194-709: The United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo or MONUSCO (an acronym based on its French name Mission de l'Organisation des Nations Unies pour la stabilisation en République démocratique du Congo ) is a United Nations peacekeeping force in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) which was established by the United Nations Security Council in resolutions 1279 (1999) and 1291 (2000) to monitor
388-503: A League of Nations mandate called Ruanda-Urundi and started a period of more direct colonial rule. The Belgians simplified and centralised the power structure, introduced large-scale projects in education, health, public works, and agricultural supervision, including new crops and improved agricultural techniques to try to reduce the incidence of famine. Both the Germans and the Belgians, in
582-522: A Sikh Light Infantry battalion and join the peace-keeping effort in the Congo. India made the decision to send its elite forces amidst rising concerns that Indian peace-keepers were getting caught in the cross-fire between DRC government troops and rebels. On 4 November 2008, a 200-fighter strong Mai Mai militia force launched a surprise attack on CNDP troops in Kiwanja, a CNDP-controlled town near Rutshuru , North Kivu. The Mai Mai were initially able to retake
776-428: A numeronym . For example, "i18n" abbreviates " internationalization ", a computer-science term for adapting software for worldwide use; the "18" represents the 18 letters that come between the first and the last in "internationalization". Similarly, "localization" can be abbreviated "l10n"; " multilingualization " "m17n"; and " accessibility " "a11y". In addition to the use of a specific number replacing that many letters,
970-508: A proportional representation system. Rwanda's legal system is largely based on German and Belgian civil law systems and customary law . The judiciary is independent of the executive branch, although the president and the Senate are involved in the appointment of Supreme Court judges. Human Rights Watch has praised the Rwandan government for progress made in the delivery of justice including
1164-641: A single word ("television" or "transvestite", for instance), and is in general spelled without punctuation (except in the plural). Although "PS" stands for the single English word " postscript " or the Latin postscriptum , it is often spelled with periods ("P.S.") as if parsed as Latin post scriptum instead. The slash ('/', or solidus ) is sometimes used to separate the letters in an acronym, as in "N/A" ("not applicable, not available") and "c/o" ("care of"). Inconveniently long words used frequently in related contexts can be represented according to their letter count as
1358-498: A 1940 translation of a novel by the German writer Lion Feuchtwanger . It is an unsettled question in English lexicography and style guides whether it is legitimate to use the word acronym to describe forms that use initials but are not pronounced as a word. While there is plenty of evidence that acronym is used widely in this way, some sources do not acknowledge this usage, reserving
1552-466: A 1999 clash between the two countries' armies as they backed opposing rebel groups in the Second Congo War, but improved significantly in the early 2010s. In 2019, relations between the two countries deteriorated, with Rwanda closing its borders with Uganda. Before western colonization, the Rwandan government system had a quasi-system of political pluralism and power sharing. Despite there being
1746-579: A 2019 Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 3.85/10, ranking it 139th globally out of 172 countries. Rwanda's economy suffered heavily during the 1994 genocide, with widespread loss of life, failure to maintain infrastructure, looting, and neglect of important cash crops. This caused a large drop in GDP and destroyed the country's ability to attract private and external investment. The economy has since strengthened, with per-capita nominal GDP estimated at $ 909.9 in 2022, compared with $ 127 in 1994. As of
1940-578: A coalition with the domestic opposition and eventually to sign the 1993 Arusha Accords with the RPF. The cease-fire ended on 6 April 1994 when Habyarimana's plane was shot down near Kigali Airport, killing him. The shooting down of the plane served as the catalyst for the Rwandan genocide , which began within a few hours. Over the course of approximately 100 days, between 500,000 and 1,000,000 Tutsi and politically moderate Hutu were killed in well-planned attacks on
2134-617: A different meaning. Medical literature has been struggling to control the proliferation of acronyms, including efforts by the American Academy of Dermatology. Acronyms are often taught as mnemonic devices: for example the colors of the rainbow are ROY G. BIV (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet). They are also used as mental checklists: in aviation GUMPS stands for gas-undercarriage-mixture-propeller-seat belts. Other mnemonic acronyms include CAN SLIM in finance, PAVPANIC in English grammar, and PEMDAS in mathematics. It
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#17328516159932328-503: A fast warming country, with an increase in average temperature of between 0.7 °C to 0.9 °C over fifty years. In prehistoric times, montane forest occupied one-third of the territory of present-day Rwanda. Naturally occurring vegetation is now mostly restricted to the three national parks , with terraced agriculture dominating the rest of the country. Nyungwe , the largest remaining tract of forest, contains 200 species of tree as well as orchids and begonias . Vegetation in
2522-530: A few degrees south of the Equator , Rwanda is bordered by Uganda , Tanzania , Burundi , and the Democratic Republic of the Congo . It is highly elevated, giving it the sobriquet "land of a thousand hills" ( French : pays des mille collines ), with its geography dominated by mountains in the west and savanna to the southeast, with numerous lakes throughout the country. The climate is temperate to subtropical, with two rainy seasons and two dry seasons each year. It
2716-420: A few large towns; dwellings are evenly spread throughout the country. The only sparsely populated area of the country is the savanna land in the former province of Umutara and Akagera National Park in the east. Kigali is the largest city, with a population of around one million. Its rapidly increasing population challenges its infrastructural development. According to the 2012 census, the second largest city
2910-553: A major military camp, along with Virunga National Park for use as a base to launch attacks. This occurred after a peace treaty failed, with the resultant fighting displacing thousands. The park was taken due to its strategic location on a main road leading to the city of Goma . On 27 October 2008 riots began around the United Nations compound in Goma, and civilians pelted the building with rocks and threw Molotov cocktails , claiming that
3104-760: A medial decimal point . Particularly in British and Commonwealth English , all such punctuation marking acronyms and other capitalized abbreviations is now uncommon and considered either unnecessary or incorrect. The presence of all-capital letters is now thought sufficient to indicate the nature of the UK , the EU , and the UN . Forms such as the U.S.A. for "the United States of America " are now considered to indicate American or North American English . Even within those dialects, such punctuation
3298-419: A military coup . Pro-Hutu discrimination continued, but there was greater economic prosperity and a reduced amount of violence against Tutsi. The Twa remained marginalised, and by 1990 were almost entirely forced out of the forests by the government; many became beggars. Rwanda's population had increased from 1.6 million people in 1934 to 7.1 million in 1989, leading to competition for land. In 1990,
3492-398: A multi-party system of government, with politics based on democracy and elections. However, the constitution places conditions on how political parties may operate. Article 54 states that "political organizations are prohibited from basing themselves on race, ethnic group, tribe, clan, region, sex, religion or any other division which may give rise to discrimination". The president of Rwanda
3686-407: A period when the letters are pronounced individually, as in " K.G.B. ", but not when pronounced as a word, as in " NATO ". The logic of this style is that the pronunciation is reflected graphically by the punctuation scheme. When a multiple-letter abbreviation is formed from a single word, periods are in general not used, although they may be common in informal usage. "TV", for example, may stand for
3880-477: A population of 10,515,973. The population is young: in the 2012 census, 43.3% of the population were aged 15 and under, and 53.4% were between 16 and 64. According to the CIA World Factbook , the annual birth rate is estimated at 40.2 births per 1,000 inhabitants in 2015, and the death rate at 14.9. The life expectancy is 67.67 years (69.27 years for females and 67.11 years for males), which
4074-414: A pro-Tutsi policy. The Hutu population revolted in 1959. They massacred numerous Tutsi and ultimately established an independent, Hutu-dominated republic in 1962 led by President Grégoire Kayibanda . A 1973 military coup overthrew Kayibanda and brought Juvénal Habyarimana to power, who retained the pro-Hutu policy. The Tutsi-led Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) launched a civil war in 1990. Habyarimana
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#17328516159934268-645: A significant uproar from both the Government of Guatemala and the Guatemalan public, who demanded an official inquiry into the engagement. On 25 April 2006, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 1671 , authorising the temporary deployment of a European Union force to support MONUC during the period encompassing the general elections in the DR Congo, which began on 30 July 2006. The European Council approved
4462-436: A single word, such as NATO (as distinct from B-B-C )" but adds later "In everyday use, acronym is often applied to abbreviations that are technically initialisms, since they are pronounced as separate letters." The Chicago Manual of Style acknowledges the complexity ("Furthermore, an acronym and initialism are occasionally combined (JPEG), and the line between initialism and acronym is not always clear") but still defines
4656-439: A strict hierarchy, the pre-colonial system achieved an established, combined system of "centralized power and decentralized autonomous units." Under the monarch, the elected Chief governed a province that was divided into multiple districts. Two other officials appointed by head Chief governed the districts; one official was allocated power over the land while the other oversaw cattle. The king ( mwami ) exercised control through
4850-457: A supplementary brigade for Katanga. Joint operations were conducted by the newly arrived integrated brigades of the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC). UN troops were tasked with the support of the electoral process, contributing protection and transport. In Ituri over 15000 militiamen were disarmed. In October 2005, by Resolution 1635, the UN Security Council authorized
