Machete Season

This book is one that I had heard about through the Jako Podcast. From the short excerpts I had heard, I was almost instantly interested. It should be known, however, this is not exactly a book for children or people that have a hard time hearing about death, as it is the main topic.Shipping on this was fast and everything showed up in one piece. Being a paperback, it didn’t show any signs of abuse or shipping damage.The story of this book, although specific to Rwanda, is a repeat of historical happenings in other areas, which have experienced “cleanings” for one reason or another. The author set out to try to document the happenings of the Rwandan genocide by interviewing a group of the killers, and survivors that would speak to him. The outcome is a very graphic account of what happened during that time. I think the author did an amazing job of compiling their accounts into a well organized book, that flows flawlessly. This book is a great reminder of the dangers of group thinking and cultural conditioning to hate another group.Overall I have, and will continue to, recommend this book to people. I could not be happier to have added this to my collection.

Jean Hatzfeld's "Machete Season" is a gripping and historically important look into the internal mechanics of a genocide. Centered around interviews with some of the killers, it allows the reader to gain insight into how these sorts of crimes take place. Many people always assume that when faced with a choice, in such situations, that they can be strong and avoid taking part. As Hatzfeld's interviews show, however, these were very normal people, facing enormous pressure from their peers and from the situation in the country at large, their fears and prejudices stoked into a frenzy by others. These people, and their actions, seem to be extraordinary, but the implication of these interviews and Hatzfeld's reporting is that it could be that anyone is capable of being party to such crimes against humanity. All it takes is the right push.This cannot and should not be interpreted as an excuse for such horrific actions, which Hatzfeld acknowledges - as do some of the killers. What is important here is the understanding of what makes individuals do what they do in examples of genocide and ethnic cleansing. It is through understanding this process that future incidents can be prevented. Vigilance is required without question, especially if it is the case that it can happen anywhere. This vigilance must be supplemented by wisdom and learning - and Hatzfeld's interviews are a strong addition to the existing body of work documenting the terrible, tragic, and horrific crimes committed in Rwanda. More importantly, though, they are an invaluable glimpse into the frighteningly dark and frustratingly wicked capabilities of human beings to engage in the worst of behaviors.

When learning about the genocide in Rwanda, it seems as though there are countless books and movies about the Tutsis' experiences. Although they show the pain, horror, and strength of the people and situation, it does not give a real face or experience of the people behind the violence. It is easy to see and feel for how a person goes through so much, but it is harder to try to understand why other human beings can pick up a machete and kill their own neighbors. Their reasoning and stories are difficult to analyze, take in, and understand, making it more crucial to be focused on. This book definitely does that. It shares the experiences and thoughts of the killers, even bringing sympathy and humanity to each of them, demonstrating they are not just a body with a weapon and aim. The book also depicts how Tutsis were not always the victims. There was a time were Hutus were victims as well. It really brings up the question of who is in the right, who is in the wrong, and how can this cycle be stopped. It is a difficult read as some stories are rather graphic, but because the author was unafraid to share the stories and words of the prisoners, the complexity of the history and the people is really seen.Yet, there are several factors that stick out. First of all, the author was a foreigner who used a Tutsi translator. As another reviewer mentioned, the intensity and honesty behind the interviews could have been altered, toned down, or changed. Another important thing is that the author interviewed prisoners. A few of the prisoners being interviewed showed great regret and sadness of being jailed. This could have definitely caused them to feel guilt for their actions. Since there were so many people involved in the genocide, not all of them are in prisons. Some of them are still living without a legal or given consequence. It would be interesting to see the view of one of the perpetrators who never got caught.Even though the book could have been different, it is a great book that everyone should read. If not for a class or interest, for understanding of humans actions and thoughts. There should definitely be more books like this!

This book remains the most difficult read I have ever endured. It is harrowing in the scope of it's horror and deceiving in the simplicity of how it depicts how such an atrocity could be enacted. The voices speak for themselves, and one must be careful after awhile to recognize they are speaking of going off to work each day to slaughter other human beings not to plow the fields. I actually had to put this one down for stretches of time on a couple of occasions.Judgements on the format aside, this is indeed one that should be required reading. Yes, the culprits are reluctant to admit their guilt, but one must bring something to this tome. It is in their denial that you can recognize how such a tragedy could transpire. Faced with difficult choices, most human beings will do what they must to survive. That instinct can conceal a plethora of evil deeds. These are flawed people that commited monsterous deeds when confronted with these choices. They succumbed and learned to minimize their role in this tragedy rather than face being ostracized or much worse by their friends and neighbors. A powerful, powerful book.

