houses built by Trocaire, Concern and other agencies for genocide survivors lie empty for the moment.

The houses are grouped in estates, a new concept in Rwanda, at the request of their Would-be occupants, who feared for their safety returning to isolated homesteads. Now, however, many survivors feel the estates will mark them out as easily identifiable targets.

Likewise, many refugees have refused to return to their home community for fear of reprisals by their neighbours. Many have opted instead for the relative anonymity of the capital, Kigali which has seen its population swell by 30 per cent.

Meanwhile, the aid agencies, having distributed thousands of hoes to rural communities, hesitate now before supplying the implement that farmers need most - the machete.

The government yesterday restated its determination to press ahead with the new law which permits returnees to reclaim their old houses, even if occupied, after a 14-day waiting period. However, in local communes, the issue of housing policy is leading to heightened tensions and few expect the law to be implemented smoothly.

At the same time, the influx of more than 600,000 refugees has placed enormous strain on the food supply. The price of a ton of beans has shot up from $300 to $800 within weeks.

The pressure on space is forcing more farmers on to poorer land, and leading to growing deforestation. Notwithstanding, Rwanda's population continues to increase. As late as 1945, the population was only 1.5 million; today, it stands at between seven and eight million.

On the positive side, the isolation from international affairs which facilitated the genocide is gone. Many of the aid agencies which came to assist in the emergency in 1994 have since established longer-term projects to develop the rural economy.

By and large, the return of the refugees has been well handled by the government, which seems to be operating to an overall plan, which is more than can be said for the international community.

Ultimately, though, the air of pessimism among foreign aid workers about the future of the country has not lifted. Everywhere, they note, people think only about today, not tomorrow. The bullet-holes in the walls and windows of the airport remain unrepaired.