5044-565: A system of commercial courts created in 2011 to expedite commercial litigations. Between 2004 and 2012, a system of Gacaca courts was in operation. Gacaca , a Rwandan traditional court operated by villages and communities, was revived to expedite the trials of genocide suspects. The court succeeded in clearing the backlog of genocide cases, but was criticised by human rights groups as not meeting legal fair standard. Rwanda has low corruption levels relative to most other African countries; in 2014, Transparency International ranked Rwanda as
5238-585: A system of provinces, districts, hills, and neighbourhoods. As of 2003, the constitution divided Rwanda into provinces ( intara ), districts ( uturere ), cities, municipalities, towns, sectors ( imirenge ), cells ( utugari ), and villages ( imidugudu ); the larger divisions, and their borders, are established by Parliament. In January 2006, Rwanda was reorganized such that twelve provinces were merged to create five, and 106 districts were merged into thirty. The present borders drawn in 2006 aimed at decentralising power and removing associations with
5432-467: A temporary increase of 300 military personnel to permit a deployment to Katanga. In late January, a group of 80 Guatemalan Special Forces from the Kaibiles were engaged in a four hour firefight with LRA rebels, ending with the deaths of eight Guatemalans and fifteen rebels. They are believed to have been conducting a raid on an LRA encampment to capture LRA Deputy Commander Vincent Otti . The incident caused
5626-596: A third of the country's farmland, potatoes , beans , sweet potatoes , cassava , wheat and maize . Coffee and tea are the major cash crops for export, with the high altitudes, steep slopes and volcanic soils providing favourable conditions. Reports have established that more than 400,000 Rwandans make their living from coffee plantation. Reliance on agricultural exports makes Rwanda vulnerable to shifts in their prices. Animals raised in Rwanda include cows, goats, sheep, pigs, chicken, and rabbits, with geographical variation in
5820-514: A total of 10,415 peacekeepers were in the DRC, comprising infantry units, engineer units, helicopter units, logistic units, medical units and riverine units. Deploying the Ituri brigade and conducting cordon and search operations improved the security conditions in Ituri but, at the same time, the peacekeepers became the target of the militias. On 12 February 2004, a military observer was killed in Ituri. With
6014-497: A twentieth-century phenomenon. Linguist David Wilton in Word Myths: Debunking Linguistic Urban Legends claims that "forming words from acronyms is a distinctly twentieth- (and now twenty-first-) century phenomenon. There is only one known pre-twentieth-century [English] word with an acronymic origin and it was in vogue for only a short time in 1886. The word is colinderies or colinda , an acronym for
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6208-525: A vast cordon and search operation in Ituri was conducted by Nepalese, Pakistani and South African Infantry elements with the support of Indian attack helicopters, between 50 and 60 militiamen were killed. Senegalese General Babacar Gaye was appointed force commander in March 2005 after Spanish General Vincente Diaz de Villegas resigned for personal reasons. In May 2005, the UN Secretary General asked for
6402-567: A week prior – and the peacekeepers later said they had no idea the massacre was taking place until it was over. Lt. Col. H. S. Brar, commander of the Indian peacekeepers at Kiwanja summarized the failure as the result of "poor communication and staffing, inadequate equipment, intelligence breakdowns and spectacularly bad luck." In its report on the massacre, Human Rights Watch largely supported Brar's assessment but further observed that competing priorities from headquarters in Goma shifted focus to "assuring
6596-471: A word, an abbreviation is not an acronym." In contrast, some style guides do support it, whether explicitly or implicitly. The 1994 edition of Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of English Usage defends the usage on the basis of a claim that dictionaries do not make a distinction. The BuzzFeed style guide describes CBS and PBS as "acronyms ending in S". Acronymy, like retronymy , is a linguistic process that has existed throughout history but for which there
6790-639: A word. American English dictionaries such as Merriam-Webster , Dictionary.com's Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary and the American Heritage Dictionary as well as the British Oxford English Dictionary and the Australian Macquarie Dictionary all include a sense in their entries for acronym equating it with initialism , although The American Heritage Dictionary criticizes it with
6984-481: Is Gisenyi , which lies adjacent to Lake Kivu and the Congolese city of Goma , and has a population of 126,000. Other major towns include Ruhengeri , Butare , and Muhanga , all with populations below 100,000. The urban population rose from 6% of the population in 1990, to 16.6% in 2006; by 2011, however, the proportion had dropped slightly, to 14.8%. Rwanda has been a unified state since pre-colonial times, and
7178-572: Is a subset with a narrower definition: an initialism pronounced as a word rather than as a sequence of letters. In this sense, NASA / ˈ n æ s ə / is an acronym but USA / j uː ɛ s ˈ eɪ / is not. The broader sense of acronym , ignoring pronunciation, is its original meaning and in common use. Dictionary and style-guide editors dispute whether the term acronym can be legitimately applied to abbreviations which are not pronounced as words, and they do not agree on acronym spacing , casing , and punctuation . The phrase that
7372-452: Is a provincial-level authority, which coordinates urban planning within the city. At 26,338 square kilometres (10,169 sq mi), Rwanda is the world's 149th-largest country, and the fourth smallest on the African mainland after Gambia , Eswatini , and Djibouti . It is comparable in size to Burundi , Haiti and Albania . The entire country is at a high altitude: the lowest point
7566-488: Is a question about how to pluralize acronyms. Often a writer will add an 's' following an apostrophe, as in "PC's". However, Kate L. Turabian 's A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations , writing about style in academic writings, allows for an apostrophe to form plural acronyms "only when an abbreviation contains internal periods or both capital and lowercase letters". Turabian would therefore prefer "DVDs" and "URLs" but "Ph.D.'s". The style guides of
7760-707: Is becoming increasingly uncommon. Some style guides , such as that of the BBC , no longer require punctuation to show ellipsis ; some even proscribe it. Larry Trask , American author of The Penguin Guide to Punctuation , states categorically that, in British English , "this tiresome and unnecessary practice is now obsolete." Nevertheless, some influential style guides , many of them American , still require periods in certain instances. For example, The New York Times Manual of Style and Usage recommends following each segment with
7954-411: Is common for grammatical contractions (e.g. don't , y'all , and ain't ) and for contractions marking unusual pronunciations (e.g. a'ight , cap'n , and fo'c'sle for "all right", "captain", and "forecastle"). By the early twentieth century, it was standard to use a full stop/period/point , especially in the cases of initialisms and acronyms. Previously, especially for Latin abbreviations , this
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8148-525: Is empowered by the constitution to oversee the activities of the president and the Cabinet. The lower chamber is the Chamber of Deputies , which has 80 members serving five-year terms. Twenty-four of these seats are reserved for women, elected through a joint assembly of local government officials; another three seats are reserved for youth and disabled members; the remaining 53 are elected by universal suffrage under
8342-631: Is especially important for paper media, where no search utility is available to find the first use.) It also gives students a convenient review list to memorize the important acronyms introduced in a textbook chapter. Expansion at first use and abbreviation keys originated in the print era, but they are equally useful for electronic text . While acronyms provide convenience and succinctness for specialists, they often degenerate into confusing jargon . This may be intentional, to exclude readers without domain-specific knowledge. New acronyms may also confuse when they coincide with an already existing acronym having
8536-653: Is found in the Lusaka Ceasefire Agreement on 17 July 1999 and the following United Nations Security Council Resolution 1258 of 6 August 1999, authorizing the deployment of a maximum of 90 officers. The first liaison officers arrived in the DRC on 3 September 1999. In November 1999 the number of liaison officers totaled 55, distributed in the capitals of the warring countries ( Rwanda , Uganda , Burundi , Zambia, Namibia , Zimbabwe , Ethiopia ) including 24 who were stationed in Kinshasa . In January 2000 they reached
8730-464: Is generally said as two letters, but IPsec for Internet Protocol Security is usually pronounced as / ˌ aɪ ˈ p iː s ɛ k / or / ˈ ɪ p s ɛ k / , along with variant capitalization like "IPSEC" and "Ipsec". Pronunciation may even vary within a single speaker's vocabulary, depending on narrow contexts. As an example, the database programming language SQL is usually said as three letters, but in reference to Microsoft's implementation
8924-571: Is home to an estimated one-third of the worldwide mountain gorilla population. Nyungwe Forest boasts thirteen primate species including common chimpanzees and Ruwenzori colobus arboreal monkeys; the Ruwenzori colobus move in groups of up to 400 individuals, the largest troop size of any primate in Africa. Rwanda's population of lions was destroyed in the aftermath of the genocide of 1994, as national parks were turned into camps for displaced people and
9118-428: Is low but rising rapidly; in 2015 there were 12.8 internet users per 100 people, up from 2.1 in 2007. In 2011, a 2,300-kilometre (1,400 mi) fibre-optic telecommunications network was completed, intended to provide broadband services and facilitate electronic commerce. This network is connected to SEACOM , a submarine fibre-optic cable connecting communication carriers in southern and eastern Africa. Within Rwanda
9312-611: Is no discernible physical difference and the categories were not historically rigid. In precolonial Rwanda the Tutsi were the ruling class, from whom the kings and the majority of chiefs were derived, while the Hutu were agriculturalists. The current government discourages the Hutu/Tutsi/Twa distinction, and has removed such classification from identity cards. The 2002 census was the first since 1933 which did not categorise Rwandan population into
