International Monitor Institute. Rwanda Videotapes and audiotapes, 1992-1999

Using These Materials Teaser

Using These Materials Links:

Using These Materials

Restrictions:
Original audiovisual materials are closed to use. Use of these materials may require production of listening or viewing copies. Please contact Research Services before coming to use this...
More about accessing and using these materials...

Summary

Creator:
International Monitor Institute
Abstract:
The non-profit agency International Monitor Institute (IMI) operated between 1993 and 2003, primarily to assist international war-crimes tribunals by collecting, indexing and organizing visual evidence of violations of international human rights law. The International Monitor Institute Records, Rwanda Videotapes and Audiotapes span the dates 1992-1999, and comprise audiovisual materials related to IMI's documentation of contemporary conflicts and human rights violations in Rwanda. The collection contains videotape segments of news broadcasts as well as documentaries of the Rwandan genocide, including footage of massacre sites and refugee camps, and interviews with both victims and perpetrators of the genocide. The collection also contains audiotapes of broadcasts from Radio Télévision Libres des Milles Collines (RTLM) and Radio Rwanda, classified as incitement to genocide, as well as several recordings produced by Reporters without Borders. The bulk of materials in this collection are audiotapes of RTLM broadcasts.
Extent:
4 Linear Feet
7 Gigabytes
About 335 items 7.04 GB
Language:
Material in English, French, Kinyarwanda
Collection ID:
RL.00607

Background

Scope and content:

The Rwanda Videotapes and Audiotapes section of the International Monitor Institute records contains descriptions of 47 tapes and 282 audiotapes collected by IMI that depict human rights issues and themes in Rwanda. These materials span the years 1992-1999. The videotapes largely document massacre sites and mass graves, evacuations, the role of missionaries and human rights activists, and conditions in refugee camps holding both victims and killers. Several documentaries and news reports examine the development of a genocidal ideology in Rwanda tied to its colonial past, as well as offer histories of Tutsi/Hutu animosity, including the role of the Belgian colonial government, France, and the Catholic Church. Many of the materials in this collection offer an analysis of government structure and politics in Rwanda before and after the genocide. In addition, this collection includes various news segments reporting on the movements of the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) and the Rwanda Army as well as the effectiveness of the United Nations in the conflict; includes a documentary on Belgian soldiers killed in Rwanda.

The majority of audiotapes in this collection are RTLM and Radio Rwanda broadcasts inciting violence and orchestrating the genocide, encouraging youth to join military actions, and frequently referring to specific targets, such as Bilyogo and Nyamirambo. Broadcasts also include frequent reference to Inyenzi (cockroaches) and Inkotani (Tutsi Rebel Army). Many of the RTLM broadcasters accuse the Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF) of the assassination of President Habiyarimana and argue that the Inkotani want to exterminate Hutus and so they must, in turn, be exterminated. Broadcasters speak out against French intervention and accuse the Belgians of alignment with the Rebel Army. The remaining audiotapes were produced by Reporters without Borders (RSF).

The majority of the materials in this collection are in French and Kinyarwanda. Both documentaries and news reports take the form of interviews with Rwandans about the massacres and interviews with members of the RPF as well as with figures involved with organizing the killings. The collection includes interviews with notable figures, such as Théoneste Bagosora on his role in the genocide, Ferdinand Nahimana, the former director of Radio Télévision Libre des Mille Collines (RTLM) about his failure to stop broadcasts that fueled the genocide, as well as accounts given by members of the death squad.

The series in this collection include the Rwanda Videotapes Series, the Rwanda Audiotapes Series (Audiocassette), and the Rwanda Audiotapes Series (Electronic Records). The bulk of the material for this collection belongs to the Audiotapes Series. Acquired as part of the Human Rights Archive. Further material from the IMI Rwanda records can be found in IMI's organizational records, including printed transcripts of many of the audiotapes. All videotapes in this collection are in Betacam SP format. Please note that the descriptions of the tapes in this collection are based on IMI's data and were not originally drafted by Rubenstein Library Staff. Further organizational material on Rwanda can be found in the International Monitor Institute Records, also at the Rubenstein Library.

Biographical / historical:

The International Monitor Institute (IMI) was founded in 1993 by actress and film producer Pippa Scott. Scott, daughter of screenwriter Allan Scott who wrote some of the Astaire-Rogers films, was educated in California and in England, at Radcliffe College and the Southern California Institute of Architecture. Ms. Scott acted in such films as "The Searchers" and "Auntie Mame," and was a founding partner of the Emmy-award winning television company Lorimar Productions (producer of such TV hits as "The Waltons" and "Dallas" ). Scott established Linden Productions in 1987 to develop documentaries focusing on current issues. Linden's latest production is "King Leopold's Ghost," a documentary about the exploitation of the Congo by King Leopold II of Belgium. Scott was a member of the Women's Refugee Commission, the Pacific Council on Foreign Relations, and the Los Angeles World Affairs Council.

Organizational History. The International Monitor Institute was founded in 1993 and operated until 2003. Its primary mission was to assist international war-crimes tribunals by collecting, indexing and organizing visual evidence of violations of international human rights law. Videos and audio tapes were acquired through donation as well as on collecting trips by IMI associates in the former Yugoslavia, Kuwait, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Iraq, Burma (Myanmar), Thailand, Cambodia, and other countries. IMI's activities also included developing regional archives of videos on conflict and human rights abuses, producing film and multimedia projects to assist humanitarian organizations, organizing public outreach events, conducting video research for governments, film makers, authors, and students, and providing educational outreach. Patrons and partners of IMI and its collections included the International Criminal Court and its staff, Human Rights Watch, Physicians for Human Rights, the Simon Wiesenthal Center, the governments of Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia, and former First Lady Hillary Clinton.

Acquisition information:
The International Monitor Institute. Rwanda Videotapes and Audiotapes were received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book Manuscript Library as a gift in 2006-2007.
Processing information:

Processed by Rubenstein Staff, September 2012

Encoded by Noah Huffman, September 2012 and Clare Callahan, October 2012

Accession(s) described in this finding aid: 2006-0111

Arrangement:

Tapes are arranged in numerical order by Tape ID, a unique identifier assigned by IMI at the time they cataloged the tapes. Included is an RTLM number presumably assigned by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR).

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Contents

Using These Materials

Using These Materials Links:

Using These Materials

Restrictions:

Original audiovisual materials are closed to use. Use of these materials may require production of listening or viewing copies. Please contact Research Services before coming to use this collection.

Researchers must register and agree to copyright and privacy laws before using this collection.

All or portions of this collection may be housed off-site in Duke University's Library Service Center. The library may require up to 48 hours to retrieve these materials for research use.

Please contact Research Services staff before visiting the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library to use this collection.

Terms of access:

The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to Duke University. For more information, consult the copyright section of the Regulations and Procedures of the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library.

Before you visit:
Please consult our up-to-date information for visitors page, as our services and guidelines periodically change.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], International Monitor Institute. Rwanda Videotapes and Audiotapes, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University.

Permalink:
https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/m1mp61