| Date | November 2021 | Marks available | 3 | Reference code | 21N.1.BP.TZ0.17 |
| Level | Both SL and HL | Paper | Paper 1 - first exams 2017 | Time zone | TZ0 |
| Command term | What | Question number | 17 | Adapted from | N/A |
Question
Source Q Scott Straus, a professor of political science, interviewing a former supporter of Hutu extremists who had also confessed to killing civilians, in the collection of accounts Intimate Enemy. Images and Voices of the Rwandan Genocide (2006).
[President] Habyarimana was the parent of Rwanda. Habyarimana did nothing bad to Tutsis … No person in Rwanda thought “I am Hutu. You are Tutsi.” Habyarimana prevented all that. We intermarried. All that was disturbed by the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) war …
We, the peasants, believed that the person who had killed the president was an enemy … they were Tutsis, so we believed the solution was to kill the Tutsi… We said we were defending ourselves against the enemy… All the things that happened in Rwanda were caused by the war between the RPF and the Rwandan government, and the people who are dead and the things that were destroyed, it was the RPF and the government in place that must answer for that.
[Source: Lyons, R. and Straus, S., 2006. Intimate Enemy. Images and Voices of the Rwandan Genocide. New York:
Zone Books, pp. 81–82. Adapted.]
Source R Photograph of Rwandan government soldiers atop a tank fleeing with civilians from advancing RPF forces (17 July 1994).
[Source: Corinne Dufka/Reuters. Rwandan government soldiers atop a tank equipped with a 90mm gun flee in front of
advancing RPF forces with civilians, July 17, 1994. [image online] Available at: https://www.reuters.com/news/
picture/the-rwanda-genocide-idUSRTR3JZZT [Accessed 16 December 2020]. Adapted.]
What, according to Source Q, were the causes of violence and conflict in Rwanda in 1994?
What does Source R suggest about the impact of the conflict in Rwanda by July 1994?
Markscheme
- Habyarimana had prevented Hutu and Tutsi divisions before he had been killed.
- The peasants believed Tutsis were responsible for the death of the president.
- The peasants said they had to defend themselves from the Tutsi enemy.
- The actions of both the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) and Rwandan government led to violence.
The above material is an indication of what candidates may elect to write about in their responses. It is neither prescriptive nor exhaustive and no set answer is required. Award [1] for each relevant point up to a maximum of [3].
- The conflict had driven government soldiers into retreat.
- Large numbers of civilians were fleeing.
- There was chaos as people fled with all their belongings.
The above material is an indication of what candidates may elect to write about in their responses. It is neither prescriptive nor exhaustive and no set answer is required. Award [1] for each relevant point up to a maximum of [2].
Examiners report
As has been the case in previous sessions, many candidates succeeded in identifying three valid points from the source. However, also as in previous sessions, a number of responses either rolled points together, or repeated or reworded the same point. Candidates should be reminded that three separate points are required for full marks and these should be derived from the content of the source rather than background knowledge.
There were several possible valid points to be made from the visual source. The vast majority of candidates offered at least one clear point with regards to what the source suggested. Candidates should be guided to look for different elements and dynamics in the pictorial sources and to offer two distinct points.