9506-433: Is nominally democratic, elections are manipulated in various ways, which include banning opposition parties, arresting or assassinating critics, and electoral fraud . The RPF is a Tutsi-dominated party but receives support from other communities as well. The constitution was adopted following a national referendum in 2003, replacing the transitional constitution which had been in place since 1994. The constitution mandates
9700-459: Is not uncommon for acronyms to be cited in a kind of false etymology , called a folk etymology , for a word. Such etymologies persist in popular culture but have no factual basis in historical linguistics , and are examples of language-related urban legends . For example, " cop " is commonly cited as being derived, it is presumed, from "constable on patrol", and " posh " from " port outward, starboard home ". With some of these specious expansions,
9894-494: Is now Rwanda dates from, at the latest, the last glacial period , either in the Neolithic period around 8000 BC, or in the long humid period which followed, up to around 3000 BC. Archaeological excavations have revealed evidence of sparse settlement by hunter-gatherers in the late Stone Age , followed by a larger population of early Iron Age settlers, who produced dimpled pottery and iron tools. These early inhabitants were
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#173285161599310088-400: Is one of the cleanest cities in Africa. Government policy measures to improve sanitation are limited, focusing only on urban areas. The majority of the population, both urban and rural, use public shared pit latrines . Rwanda's electricity supply was, until the early 2000s, generated almost entirely from hydroelectric sources; power stations on Lakes Burera and Ruhondo provided 90% of
10282-449: Is one of the fastest-growing economic resources and became the country's leading foreign exchange earner in 2007. In spite of the genocide's legacy, the country is increasingly perceived internationally as a safe destination. The number of tourist arrivals in 2013 was 864,000 people, up from 504,000 in 2010. Revenue from tourism was US$ 303 million in 2014, up from just US$ 62 million in 2000. The largest contributor to this revenue
10476-454: Is one of the twenty deepest lakes in the world . Other sizeable lakes include Burera , Ruhondo , Muhazi , Rweru , and Ihema , the last being the largest of a string of lakes in the eastern plains of Akagera National Park . Mountains dominate central and western Rwanda and the country is sometimes called " Pays des mille collines " in French ("Land of a thousand hills"). They are part of
10670-533: Is the Rusizi River at 950 metres (3,117 ft) above sea level. Rwanda is located in Central/Eastern Africa, and is bordered by the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, Uganda to the north, Tanzania to the east, and Burundi to the south. It lies a few degrees south of the equator and is landlocked . The capital, Kigali, is located near the centre of Rwanda. The watershed between
10864-499: Is the head of state , and has broad powers including creating policy in conjunction with the Cabinet of Rwanda , commanding the armed forces , negotiating and ratifying treaties, signing presidential orders, and declaring war or a state of emergency. The president is elected every seven years , and appoints the prime minister and all other members of the Cabinet. The Parliament consists of two chambers . It makes legislation and
11058-417: Is the 26th lowest out of 224 countries and territories. The overall sex ratio of the country is 95.9 males per 100 females. At 445 inhabitants per square kilometre (1,150/sq mi), Rwanda's population density is amongst the highest in Africa. Historians such as Gérard Prunier believe that the 1994 genocide can be partly attributed to the population density. The population is predominantly rural, with
11252-430: Is the largest religion in the country; the principal and national language is Kinyarwanda , spoken by native Rwandans, with English, French and Swahili serving as additional official foreign languages. Rwanda's economy is based mostly on subsistence agriculture . Coffee and tea are the major cash crops that it exports. Tourism is a fast-growing sector and is now the country's leading foreign exchange earner. As of
11446-563: Is the most densely populated mainland African country; among countries larger than 10,000 km , it is the fifth-most densely populated country in the world. Its capital and largest city is Kigali . Hunter-gatherers settled the territory in the Stone and Iron Ages , followed later by Bantu peoples . The population coalesced first into clans , and then into kingdoms. In the 15th century, one kingdom, under King Gihanga, managed to incorporate several of its close neighbor territories establishing
11640-524: Is the road to the port of Mombasa via Kampala and Nairobi , which is known as the Northern Corridor . The principal form of public transport in the country is the minibus , accounting for more than half of all passenger carrying capacity. Some minibuses, particularly in Kigali, operate an unscheduled service, under a shared taxi system, while others run to a schedule, offering express routes between
11834-415: Is traditionally pronounced like the word sequel . In writing for a broad audience, the words of an acronym are typically written out in full at its first occurrence within a given text. Expansion At First Use (EAFU) benefits readers unfamiliar with the acronym. Another text aid is an abbreviation key which lists and expands all acronyms used, a reference for readers who skipped past the first use. (This
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#173285161599312028-617: Is used in the manufacture of electronic and communication devices such as mobile phones. Rwanda's service sector suffered during the late-2000s recession as bank lending, foreign aid projects and investment were reduced. The sector rebounded in 2010, becoming the country's largest sector by economic output and contributing 43.6% of the country's GDP. Key tertiary contributors include banking and finance, wholesale and retail trade, hotels and restaurants, transport, storage, communication, insurance, real estate, business services and public administration including education and health. Tourism
12222-507: The Colonial and Indian Exposition held in London in that year." However, although acronymic words seem not to have been employed in general vocabulary before the twentieth century (as Wilton points out), the concept of their formation is treated as effortlessly understood (and evidently not novel) in an Edgar Allan Poe story of the 1830s, " How to Write a Blackwood Article ", which includes
12416-562: The Congo River , which was again open to commercial traffic. In June 2002 the UN troops' total number was 3,804. Contingents from Ghana and Bolivia joined the force, of which more than a third of the soldiers were Uruguayan. More than one thousand soldiers were deployed in Kisangani. On 14 May 2002, a military observer died near Ikela following the explosion of a mine under his vehicle. On 30 July 2002,
12610-549: The Democratic Republic of the Congo were tense following Rwanda's involvement in the First and Second Congo Wars ; the Congolese army alleged Rwandan attacks on their troops, while Rwanda blamed the Congolese government for failing to suppress Hutu rebels in North and South Kivu provinces. In 2010, the United Nations released a report accusing the Rwandan army of committing wide scale human rights violations and crimes against humanity in
12804-589: The East African Community in 2007, and has ratified a plan for monetary union amongst the seven member nations, which could eventually lead to a common East African shilling . Rwanda is a country of few natural resources, and the economy is based mostly on subsistence agriculture by local farmers using simple tools. An estimated 90% of the working population farms, and agriculture constituted an estimated 32.5% of GDP in 2014. Farming techniques are basic, with small plots of land and steep slopes. Since
12998-505: The Kingdom of Rwanda . By 1700, around eight kingdoms had existed in the present-day Rwanda. One of these, the Kingdom of Rwanda ruled by the Tutsi Nyiginya clan, became increasingly dominant from the mid-eighteenth century. The kingdom reached its greatest extent during the nineteenth century under the reign of King Kigeli Rwabugiri . Rwabugiri conquered several smaller states, expanded
13192-402: The Kingdom of Rwanda . The Kingdom of Rwanda dominated from the mid-eighteenth century, with the Tutsi kings conquering others militarily, centralising power, and enacting unifying policies. In 1897, Germany colonized Rwanda as part of German East Africa , followed by Belgium , which took control in 1916 during World War I . Both European nations ruled through the Rwandan king and perpetuated
13386-612: The Modern Language Association and American Psychological Association prohibit apostrophes from being used to pluralize acronyms regardless of periods (so "compact discs" would be "CDs" or "C.D.s"), whereas The New York Times Manual of Style and Usage requires an apostrophe when pluralizing all abbreviations regardless of periods (preferring "PC's, TV's and VCR's"). Possessive plurals that also include apostrophes for mere pluralization and periods appear especially complex: for example, "the C.D.'s' labels" (the labels of
13580-742: The Netherlands , Niger , Nigeria , Pakistan , Paraguay , Peru , Poland , Romania , Russia , Senegal , Serbia , South Africa , Sri Lanka , Sweden , Switzerland , Tanzania , Tunisia , Ukraine , the United Kingdom , the United States , Uruguay , Yemen and Zambia . In addition, the following nations have contributed with police personnel: Bangladesh, Benin, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad , Djibouti , Egypt, France, Ghana, Guinea , Jordan, Madagascar , Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Romania, Russia, Senegal, Sweden, Switzerland, Togo , Tunisia, Turkey , Ukraine and Yemen. The initial UN presence in
13774-533: The Restoration witticism arranging the names of some members of Charles II 's Committee for Foreign Affairs to produce the "CABAL" ministry . OK , a term of disputed origin, dates back at least to the early nineteenth century and is now used around the world. Acronyms are used most often to abbreviate names of organizations and long or frequently referenced terms. The armed forces and government agencies frequently employ acronyms; some well-known examples from
13968-675: The Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), a rebel group composed of Tutsi refugees, invaded northern Rwanda from their base in Uganda, initiating the Rwandan Civil War . The group condemned the Hutu-dominated government for failing to democratize and confront the problems facing these refugees. Neither side was able to gain a decisive advantage in the war, but by 1992 it had weakened Habyarimana's authority; mass demonstrations forced him into
14162-622: The Rwenzori turaco and handsome spurfowl . Eastern Rwanda, by contrast, features savanna birds such as the black-headed gonolek and those associated with swamps and lakes, including storks and cranes . Recent entomological work in the country has revealed a rich diversity of praying mantises , including a new species Dystacta tigrifrutex , dubbed the "bush tiger mantis". Rwanda contains three terrestrial ecoregions: Albertine Rift montane forests , Victoria Basin forest-savanna mosaic , and Ruwenzori-Virunga montane moorlands . The country had
