European colonialism sowed the seeds for the Rwandan genocide through a strategy of divide and rule. The Germans, who ruled Rwanda from 1899 to 1916, introduced an identity card system that classified Rwandans into three arbitrary ethnic groups: Hutu, Tutsi, and Twa. This system created a rigid hierarchy, with the Tutsi minority gaining disproportionate power and privileges. When Belgium took over as the colonial power in 1916, it reinforced and expanded these ethnic divisions, favoring the Tutsi elite to maintain control over the colony. This led to resentment and tensions between the Hutu majority and the Tutsi minority, laying the groundwork for the eventual outbreak of genocide.
