Reaction to Recent Times Article

Genocide victim 

 Recently one of the journalists who covered the Rwandan genocide, James Nachtwey,  decided to do a follow up article 17 years later in Times Magazine's Light Box. This article primarily focuses on the incredible lack of support from neighboring countries. In addition to the shocking 800,000 dead people what is almost worse that these people were massacred with farm implements or with whatever else the Hutu people could find. The use of these farm tools often led to horrible scaring and wounds, as pictured above.

 The article does state that public apologies were made but then says," the gesture did not bring back the life of a single Rwandan". Thankfully the ICRC was able to help save over 36,000 lives [1] but with the help of other countries, like the United States, many more certainly would have been saved.

I am glad that James Nachtwey decided to do a follow up article on this genocide 17 years after the fact. In many ways this reminds the world of the atrocities which were committed and continues to hold them accountable for their actions, or more accurately their lack of actions. Though,as was pointed out above and in the article, remembering and apologizing for the genocide doesn't bring back any of the Rwandans who died or erase what happened from the past it lets the Rwandans know that they have not been and will not be forgotten. Perhaps the most disturbing part of the article is that the article states that some of the perpetrators of the genocide managed to make their way into relief camps, many of which were run by the ICRC. These relief camps were the only aspect of the genocide where many members of the international community can say they made a positive difference by supporting these camps with funds and volunteers. Because the perpetrators were indistinguishable from the persecuted Tutsi people, however,  other countries who didn't stop the killings during the genocide were actually helping to heal the killers after the fact.

Article & Picture:

"When the World Turned Its Back" last modified 6 April 2011, http://lightbox.time.com/2011/04/06/when-the-world-turned-its-back-james-nachtweys-reflections-on-the-rwandan-genocide/#21

Other Sources:

[1] "Interview: Philippe Gaillard," last modified 1 April 2004, http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/ghosts /interviews/gaillard.html.