14356-628: The Volcanoes National Park is mostly bamboo and moorland, with small areas of forest. By contrast, Akagera has a savanna ecosystem in which acacia dominates the flora. There are several rare or endangered plant species in Akagera, including Markhamia lutea and Eulophia guineensis . The greatest diversity of large mammals is found in the three national parks, which are designated conservation areas. Akagera contains typical savanna animals such as giraffes and elephants, while Volcanoes
14550-480: The "belief" that the etymology is acronymic has clearly been tongue-in-cheek among many citers, as with "gentlemen only, ladies forbidden" for " golf ", although many other (more credulous ) people have uncritically taken it for fact. Taboo words in particular commonly have such false etymologies: " shit " from "ship/store high in transit" or "special high-intensity training" and " fuck " from "for unlawful carnal knowledge", or "fornication under consent/command of
14744-463: The 160-character SMS limit, and to save time, acronyms such as "GF" ("girlfriend"), "LOL" ("laughing out loud"), and "DL" ("download" or "down low") have become popular. Some prescriptivists disdain texting acronyms and abbreviations as decreasing clarity, or as failure to use "pure" or "proper" English. Others point out that languages have always continually changed , and argue that acronyms should be embraced as inevitable, or as innovation that adapts
14938-461: The 18 letters between the initial "i" and the final "n"). Authors of expository writing will sometimes capitalize or otherwise distinctively format the initials of the expansion for pedagogical emphasis (for example, writing: "the onset of Congestive Heart Failure (CHF)" or "the onset of c ongestive h eart f ailure (CHF)"). Capitalization like this, however, conflicts with the convention of English orthography, which generally reserves capitals in
15132-786: The Albertine Rift Mountains that flank the Albertine branch of the East African Rift , which runs from north to south along Rwanda's western border. The highest peaks are found in the Virunga volcano chain in the northwest; this includes Mount Karisimbi , Rwanda's highest point, at 4,507 metres (14,787 ft). This western section of the country lies within the Albertine Rift montane forests ecoregion. It has an elevation of 1,500 to 2,500 metres (4,921 to 8,202 ft). The centre of
15326-461: The British press may render it "Nato"), but uses lower case in " Unicef " (from "United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund") because it is more than four letters, and to style it in caps might look ungainly (flirting with the appearance of "shouting capitals"). While abbreviations typically exclude the initials of short function words (such as "and", "or", "of", or "to"), this is not always
15520-453: The Democratic Republic of the Congo during the First and Second Congo Wars , charges denied by the Rwandan government. Relations soured further in 2012, as Kinshasa accused Rwanda of supporting the M23 rebellion , an insurgency in the eastern Congo. As of 2015 , peace has been restored and relations are improving. Rwanda's relationship with Uganda was also tense for much of the 2000s following
15714-407: The Democratic Republic of the Congo, before the passing of United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1291, was a force of military observers to observe and report on the compliance on factions with the peace accords, a deployment authorised by the earlier UNSCR 1258 (1999). UNSCR 2556 (2020) provides the authority for the current MONUSCO mandate. About US$ 8.74 billion was spent to fund
15908-571: The East started. The four coordination centres and 22 bases in the western part of the country were shut down. Over one hundred observers were redeployed and Uruguayan contingents arrived in Bukavu , South Kivu and Lubero , North Kivu . Observer teams monitored serious combat and human rights violations in Ituri. In April 2003, 800 Uruguayan soldiers were deployed in Bunia , Ituri Province under Resolution 1484 . In
16102-645: The Interim Emergency Multinational Force (IEMF) in Bunia with a task to secure the airport and protect both internally displaced persons in camps and the civilians in the town. UNSCR 1493 authorized an increase of military personnel to 10,800, imposed an arms embargo, and authorized MONUC to use all necessary means to fulfill its mandate in the Ituri District and also in North and South Kivu, as it deemed
16296-652: The MONOU effort. In August 2008, an internal investigation led by the Indian Army and other MONOU officers revealed that about ten Indian peacekeepers may have been involved in abuse and exploitation in Congo. Earlier in May 2008, the vice chief of the Indian Army visited Congo to look into these allegations and by August 2008, the Indian Army had launched an official probe to look into these allegations. On 26 October 2008 Rally for Congolese Democracy (RCD) forces of Laurent Nkunda seized
16490-453: The MONUC peacekeeping effort during 1999 to 2010. As of October 2017, the total strength of UN peacekeeping troops in DRC is approximately 18,300. More than thirty nations have contributed military and police personnel for peacekeeping effort, with India being the single largest contributor. The origin of this second United Nations military presence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)
16684-544: The RPF-led army was a key belligerent in the First and Second Congo Wars . Within Rwanda, a period of reconciliation and justice began, with the establishment of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) and the reintroduction of Gacaca , a traditional village court system. Since 2000 Rwanda's economy, tourist numbers, and Human Development Index have grown rapidly; between 2006 and 2011
16878-591: The Security Council by Resolution 1565 , authorized a reinforcement of 5,900 military personnel and defined the mandate with the strategic military objectives of the MONUC force as: Following the UN resolution, the Indian Army announced that it would be sending an additional 850 troops and four combat helicopters to aid the MONUC peacekeeping effort. By 2005, the strength of UN peacekeeping forces in Congo reached more than 16,000 troops, split almost equally between
17072-547: The Senegalese Major General Mountaga Diallo was appointed as the commander of MONUSCO's military force. The mandate was to monitor the implementation of the Ceasefire Agreement and the redeployment of belligerent forces, to develop an action plan for the overall implementation of the Ceasefire Agreement, to work with the parties to obtain the release of all prisoners of war, military captives and
17266-564: The U.S. Navy, is "COMCRUDESPAC", which stands for "commander, cruisers destroyers Pacific"; it is also seen as "ComCruDesPac". Inventors are encouraged to anticipate the formation of acronyms by making new terms "YABA-compatible" ("yet another bloody acronym"), meaning the term's acronym can be pronounced and is not an offensive word: "When choosing a new name, be sure it is 'YABA-compatible'." Acronym use has been further popularized by text messaging on mobile phones with short message service (SMS), and instant messenger (IM). To fit messages into
17460-526: The UN forces had done nothing to prevent the RCD advance. The Congolese national army also retreated under pressure from the rebel army in a "major retreat." Meanwhile, United Nations gunships and armoured vehicles were used in an effort to halt the advance of the rebels, who claimed to be within 7 miles (11 km) of Goma. Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for DRC Alan Doss explained
17654-476: The United Nations to seek additional military help from major powers. In July 2003, India announced that it would be sending an additional 300 personnel and combat aircraft from the Indian Air Force to strengthen the UN peacekeeping effort in DRC. In September 2003, the Ituri brigade was in place, including soldiers from Uruguay, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, Indonesia, India and Morocco. In November 2003,
17848-548: The United States are among the " alphabet agencies " (jokingly referred to as " alphabet soup ") created under the New Deal by Franklin D. Roosevelt (himself known as "FDR"). Business and industry also coin acronyms prolifically. The rapid advance of science and technology also drives the usage, as new inventions and concepts with multiword names create a demand for shorter, more pronounceable names. One representative example, from
18042-497: The United States, European Union , Japan, and others. The transport system consists primarily of the road network, with paved roads between Kigali and most other major cities and towns in the country. Rwanda is linked by road to other countries in the East African Community, namely Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and Kenya , as well as to the eastern Congolese cities of Goma and Bukavu ; the country's most important trade route
18236-632: The Western Brigade and the Eastern Division. In February 2005, nine Bangladeshi UN troops were killed during an ambush in Ituri. The actions of the Ituri and Kivu Brigades became more robust and the pressure rose on all armed groups. Thomas Lubanga Dyilo , the leader of the Union of Congolese Patriots , and other militia leaders were arrested by Congolese authorities and imprisoned in Makala , Kinshasa. Lubanga
18430-576: The abolition of the death penalty, but also alleges interference in the judicial system by members of the government, such as the politically motivated appointment of judges, misuse of prosecutorial power, and pressure on judges to make particular decisions. The constitution provides for two types of courts: ordinary and specialised. Ordinary courts are the Supreme Court , the High Court , and regional courts, while specialised courts are military courts and
18624-411: The acronym may use normal case rules, e.g. it would appear generally in lower case, but with an initial capital when starting a sentence or when in a title. Once knowledge of the words underlying such an acronym has faded from common recall, the acronym may be termed an anacronym . Examples of anacronyms are the words " scuba ", " radar ", and " laser ". The word "an acro nym" should not be confused with
18818-537: The acronym stands for is called its expansion . The meaning of an acronym includes both its expansion and the meaning of its expansion. The word acronym is formed from the Greek roots akro- , meaning 'height, summit, or tip', and -nym , 'name'. This neoclassical compound appears to have originated in German , with attestations for the German form Akronym appearing as early as 1921. Citations in English date to
19012-538: The additional provinces to be within MONUC's capabilities, The French Government had already shown interest in leading the operation. It soon broadened to a European Union (EU) -led mission with France as the framework nation providing the bulk of the personnel and complemented by contributions from both EU and non-EU nations. The total force consisted of about 1,800 personnel and was supported by French aircraft based at airfields in N'Djamena , Chad and Entebbe , Uganda. A small 80-man Swedish Special Forces (SSG) group