The honesty of the speakers is heartbreaking and gripping all at once. The respect for all shown by the author is admirable. If you need to be reminded just how fortunate you are to live where and with whom you live please read this account of a harrowing part of very recent History.

This book should be compulsory reading for everyone in the humanities and psychology fields

The educated people were certainly the ones who drove the farmers on, out in the marshes. Today they're the ones who juggle with the words or turn close-mouthed. Many sit quietly in their same places as before. Some have become ministers or bishops; they aren't much in the public eye, but they still wear their fancy clothes and fold framed glasses. While suffering keeps us in prison. Adalbert, a Hutu farmer turned killer in the 1994 Rwanda genocide.What a book. Its a book which is unlike any other, written from the point of view of a journalist with very few of his own deductions. I loved the whole outlay of the book as it just presented the facts from the killers point of views. There was little covering or philosophy behind the pure butchery of the whole exercise which sort of makes sense when you consider butchers dealing with meat, taking life every day and living without any remorse in their daily lives. The interviewed Hutu killers were like the butchers for three months of absolute carnage, egged on by the society and the leadership, they killed with systematic efficiency, over and over again. There seems to be no rational explanation of this absolute carnage. All you get is quiet contemplation and a warning to quell any hate filled rhetoric as quickly as possible, because any idea once popular is impossible to kill.

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In brief, you will discover how indifferent mass murderers can be to their crimes seven or eight years afterward, (housed together, inside the safety of their prison, though they have yet to go back to their hills and face their victims and their families and their communities). Their apathy is not surprising, really: they felt no remorse at the time they were cutting and covered in blood.That being said, there are a few things about this book that just bug me and you should be aware of:1. I just couldn't help feeling, from beginning to end, that Hatzfeld has written this book to make a quick buck. Not a lot of effort is required to tell of macabre events and monstrous human beings and heads smashed in and limbs cut off and pregnant women disemboweled. This books reads like nothing more than sensationalist journalism. It was written for its shock value. And if course, that sells.2. For some reason, and obviously not in keeping with the title, Hatzfeld uses quite a bit of space comparing the Rwandan genocide with that perpetrated against the Jews in Nazi Germany (this is the only part of the book that could be remotely considered intellectual, but it's not). Throughout, he gives examples of how the two genocides were similar, but in each case he then goes on to argue that they were not. Questions: if the two genocides were not alike, then why bother to compare them? Why explore the Holocaust in a book about heinous killers in Rwanda? Yes, the massacres took place within, and were part of, a genocide, but this book is about ten gruesome, machete-wielding men and their thoughts before, during, and after . Filler material - that's all I can think of: the book would have been pretty short without it.3. Useless material above helps expand this volume, yet only one single paragraph (a note) mentions the United Nations Assistance Mission in Rwanda. In it Hatzfeld writes "UNAMIR's intervention (in the crisis) consisted of protecting and evacuating expatriates and its own personnel." He obviously either didn't do his homework on UNAMIR and its mandate and limitations, or has chosen to ignore the facts. UNAMIR tried to provide protection, to the best of its ability, to everyone it could, including Prime Minister Agathe Umwilingiyimana (the ten Belgian soldiers guarding her were slaughtered, as was she). It simply could not answer all the calls for help, but it did shelter some 12,000 Tustsi and Hutu souls from certain death in Amahoro Stadium: they all eventually escaped. True, UN troops helped whites and others to evacuate: those who asked, and those whose governments (American, British, Belgian, etc.) asked. Few Rwandan citizens were helped to leave: that would have started an exodus which UNAMIR could not have handled. And, yes, UN troops also helped their own personnel to leave: as in when the going got so hot that the Belgians withdrew their 450 troops, the Ghanians brought roughly half of their 800 man contingent home, and Bangladesh hastened its 1,100 soldiers away from the carnage. With a remaining mission of about 450 soldiers and no mandate to intervene, UNAMIR became virtually hamstrung.So, dear reader, read the book if you will. But be warned there's a lot of needless fill in here, and not much effort went into its writing. You will learn about human nature and human monsters, including the kind that write about other peoples' suffering to make a dollar.