Coalition for the Defence of the Republic



The Coalition for the Defence of the Republic (French: Coalition pour la Défense de la République, CDR) was a Rwandan far-right Hutu Power political party that took a major role in inciting the 1994 Rwandan Genocide. It was founded by leading Hutu supremacist Hassan Ngeze, who also served as one of the group's leaders during the genocide.

The CDR was founded in 1992 and initially led by Martin Bucyana until his assassination on 22 February 1994. The party was allied with the ruling National Republican Movement for Democracy and Development (MRNDD), and used the slogan "Mube maso" ("Watch out!"), which meant that Hutus should beware or the Tutsis would rule them as they had in the past. Unlike the MRNDD, the CDR did not agree to the Arusha Accords and Statement of Ethics. It was therefore shut out of the Broad-Based Transitional Government. Several important members of the CDR, including Jean-Bosco Barayagwiza and Ferdinand Nahimana, were convicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda for genocide, direct and public incitement to commit genocide, conspiracy to commit genocide, and other crimes against humanity. The CDR created the Impuzamugambi ("Those who have the same goal") militia, which took part in the killings.