19206-577: The adoption of acronyms was modern warfare, with its many highly technical terms. While there is no recorded use of military acronyms dating from the American Civil War (acronyms such as "ANV" for " Army of Northern Virginia " post-date the war itself), they became somewhat common in World War I , and by World War II they were widespread even in the slang of soldiers, who referred to themselves as G.I.s . The widespread, frequent use of acronyms across
19400-539: The ancestors of the Twa , aboriginal pygmy hunter-gatherers who remain in Rwanda today. Then by 3,000BC, Central Sudanic and Kuliak farmers and herders began settling into Rwanda, followed by South Cushitic speaking herders in 2,000BC. The forest-dwelling Twa lost much of their habitat and moved to the mountain slopes. Between 800 BC and 1500 AD, a number of Bantu groups migrated into Rwanda, clearing forest land for agriculture. Historians have several theories regarding
19594-497: The apostrophe should be reserved for the possessive ("the TV's antenna"). In some languages, the convention of doubling the letters in the acronym is used to indicate plural words: for example, the Spanish EE.UU. , for Estados Unidos ('United States'). This old convention is still sometimes followed for a limited number of English abbreviations, such as SS. for Saints , pp. for
19788-630: The arrival of the Transitional Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo , which included members of rebel movements, more than 900 Tunisian and Ghanaian UN troops contributed to the security of Kinshasa. It was decided that the troops present in the Kivus will be assembled under the unified command of a brigade. In March the Nigerian General Samaila Iliya took over the command of the force. In June 2004, Bukavu, South Kivu
19982-508: The busiest routes being those to Nairobi and Entebbe ; there is one domestic route, between Kigali and Kamembe Airport near Cyangugu . In 2017, construction began on the Bugesera International Airport , to the south of Kigali, which will become the country's largest when it opens, complementing the existing Kigali airport. The national carrier is RwandAir , and the country is served by seven foreign airlines. As of 2015
20176-413: The cables run along major roads, linking towns around the country. Mobile provider MTN also runs a wireless internet service accessible in most areas of Kigali via pre-paid subscription. In October 2019, Mara Corporation launched the first African-made smartphone in Rwanda. The Rwandan government prioritised funding of water supply development during the 2000s, significantly increasing its share of
20370-1159: The case. Sometimes function words are included to make a pronounceable acronym, such as CORE ( Congress of Racial Equality ). Sometimes the letters representing these words are written in lower case, such as in the cases of "TfL" (" Transport for London ") and LotR ( The Lord of the Rings ); this usually occurs when the acronym represents a multi-word proper noun. Numbers (both cardinal and ordinal ) in names are often represented by digits rather than initial letters, as in "4GL" (" fourth generation language ") or "G77" (" Group of 77 "). Large numbers may use metric prefixes , as with " Y2K " for "Year 2000". Exceptions using initials for numbers include " TLA " ("three-letter acronym/abbreviation") and "GoF" (" Gang of Four "). Abbreviations using numbers for other purposes include repetitions, such as " A2DP " ("Advanced Audio Distribution Profile"), " W3C " ("World Wide Web Consortium"), and T3 ( Trends, Tips & Tools for Everyday Living ); pronunciation, such as " B2B " ("business to business"); and numeronyms , such as "i18n" ("internationalization"; "18" represents
20564-413: The compact discs). In some instances, however, an apostrophe may increase clarity: for example, if the final letter of an abbreviation is "S", as in "SOS's" (although abbreviations ending with S can also take "-es", e.g. "SOSes"), or when pluralizing an abbreviation that has periods. A particularly rich source of options arises when the plural of an acronym would normally be indicated in a word other than
20758-557: The contrived acronym "P.R.E.T.T.Y.B.L.U.E.B.A.T.C.H." The use of Latin and Neo-Latin terms in vernaculars has been pan-European and pre-dates modern English. Some examples of acronyms in this class are: The earliest example of a word derived from an acronym listed by the OED is "abjud" (now " abjad "), formed from the original first four letters of the Arabic alphabet in the late eighteenth century. Some acrostics pre-date this, however, such as
20952-471: The country had no railways, but there is a project underway, in conjunction with Burundi and Tanzania, to extend the Tanzanian Central Line into Rwanda; the three countries have invited expressions of interest from private firms to form a public private partnership for the scheme. There is no public water transport between the port cities on Lake Kivu, although a limited private service exists and
21146-448: The country is 72.6%, up from 41.6% in 2011. MTN Rwanda is the leading provider, with 3,957,986 subscribers, followed by Tigo with 2,887,328, and Bharti Airtel with 1,336,679. Rwandatel has also previously operated a mobile phone network, but the industry regulator revoked its licence in April 2011, following the company's failure to meet agreed investment commitments. Internet penetration
21340-425: The country is predominantly rolling hills, while the eastern border region consists of savanna , plains and swamps. Rwanda has a temperate tropical highland climate, with lower temperatures than are typical for equatorial countries because of its high elevation. Kigali, in the centre of the country, has a typical daily temperature range between 15 and 28 °C (59 and 82 °F), with little variation through
21534-517: The country's electricity. A combination of below average rainfall and human activity, including the draining of the Rugezi wetlands for cultivation and grazing, caused the two lakes' water levels to fall from 1990 onwards; by 2004 levels were reduced by 50%, leading to a sharp drop in output from the power stations. This, coupled with increased demand as the economy grew, precipitated a shortfall in 2004 and widespread loadshedding . As an emergency measure,
21728-420: The country's power generation by 40%. Only 18% of the population had access to electricity in 2012, though this had risen from 10.8% in 2009. The government's Economic Development and Poverty Reduction Strategy for 2013–18 aims to increase access to electricity to 70% of households by 2017. The government has increased investment in the transport infrastructure of Rwanda since the 1994 genocide, with aid from
21922-422: The country, little use is made of rainwater harvesting , and residents are forced to use water very sparingly, relative to usage in other African countries. Access to sanitation remains low; the United Nations estimates that in 2006, 34% of urban and 20% of rural dwellers had access to improved sanitation , with this statistic increasing to 92% for the total population (95% urban and 91% urban) in 2022. Kigali
22116-616: The country, including illegal and arbitrary detention, threats or other forms of intimidation, disappearances, politically motivated trials, and the massacre of peacefully protesting civilians. Rwanda is a member of the United Nations , African Union , Francophonie , East African Community , and the Commonwealth of Nations . For many years during the Habyarimana regime, the country maintained close ties with France, as well as Belgium,
22310-466: The country. The observers could only record the non-application of the Ceasefire, the violent fighting at Kisangani and in the Équateur and Katanga provinces as well as the presence of foreign troops in the DRC. The deployment of UN troops was impossible due to the security situation and the reluctance of the Congolese government. Even though the beginning of 2001 was still hampered by sporadic combat,
22504-428: The delivery of public services as mandated by the districts. Districts and sectors have directly elected councils, and are run by an executive committee selected by that council. The cells and villages are the smallest political units, providing a link between the people and the sectors. All adult resident citizens are members of their local cell council, from which an executive committee is elected. The city of Kigali
22698-400: The deployment of MONUC troops, in the eastern DRC. The site for the logistical base was planned to be Kindu , Maniema Province . In 2002, the 450 military observers, split in 95 teams, continued to monitor the Ceasefire along the ex-frontlines. The teams also investigated violations of the Ceasefire. Foreign troops continued to leave the country. The riverine units escorted the first ships on
22892-438: The dictionary entries and style guide recommendations regarding the term acronym through the twentieth century did not explicitly acknowledge or support the expansive sense. The Merriam–Webster's Dictionary of English Usage from 1994 is one of the earliest publications to advocate for the expansive sense, and all the major dictionary editions that include a sense of acronym equating it with initialism were first published in
23086-613: The different parties signed the Pretoria agreement and the nature of the mission of the peacekeepers changed. The military observers monitored the withdrawal of 20,000 Rwandan soldiers, but they also noted the rise of ethnic violence in Ituri Province . At the end of 2002 there were a total of 4,200 UN soldiers in the DRC. Through UNSCR 1445 , the Security Council authorized the increase of military personnel to 8,500. The principle of two independent intervention forces – civilian and military –
23280-421: The disengagement of forces. The contingent soldiers totaled 1,869. They came from South Africa, Uruguay, Morocco, Senegal and Tunisia. Guard units protected MONUC installations in Kinshasa , Kananga , Kisangani , Kalemie, Goma , and Mbandaka. A Uruguayan riverine unit and a South African air medical evacuation team were also deployed. The deployed troops were only to protect the sites against looting and theft,
23474-597: The district level. The Rwanda Decentralisation Strategic Framework developed by the Ministry of Local Government assigns to provinces the responsibility for "coordinating governance issues in the Province, as well as monitoring and evaluation". Each province is headed by a governor, appointed by the president and approved by the Senate. The districts are responsible for coordinating public service delivery and economic development. They are divided into sectors, which are responsible for
23668-510: The east of the country. Rwanda was ranked 104th in the Global Innovation Index in 2024. The largest radio and television stations are state-run, and the majority of newspapers are owned by the government. Most Rwandans have access to radio; during the 1994 genocide, the radio station Radio Télévision Libre des Mille Collines broadcast across the country, and helped to fuel the killings through anti-Tutsi propaganda. As of 2015 ,
