Noël (Noheli) Hitimana (born

Nyamirambo Nyamirambo is a Sectors of Rwanda, sector (umurenge) in Districts of Rwanda, Nyarugenge District, Kigali Province, Rwanda, Kigali Province, Rwanda. Location It is located in the southwest part of the city of Kigali. The coordinates of Nyamirambo ...

) was a presenter (''animateur'') on the Rwandan radio station

Radio Télévision Libre des Mille Collines (RTLM) (), nicknamed "Radio Genocide" or "Hutu Power Radio", was a Rwandan radio station which broadcast from July 8, 1993, to July 31, 1994. It played a significant role in inciting the Rwandan genocide that took place from April to July 1994, ...

(RTLM), which played a significant role in promoting the

genocide against the Tutsi The Rwandan genocide, also known as the genocide against the Tutsi, occurred from 7 April to 19 July 1994 during the Rwandan Civil War. Over a span of around 100 days, members of the Tutsi ethnic group, as well as some moderate Hutu and Gre ...

. Like the station's other broadcasters, Hitimana incited violence against the

Tutsi The Tutsi ( ), also called Watusi, Watutsi or Abatutsi (), are an ethnic group of the African Great Lakes region. They are a Bantu languages, Bantu-speaking ethnic group and the second largest of three main ethnic groups in Rwanda and Burundi ( ...

on the air. Prior to his employment at RTLM, Hitimana worked for

state-owned State ownership, also called public ownership or government ownership, is the ownership of an industry, asset, property, or enterprise by the national government of a country or state, or a public body representing a community, as opposed to ...

Radio Rwanda Radio Rwanda (est. 1961) is a radio station of the Rwandan Broadcasting Agency, a public broadcaster that also owns Rwandan Television, Magic FM, and other public radio stations. Before the attack of the Rwandan Patriotic Front on October 1, 1990 ...

and the ''Rwanda Bureau of Information and Broadcasting'' from the late 1970s until the early 1990s. During that time, he became popular by routinely greeting the different regions and towns of Rwanda in the early morning, while farmers were waking to work in the fields. This broadcast segment emphasized both the importance of hard work, community and the

nationalistic Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation, Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Theory, Id ...

views of the ruling

National Republican Movement for Democracy and Development The National Revolutionary Movement for Development (, MRND) was the ruling political party of Rwanda from 1975 to 1994 under President Juvénal Habyarimana, running with first Vice President Édouard Karemera. From 1978 to 1991, the MRND was th ...

(MRND). Allegedly a

drunk Alcohol intoxication, commonly described in higher doses as drunkenness or inebriation, and known in overdose as alcohol poisoning, is the behavior and physical effects caused by recent consumption of alcohol. The technical term ''intoxication ...

, Hitimana was fired from Radio Rwanda after insulting Rwandan President

Juvénal Habyarimana Juvénal Habyarimana (; ; 8 March 19376 April 1994) was a Rwandan politician and military officer who was the second president of Rwanda, from 1973 until Assassination of Juvénal Habyarimana and Cyprien Ntaryamira, his assassination in 1994. H ...

on-air while intoxicated. Due to his popularity throughout the country, Hitimana was one of the first ''animateurs'' hired by RTLM after its founding on 8 April 1993. He continued his trademark practice of greeting towns and individuals. Once the Genocide against the Tutsi began on 7 April 1994, Hitimana modified this habit into naming exact locations and names of alleged RPF accomplices, inciting targeted violence and often murder on the named individuals by groups such as the

Impuzamugambi The Impuzamugambi (, ''"those with the same goal"'') was a Hutu militia in Rwanda formed in 1992. Together with the Interahamwe militia, which formed earlier and had more members, the Impuzamugambi was responsible for many of the deaths of Tutsis ...

and

Interahamwe The Interahamwe ( or ) is a Hutu paramilitary organization active in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda. The Interahamwe was formed around 1990, as the youth wing of the National Republican Movement for Democracy and Development (M ...

militias. Segments by Hitimana made up about 5% of all RTLM broadcasts. The studio of RTLM was hit by a bomb on 17 April 1994, with Hitimana being seriously injured. Following the attack, his leg was amputated, resulting in Hitimana leaving RTLM for good. Hitimana was interviewed by Yolande Mukagasana for her book The Wounds of Silence Hitimana allegedly died in a Rwandan prison in 2002 due to

disease A disease is a particular abnormal condition that adversely affects the structure or function (biology), function of all or part of an organism and is not immediately due to any external injury. Diseases are often known to be medical condi ...

References

External links

RwandaFile: Transcripts of RTLM broadcasts, including numerous by Noël Hitimana
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hitimana, Noel 1950s births 2002 deaths Rwandan propagandists Rwandan radio presenters Year of birth missing Year of death uncertain Rwandan genocide perpetrators Radio controversies Prisoners who died in Rwandan detention