As in the majority of conflicts, the ethnic scrap between Albanians and Serbs is not morally one-sided. The Albanians, far from showing the qualities of the late Mother Theresa (an ethnic Albanian), are taking their opportunities to inflict hideous reprisals on the Serb population in Kosovo. The problem appears to be one of longstanding unresolvable ethnic/sectarian demonisation. Neither group, it seems, will be satisfied until the other is eliminated from the sacred turf. Either group will form external alliances that help their collective historical mission.

Both Serbs and Albanians, like any other people, can be wonderful as individuals. The problem is the same kind of group psychosis / peer pressure that creates problems ranging from school bullying and gang feuds to fascism and genocide. [PS]

It is constructive to look at the parallels with Rwanda in 1994. Surprising as it may seem, the remarkable true story of Rwanda offers hope to Europe.

Both countries - Serbia and Rwanda - developed dominant political machines which could only be called fascist. Their call to power was "ethnic" hatred. For Serb, read Hutu. For Albanian, read Tutsi. Albanians represented about 10% of the population of Serbia. Serbs represented about 10% of the population of Kosovo. Tutsis represented about 10% of the population of Rwanda.

Kosovo had the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), hitherto a group better known for their links with organised crime in the Balkans (see my Kosovo: more than a US / IMF / Mafia conspiracy?). The Tutsis had the RPF, the Rwandan Patriotic Front. I know of no claim that the RPF were involved with organised crime.

The story we were told is that the Hutus in Rwanda murdered close to a million Tutsis. By my arithmetic, that must have been all the Tutsis that lived in Rwanda. The remarkable fact is, though, that, without the help of Nato or anyone else, the Tutsis nevertheless won the ensuing civil war. (The achievements of the RPF were indeed so remarkable, that they played a pivotal subsequent role in enabling the former tyrant of Zaire, President Mobutu, to be overthrown.) The arithmetic is enough to tell us that something is very wrong with the story of Rwanda that we heard through our news sound and picture bites.

Much of the problem here is that westerners portrayed the conflict as a simple matter of ethnic hatred, a reflection of our European conditioning about Africa.

In fact a huge number of the victims of the Hutu fascists were Hutu "moderates"; people who bravely gave their lives when they refused to join in the carnage had who supported the RPF over the fascist "government" army. (The Hutu fascists came to power only after they themselves shot down the aircraft carrying the Hutu president.)

The reporting of this conflict was so inadequate, that the incredible achievements of those who resisted the genocide were ignored. Not only did the victims of genocide prevail, but they did it without reprisals. Most of the Hutu refugees eventually returned. They were not set upon, despite the fact that the Tutsis collectively suffered far more than did the Kosovar Albanians. Indeed the outbreaks of violence in Rwanda in recent years have been further killings of Tutsis by returned Hutu fascists.

Both conflicts were/are essentially ones of fascism. Ethnic conflict is a symptom of fascism, not a cause. Both conflicts created a set of extreme moral dilemmas for innocent people branded by some kind of ethnic label.

The jury is out on the extent to which Kosovar Serbs refused to abuse the persons and property of Kosovar Albanians when they had the chance and when they faced peer pressure to indulge in extremely uncivilised behaviour. The jury is yet to convene on the extent to which Albanian Kosovars will seek to build bridges with their Serbian neighbours in the face of peer pressure to raise the stakes of inter-tribal conflict. The early signs are not hopeful. The Balkan peoples appear to be living up to their reputation for holding on to grievances and for enjoying cruelty.

Rather it is the more impoverished Africans, from Rwanda, who have shown us how to turn the other cheek despite the most severe possible provocation. For us in the west, who assume that we are the most civilised of people, it is a tragedy that we chose not to see the real story of Rwanda.

Nato cannot solve the problem of Kosovo. Rather, the Serbian and Albanian people might look to Africa for inspiration; to the brave Hutus who gave their lives in preference to taking life. And to the Tutsis and non-fascist Hutus who turned their other cheeks when their families' murderers returned. I just hope, with what is probably misplaced optimism, that Europeans will not be too proud to look to Africa for moral guidance.
 

PS [28 June 1999]: Fascism, it appears, has a way of legitimating that deep-seated part of the psyche of all humans - white, black, male, female - which gives quasi-sexual pleasure from witnessing or participating in torture and violent murder. See Reuters article published in NZ Herald: Bloodlust a turn-on for some men -- and women.

see Rwanda fosters hope in Hell, NZ Herald 28 Dec 1999

© 1999   Keith Rankin

Rankin File | 1999 titles