ABSTRACT

A Comparative Historical Analysis of Genocide in Cambodia, 1975-79 and Rwanda, 1994

Throughout the twentieth century, different cases of genocide temporarily claimed the forefront of global media attention and haunted the minds of those who captured a glimpse of the horrors through television, radio, or newspaper. Two of these genocides, Cambodia, in Southeast Asia under the Khmer Rouge Regime in 1975 through 1979 and Rwanda, in Eastern African under Hutu extremists, in 1994, were horrific acts of genocide that breezed through Western media and political attention and subsequently faded into the background, all but forgotten by the people who directly fell victim to these acts. Both of the genocides, with almost two decades between them, shared some distinct historical patterns in the organization of the genocides, the global political response, and the aftermath. No two genocides are identical, because individual indigenous reasons contribute to developments. This research will analyze the nature of the genocides in Cambodia in 1975 and Rwanda in 1994. Both were organized, implemented, and ended similarly. Neither event had the needed involvement of other nations until most of the massacres had already taken place. The history of legislation to recognize and intervene in cases of genocide will also be explored as well as, in both cases the political response of the United States and the international community.