23862-527: The eastern border with Tanzania. The Nyabarongo-Kagera eventually drains into Lake Victoria , and its source in Nyungwe Forest is a contender for the as-yet undetermined overall source of the Nile . Rwanda has many lakes, the largest being Lake Kivu . This lake occupies the floor of the Albertine Rift along most of the length of Rwanda's western border, and with a maximum depth of 480 metres (1,575 ft), it
24056-491: The end of 5 November, over 150 civilians had been killed in Kiwanja in what has since been dubbed the Kiwanja Massacre. A UN base was situated less than 1 mi (1.6 km) from Kiwanja and over 100 Indian peacekeepers were present at the time of the attacks but the forces lacked basic intelligence capabilities – no one in the base spoke the necessary languages, as their interpreter had been reassigned without replacement
24250-643: The exclusive sense for acronym and its earliest citation was from 1943. In early December 2010, Duke University researcher Stephen Goranson published a citation for acronym to the American Dialect Society e-mail discussion list which refers to PGN being pronounced "pee-gee-enn", antedating English language usage of the word to 1940. Linguist Ben Zimmer then mentioned this citation in his December 16, 2010 " On Language " column about acronyms in The New York Times Magazine . By 2011,
24444-544: The fifth-cleanest out of 47 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa and 55th-cleanest out of 175 in the world. The constitution provides for an ombudsman , whose duties include prevention and fighting of corruption. Public officials (including the president) are required by the constitution to declare their wealth to the ombudsman and to the public; those who do not comply are suspended from office. Despite this, Human Rights Watch notes extensive political repression throughout
24638-763: The final word if spelled out in full. A classic example is "Member of Parliament", which in plural is "Members of Parliament". It is possible then to abbreviate this as "M's P", which was fairly common in mid-twentieth-century Australian news writing (or similar ), and used by former Australian Prime Minister Ben Chifley . This usage is less common than forms with "s" at the end, such as "MPs", and may appear dated or pedantic. In common usage, therefore, "weapons of mass destruction" becomes "WMDs", "prisoners of war" becomes "POWs", and "runs batted in" becomes "RBIs". Abbreviations that come from single, rather than multiple, words – such as "TV" ("television") – are usually pluralized without apostrophes ("two TVs"); most writers feel that
24832-458: The first letter of acronyms, reserving all-caps styling for initialisms, writing the pronounced acronyms "Nato" and "Aids" in mixed case, but the initialisms "USA" and "FBI" in all caps. For example, this is the style used in The Guardian , and BBC News typically edits to this style (though its official style guide, dating from 2003, still recommends all-caps ). The logic of this style is that
25026-415: The force had neither the mandate nor the strength to protect the civilian population, or even to extract MONUC personnel. Following UNSCR 1355 , the military observers, within their capacities, could also contribute to the voluntary disarmament, demobilization, repatriation and reintegration process of the armed groups. With Security Council Resolution 1376 , the Security Council launched the third phase of
25220-407: The formation of an alliance with the king, beginning the colonial era. The Germans did not significantly alter the social structure of the country, but exerted influence by supporting the king and the existing hierarchy, and delegating power to local chiefs. Belgian forces invaded Rwanda and Burundi in 1916, during World War I , and later, in 1922, they started to rule both Rwanda and Burundi as
25414-484: The former colonial power. Under the RPF government, however, Rwanda has sought closer ties with neighbouring countries in the East African Community and with the English-speaking world. Diplomatic relations with France were suspended in 2006 following the indictment of Rwandan officials by a French judge, and despite their restoration in 2010, as of 2015 relations between the countries remain strained. Relations with
25608-474: The government are widely available in Kigali. Restrictions were increased in the run-up to the Rwandan presidential election of 2010, with two independent newspapers, Umuseso and Umuvugizi , being suspended for six months by the High Media Council . The country's oldest telecommunications group, Rwandatel , went into liquidation in 2011, having been 80% owned by Libyan company LAP Green . The company
25802-514: The government has initiated a programme to develop a full service. The Ministry of Infrastructure is also investigating the feasibility of linking Rwanda to Lake Victoria via shipping on the Akagera River . As of 2015 , the National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda estimated Rwanda's population to be 11,262,564, while the projection for 2022 was 13,246,394. The 2012 census recorded
25996-459: The government installed diesel generators north of Kigali; by 2006 these were providing 56% of the country's electricity, but were very costly. The government enacted a number of measures to alleviate this problem, including rehabilitating the Rugezi wetlands, which supply water to Burera and Ruhondo and investing in a scheme to extract methane gas from Lake Kivu, expected in its first phase to increase
26190-405: The industry. The industrial sector is small, contributing 14.8% of GDP in 2014. Products manufactured include cement, agricultural products, small-scale beverages, soap, furniture, shoes, plastic goods, textiles and cigarettes. Rwanda's mining industry is an important contributor, generating US$ 93 million in 2008. Minerals mined include cassiterite , wolframite , gold, and coltan , which
26384-435: The king". In English, abbreviations have previously been marked by a wide variety of punctuation . Obsolete forms include using an overbar or colon to show the ellipsis of letters following the initial part. The forward slash is still common in many dialects for some fixed expressions—such as in w/ for "with" or A/C for " air conditioning "—while only infrequently being used to abbreviate new terms. The apostrophe
26578-494: The kingdom west and north, and initiated administrative reforms; these included ubuhake , in which Tutsi patrons ceded cattle, and therefore privileged status, to Hutu or Tutsi clients in exchange for economic and personal service, and uburetwa , a corvée system in which Hutu were forced to work for Tutsi chiefs. Rwabugiri's changes caused a rift to grow between the Hutu and Tutsi populations. The Twa were better off than in pre-Kingdom days, with some becoming dancers in
26772-486: The label "usage problem". However, many English language dictionaries, such as the Collins COBUILD Advanced Dictionary , Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary , Macmillan Dictionary , Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English , New Oxford American Dictionary , Webster's New World Dictionary , and Lexico from Oxford University Press do not acknowledge such a sense. Most of
26966-836: The language to changing circumstances. In this view, the modern practice is just the "proper" English of the current generation of speakers, much like the earlier abbreviation of corporation names on ticker tape or newspapers. Exact pronunciation of "word acronyms" (those pronounced as words rather than sounded out as individual letters) often vary by speaker population. These may be regional, occupational, or generational differences, or simply personal preference. For instance, there have been decades of online debate about how to pronounce GIF ( / ɡ ɪ f / or / dʒ ɪ f / ) and BIOS ( / ˈ b aɪ oʊ s / , / ˈ b aɪ oʊ z / , or / ˈ b aɪ ɒ s / ). Similarly, some letter-by-letter initialisms may become word acronyms over time, especially in combining forms: IP for Internet Protocol
27160-672: The launching of the EU military operation, EUFOR RD Congo , and appointed Lieutenant General Karlheinz Viereck (Germany) Operation Commander and Major General Christian Damay (France) EU Force Commander. The Operational Headquarters was the German-nominated Armed Forces Operational Command – Einsatzführungskommando – at Potsdam , Germany. The mission was tasked with: This mission came to an end on 30 November 2006. In May 2007, India announced that it would be sending an additional 70 Indian Air Force personnel to join
27354-609: The lowest in international measurements of government transparency, civil liberties and quality of life. The population is young and predominantly rural; Rwanda has one of the youngest populations in the world. Rwandans are drawn from just one cultural and linguistic group, the Banyarwanda . However, within this group there are three subgroups: the Hutu , Tutsi and Twa . The Twa are a forest-dwelling pygmy people and are often considered descendants of Rwanda's earliest inhabitants. Christianity
27548-668: The major Congo and Nile drainage basins runs from north to south through Rwanda, with around 80% of the country's area draining into the Nile and 20% into the Congo via the Rusizi River and Lake Tanganyika . The country's longest river is the Nyabarongo , which rises in the south-west, flows north, east, and southeast before merging with the Ruvubu to form the Kagera ; the Kagera then flows due north along
27742-459: The major cities. There are a smaller number of large buses, which operate a scheduled service around the country. The principal private hire vehicle is the motorcycle taxi ; in 2013 there were 9,609 registered motorcycle taxis in Rwanda, compared with just 579 taxicabs . Coach services are available to various destinations in neighbouring countries. The country has an international airport at Kigali that serves several international destinations,
27936-439: The mid-1980s, farm sizes and food production have been decreasing, due in part to the resettlement of displaced people. Despite Rwanda's fertile ecosystem, food production often does not keep pace with population growth, and food imports are required. However, in recent years with the growth of agriculture, the situation has improved. Subsistence crops grown in the country include matoke (green bananas), which occupy more than
28130-684: The middle of sentences for proper nouns; when following the AMA Manual of Style , this would instead be rendered as "the onset of congestive heart failure (CHF)". Rwanda in Africa (light blue) Rwanda , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of East Africa , where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located
28324-514: The military observers could fulfill their mission in regards with the disengagement of forces and the withdrawal of some of the Rwandan and Ugandan forces . In March 2001, the first Uruguayan guard unit arrived in Kalemie . The force was deployed in four sectors at Kananga , Kisangani , Kalemie and Mbandaka . In July 2001, the force strength was of 2,366 soldiers, including 363 military observers distributed across 22 cities, and 28 teams monitoring
