Revising Paul Kagame’s Legacy After the Rwandan Genocide

Rwandan president Paul Kagame has emerged as perhaps the most enigmatic and controversial figure in Africa. Is he the principled leader who calmly rebuilt Rwanda following one of the worst episodes of mass killing in the modern era? Or is he the primary architect of a brutal dictatorship, himself implicated in scores of serious human rights abuses, including crimes against humanity and genocide?

At a recent panel discussion, four speakers examined the image of Kagame that has been created in the media—and in the popular imagination—and how it contrasts with reality. They also addressed such vexing questions as: How does one depict a legacy as complex and contradictory as Kagame’s? How does a society recover from genocide, and how do we assess the benefits and drawbacks of the suppression of discussion of ethnic identity?

Watch the video above.