28518-463: The more general "x" can be used to replace an unspecified number of letters. Examples include "Crxn" for "crystallization" and the series familiar to physicians for history , diagnosis , and treatment ("hx", "dx", "tx"). Terms relating to a command structure may also sometimes use this formatting, for example gold, silver, and bronze levels of command in UK policing being referred to as Gx, Sx, and Bx. There
28712-477: The most recent survey in 2019/20, 48.8% of the population continues to be affected by multidimensional poverty and an additional 22.7% vulnerable to it. Major export markets include China, Germany, and the United States. The economy is managed by the central National Bank of Rwanda and the currency is the Rwandan franc ; in December 2023, the exchange rate was 1250 francs to one United States dollar. Rwanda joined
28906-531: The most recent survey in 2019/20, 48.8% of the population is affected by multidimensional poverty and an additional 22.7% vulnerable to it. The country is a member of the African Union , the United Nations , the Commonwealth of Nations (one of few member states that does not have any historical links with the British Empire ), COMESA , OIF and the East African Community . Modern human settlement of what
29100-604: The national budget. This funding, along with donor support, caused a rapid increase in access to safe water; in 2015, 74% of the population had access to safe water, up from about 55% in 2005; the government has committed to increasing this to 100% by 2017. The country's water infrastructure consists of urban and rural systems that deliver water to the public, mainly through standpipes in rural areas and private connections in urban areas. In areas not served by these systems, hand pumps and managed springs are used. Despite rainfall exceeding 750 millimetres (30 in) annually in most of
29294-402: The nature of the Bantu migrations; one theory is that the first settlers were Hutu , while the Tutsi migrated later to form a distinct racial group, possibly of Nilo-hamitic origin. An alternative theory is that the migration was slow and steady, with incoming groups integrating into rather than conquering the existing society. Under this theory, the Hutu and Tutsi distinction arose later and
29488-406: The necessity of engaging the rebels, stating that "...[the UN] can't allow population centres to be threatened... [the UN] had to engage." Indian Army personnel were asked to deploy themselves from Goma to adjoining North Kivu province, after the Uruguayan battalion deployed in the region fled. However, after that several Uruguayan battalions were playing a crucial role in the buffer zone between
29682-431: The northern part) as a UN trust territory after the Second World War , with a mandate to oversee eventual independence . Tensions escalated between the Tutsi, who favoured early independence, and the Hutu emancipation movement, culminating in the 1959 Rwandan Revolution : Hutu activists began killing Tutsi and destroying their houses, forcing more than 100,000 people to seek refuge in neighbouring countries. In 1961,
29876-407: The number of 79 and they were spread over the whole territory of DRC. Their mission was to liaise with all the warring factions, give a technical assistance and prepare the deployment of military observers. On 24 February 2000 with the resolution 1291, the UN Security Council authorized the deployment of a maximum of 5537 military personnel in the DRC, including 500 military observers. On 4 April 2000
30070-435: The numbers of each. Production systems are mostly traditional, although there are a few intensive dairy farms around Kigali. Shortages of land and water, insufficient and poor-quality feed, and regular disease epidemics with insufficient veterinary services are major constraints that restrict output. Fishing takes place on the country's lakes, but stocks are very depleted, and live fish are being imported in an attempt to revive
30264-471: The old system and the genocide. The previous structure of twelve provinces associated with the largest cities was replaced with five provinces based primarily on geography. These are Northern Province , Southern Province , Eastern Province , Western Province , and the Municipality of Kigali in the centre. The five provinces act as intermediaries between the national government and their constituent districts to ensure that national policies are implemented at
30458-539: The orders of the interim government. Many Twa were also killed, despite not being directly targeted. The Tutsi RPF restarted their offensive, and took control of the country methodically, gaining control of the whole country by mid-July. The international response to the genocide was limited, with major powers reluctant to strengthen the already overstretched UN peacekeeping force . When the RPF took over, approximately two million Hutu fled to neighbouring countries , in particular Zaïre , fearing reprisals; additionally,
30652-796: The peace process of the Second Congo War , though much of its focus subsequently turned to the Ituri conflict , the Kivu conflict and the Dongo conflict . The mission was known as the United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo or MONUC , an acronym of its French name Mission de l'Organisation des Nations Unies en République démocratique du Congo , until 2010 . The following nations (in alphabetical order) have contributed with military personnel: Bangladesh , Belgium , Benin , Bolivia , Bosnia and Herzegovina , Brazil , Burkina Faso , Cameroon , Canada , China , Czech Republic , Egypt , France , Ghana , Guatemala , India , Indonesia , Ireland , Ivory Coast , Jordan , Kenya , Malawi , Malaysia , Mali , Mongolia , Morocco , Nepal ,
30846-664: The plural of 'pages', or mss. for manuscripts . The most common capitalization scheme seen with acronyms is all-uppercase ( all caps ). Small caps are sometimes used to make the run of capital letters seem less jarring to the reader. For example, the style of some American publications, including the Atlantic Monthly and USA Today , is to use small caps for acronyms longer than three letters; thus "U.S." and " FDR " in normal caps, but " nato " in small caps. The acronyms " AD " and " BC " are often smallcapped as well, as in: "From 4004 bc to ad 525 ". Where an acronym has linguistically taken on an identity as regular word,
31040-404: The population in 2009, the Tutsi 15% and Twa 1%. The Twa are a pygmy people who descend from Rwanda's earliest inhabitants, but scholars do not agree on the origins of and differences between the Hutu and Tutsi. Anthropologist Jean Hiernaux contends that the Tutsi are a separate race, with a tendency towards "long and narrow heads, faces and noses"; others, such as Villia Jefremovas, believe there
31234-413: The population is drawn from just one cultural and linguistic group, the Banyarwanda ; this contrasts with most modern African states, whose borders were drawn by colonial powers and did not correspond to ethnic boundaries or pre-colonial kingdoms. Within the Banyarwanda people, there are three separate groups, the Hutu, Tutsi and Twa. The CIA World Factbook gives estimates that the Hutu made up 84% of
31428-433: The poverty rate reduced from 57% to 45%, while life expectancy rose from 46.6 years in 2000 to 65.4 years in 2021. In 2009, Rwanda joined the Commonwealth of Nations , although the country was never part of the British Empire . Rwanda is a de facto one-party state ruled by the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) and its leader Paul Kagame continuously since the end of the civil war in 1994. Although Rwanda
31622-483: The pronunciation is reflected graphically by the capitalization scheme. However, it conflicts with conventional English usage of first-letter upper-casing as a marker of proper names in many cases; e.g. AIDS stands for acquired immuno-deficiency syndrome which is not a proper name, while Aids is in the style of one. Some style manuals also base the letters' case on their number. The New York Times , for example, keeps "NATO" in all capitals (while several guides in
31816-607: The publication of the 3rd edition of the Oxford English Dictionary added the expansive sense to its entry for acronym and included the 1940 citation. As the Oxford English Dictionary structures the senses in order of chronological development, it now gives the "initialism" sense first. English language usage and style guides which have entries for acronym generally criticize the usage that refers to forms that are not pronounceable words. Fowler's Dictionary of Modern English Usage says that acronym "denotes abbreviations formed from initial letters of other words and pronounced as
32010-532: The remaining animals were poisoned by cattle herders. In June 2015, two South African parks donated seven lions to Akagera National Park , reestablishing a lion population in Rwanda. The lions were held initially in a fenced-off area of the park, and then collared and released into the wild a month later. Eighteen endangered black rhinos were brought to Rwanda in 2017 from South Africa. After positive results, five more black rhinos were delivered to Akagera National Park from zoos all over Europe in 2019. Similarly,
32204-425: The retreating government soldiers and the advancing rebels. On 29 October 2008, a French request for an EU reinforcement of 1,500 troops was refused by several countries and appeared unlikely to materialize; however, the UN forces stated they would act to prevent takeovers of population centres. In November 2008, India announced that it would be sending the 3rd battalion of the 3rd Gorkha Rifles regiment to replace
32398-616: The return of the remains, to facilitate humanitarian assistance and to assist the Facilitator of the National Dialogue. Acting under Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter , the UN Security Council authorized MONUC to take the necessary action, in the areas of deployment of its infantry battalions, to protect UN personnel, facilities, installations and equipment, ensure the security and freedom of movement of its personnel, and to protect civilians under imminent threat of physical violence. In December 2000 there were 224 military personnel deployed, including 148 observers in thirteen points around
32592-418: The royal court, but their numbers continued to decline. The Berlin Conference of 1884 assigned the territory to the German Empire , who declared it to be part of German East Africa . In 1894, explorer Gustav Adolf von Götzen was the first European to cross the entire territory of Rwanda; he crossed from the south-east to Lake Kivu and met the king. In 1897, Germany established a presence in Rwanda with
32786-400: The same month an observer died in a mine explosion. In May 2003 two military observers were savagely killed by a militia. The withdrawal of 7,000 Ugandan troops in April 2003 led to a deteriorating security situation in the Ituri Province, endangering the peace process. The UN Secretary General Kofi Annan called for establishing and deploying a temporary multi-national force to the area until
32980-532: The security of humanitarian workers, a foreign journalist, and a group of military observers, rather than protecting the civilian population." Acronym An acronym is a type of abbreviation consisting of a phrase whose only pronounced elements are the initial letters or initial sounds of words inside that phrase. Acronyms are often spelled with the initial letter of each word in all caps with no punctuation . For some, an initialism or alphabetism , connotes this general meaning, and an acronym
33174-470: The sides of railroad cars (e.g., "Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad" → "RF&P"); on the sides of barrels and crates; and on ticker tape and newspaper stock listings (e.g. American Telephone and Telegraph Company → AT&T). Some well-known commercial examples dating from the 1890s through 1920s include " Nabisco " ("National Biscuit Company"), " Esso " (from "S.O.", from " Standard Oil "), and " Sunoco " ("Sun Oil Company"). Another field for
33368-521: The state-run Radio Rwanda was the largest station and the main source of news throughout the country. Television access is limited, with most homes not having their own set. The government rolled out digital television in 2014, and a year later there were seven national stations operating, up from just one in the pre-2014 analogue era. The press is tightly restricted, and newspapers routinely self-censor to avoid government reprisals. Nonetheless, publications in Kinyarwanda, English, and French critical of
33562-453: The suddenly pro-Hutu Belgians held a referendum in which the country voted to abolish the monarchy. Rwanda was separated from Burundi and gained independence on 1 July 1962, which is commemorated as Independence Day, a national holiday. Cycles of violence followed, with exiled Tutsi attacking from neighbouring countries and the Hutu retaliating with large-scale slaughter and repression of the Tutsi. In 1973, Juvénal Habyarimana took power in
33756-409: The term acronym only for forms pronounced as a word, and using initialism or abbreviation for those that are not. Some sources acknowledge the usage, but vary in whether they criticize or forbid it, allow it without comment, or explicitly advocate it. Some mainstream English dictionaries from across the English-speaking world affirm a sense of acronym which does not require being pronounced as
33950-502: The terms as mutually exclusive. Other guides outright deny any legitimacy to the usage: Bryson's Dictionary of Troublesome Words says "Abbreviations that are not pronounced as words (IBM, ABC, NFL) are not acronyms; they are just abbreviations." Garner's Modern American Usage says "An acronym is made from the first letters or parts of a compound term. It's read or spoken as a single word, not letter by letter." The New York Times Manual of Style and Usage says "Unless pronounced as
34144-435: The town but a speedy counter-attack returned control to the CNDP less than 24-hours later. After the town was retaken, CNDP forces under the command of Bosco Ntaganda combed through Kiwanja, searching out boys and men – who they accused of collaborating with the Mai Mai – and executing them on the spot. Older members of the community, both men and women, were also murdered and a large number of women were raped and assaulted. By
34338-430: The twenty-first century. The trend among dictionary editors appears to be towards including a sense defining acronym as initialism : the Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary added such a sense in its 11th edition in 2003, and both the Oxford English Dictionary and The American Heritage Dictionary added such senses in their 2011 editions. The 1989 edition of the Oxford English Dictionary only included
34532-468: The wake of New Imperialism , promoted Tutsi supremacy, considering the Hutu and Tutsi different races . In 1935, Belgium introduced an identity card system, which labelled each individual as either Tutsi, Hutu, Twa or Naturalised. While it had been previously possible for particularly wealthy Hutu to become honorary Tutsi, the identity cards prevented any further movement between the classes. Belgium continued to rule Ruanda-Urundi (of which Rwanda formed
34726-411: The weakened MONUC mission could be reinforced. In his second special report to the Security Council, the UN Secretary General proposed a reorientation of MONUC missions: to provide support to the transition and to maintain security in key areas of the country. Accordingly, he proposed the creation of a brigade in Ituri to support the peace process. On 30 May 2003, UNSCR 1493 authorized the deployment of
34920-513: The west and northwest of the country receiving more precipitation annually than the east and southeast. Global warming has caused a change in the pattern of the rainy seasons. According to a report by the Strategic Foresight Group, change in climate has reduced the number of rainy days experienced during a year, but has also caused an increase in frequency of torrential rains. Both changes have caused difficulty for farmers, decreasing their productivity. Strategic Foresight also characterise Rwanda as
35114-412: The white rhino population is growing in Rwanda. In 2021, Rwanda received 30 white rhinos from South Africa with the goal of Akagera being a safe breeding ground for the near-threatened species. There are 670 bird species in Rwanda , with variation between the east and the west. Nyungwe Forest, in the west, has 280 recorded species, of which 26 are endemic to the Albertine Rift; endemic species include
35308-536: The whole range of linguistic registers is relatively new in most languages, becoming increasingly evident since the mid-twentieth century. As literacy spread and technology produced a constant stream of new and complex terms, abbreviations became increasingly convenient. The Oxford English Dictionary ( OED ) records the first printed use of the word initialism as occurring in 1899, but it did not come into general use until 1965, well after acronym had become common. In English, acronyms pronounced as words may be
35502-425: The word " an achro nym ", which is a type of misnomer. Words derived from an acronym by affixing are typically expressed in mixed case, so the root acronym is clear. For example, "pre-WWII politics", "post-NATO world", " DNase ". In some cases a derived acronym may also be expressed in mixed case. For example, " messenger RNA " and " transfer RNA " become "mRNA" and "tRNA". Some publications choose to capitalize only
35696-492: The year. There are some temperature variations across the country; the mountainous west and north are generally cooler than the lower-lying east. There are two rainy seasons in the year; the first runs from February to June and the second from September to December. These are separated by two dry seasons : the major one from June to September, during which there is often no rain at all, and a shorter and less severe one from December to February. Rainfall varies geographically, with
35890-531: Was assassinated in April 1994. Social tensions erupted in the Rwandan genocide that spanned one hundred days. The RPF ended the genocide with a military victory in July 1994. Rwanda has been governed by the RPF as a de facto one-party state since 1994 with former commander Paul Kagame as President since 2000. The country has been governed by a series of centralized authoritarian governments since precolonial times. Although Rwanda has low levels of corruption compared with neighbouring countries, it ranks among
36084-427: Was mountain gorilla tracking, in the Volcanoes National Park; Rwanda is one of only three countries in which mountain gorillas can be visited safely; the gorillas attract thousands of visitors per year, who are prepared to pay high prices for permits. Other attractions include Nyungwe Forest, home to chimpanzees, Ruwenzori colobus and other primates, the resorts of Lake Kivu, and Akagera, a small savanna reserve in
36278-424: Was a class distinction rather than a racial one. The earliest form of social organisation in the area was the clan ( ubwoko ). The clans were not limited to genealogical lineages or geographical area, and most included Hutu, Tutsi, and Twa. From the 15th century, the clans began to merge into kingdoms. One kingdom, under King Gihanga, managed to incorporate several of its close neighbor territories establishing
36472-487: Was accused of having ordered the killing of the peacekeepers in February 2005 and of orchestrating continuous insecurity in the area. On 10 February 2006, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for Lubanga for the war crime of "conscripting and enlisting children under the age of fifteen years and using them to participate actively in hostilities." The Congolese national authorities transferred Lubanga to ICC custody on 17 March 2006. On 1 March 2005,
36666-477: Was acquired in 2013 by Liquid Telecom , a company providing telecommunications and fibre optic networks across eastern and southern Africa. As of 2015 , Liquid Telecom provides landline service to 30,968 subscribers, with mobile operator MTN Rwanda serving an additional 15,497 fixed line subscribers. Landlines are mostly used by government institutions, banks, NGOs and embassies, with private subscription levels low. As of 2015 , mobile phone penetration in
36860-400: Was also added. The operation called Operation Artemis was launched on 12 June and the IMEF completed its deployment in the following three weeks. The force was successful in stabilising the situation in Bunia and enforcing the UN presence in the DRC. In September 2003, responsibility for the security of the region was handed over to the MONUC mission. Growing military conflict in DRC caused
37054-399: Was also approved. MONUC was tasked to support the voluntary disarmament, demobilization, repatriation, reintegration and resettlement (DDRRR) process, without the use of force. Numerous DDRRR operations in collaboration with the civilian component were conducted in the beginning of 2003. Before the start of the transition, UN soldiers were deployed along the front lines. A vast redeployment to
37248-511: Was done with a full space between every full word (e.g. A. D. , i. e. , and e. g. for " Anno Domini ", " id est ", and " exempli gratia "). This even included punctuation after both Roman and Arabic numerals to indicate their use in place of the full names of each number (e.g. LII. or 52. in place of "fifty-two" and "1/4." or "1./4." to indicate "one-fourth"). Both conventions have fallen out of common use in all dialects of English, except in places where an Arabic decimal includes
37442-449: Was little to no naming , conscious attention, or systematic analysis until relatively recent times. Like retronymy, it became much more common in the twentieth century than it had formerly been. Ancient examples of acronymy (before the term "acronym" was invented) include the following: During the mid- to late nineteenth century, acronyms became a trend among American and European businessmen: abbreviating corporation names, such as on
37636-407: Was occupied by rebel general Laurent Nkunda . A military observer was killed. The 1,000 MONUC troops could only protect their own installations. Demonstrations were held all over the country and UN troops opened fire on looters in Kinshasa. MONUC soldiers were again targeted by Ituri militia at the end of 2004. Though the Secretary General had asked for an increase of 13,100 soldiers, in October 2004
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