IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/socmed/v222y2019icp171-179.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Suffering of silenced people in northern Rwanda

Author

Listed:
  • Otake, Yuko

Abstract

To contribute to understanding the association between silence and suffering in the context of war and political repression, this study sheds light on the meaning-making process and explores the underlying mechanisms by which silence leads to suffering and how this suffering could be alleviated. The ethnographic research was conducted in 2015–2016, with 43 participants from northern Rwanda, who survived massacres after the 1994 genocide but were prevented from speaking about the experience by political constraints. The findings first describe their suffering, through grief, social isolation and loss of meaning in life and death (expressed as existential questions). Their suffering was worsened by ‘unspeakability’; that is, the political context that prevents victims from speaking freely about their war experience, including discussion of those who killed and those who were killed. Unspeakability exacerbated suffering since participants were obstructed from applying ready narratives (e.g. funerary rituals, traditional reconciliation systems) or constructing their own narratives which could ordinarily help them to process mourning and reconciliation and to make sense of the loss. They selectively employed silence for coping and protection, avoiding speaking about the past to maintain everyday life. However, at the same time, unprocessed mourning remained a serious problem, resulting in mental health problems such as hallucinations of the spirits of the dead; participants expressed a strong need for mourning rituals. Overall, this paper highlights the ways in which the suffering of the silenced population worsens when meaning-making processes are obstructed. To alleviate the suffering, it is essential to secure mourning rituals for all survivors, particularly those who, as part of the defeated group of war, are silenced and marginalized in history.

Suggested Citation

  • Otake, Yuko, 2019. "Suffering of silenced people in northern Rwanda," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 222(C), pages 171-179.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:222:y:2019:i:c:p:171-179
    DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2019.01.005
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S027795361930005X
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.socscimed.2019.01.005?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Lee Ann Fujii, 2010. "Shades of truth and lies: Interpreting testimonies of war and violence," Journal of Peace Research, Peace Research Institute Oslo, vol. 47(2), pages 231-241, March.
    2. Harnisch, Helle & Montgomery, Edith, 2017. "“What kept me going”: A qualitative study of avoidant responses to war-related adversity and perpetration of violence by former forcibly recruited children and youth in the Acholi region of northern U," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 188(C), pages 100-108.
    3. Kaiser, Bonnie N. & Haroz, Emily E. & Kohrt, Brandon A. & Bolton, Paul A. & Bass, Judith K. & Hinton, Devon E., 2015. "“Thinking too much”: A systematic review of a common idiom of distress," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 147(C), pages 170-183.
    4. Brinton Lykes, M., 1994. "Terror, silencing and children: International, multidisciplinary collaboration with Guatemalan Maya communities," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 38(4), pages 543-552, February.
    5. Rutayisire, Théoneste & Richters, Annemiek, 2014. "Everyday suffering outside prison walls: A legacy of community justice in post-genocide Rwanda," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 120(C), pages 413-420.
    6. Akello, Grace & Reis, Ria & Richters, Annemiek, 2010. "Silencing distressed children in the context of war in northern Uganda: An analysis of its dynamics and its health consequences," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 71(2), pages 213-220, July.
    7. Rasmussen, Andrew & Keatley, Eva & Joscelyne, Amy, 2014. "Posttraumatic stress in emergency settings outside North America and Europe: A review of the emic literature," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 109(C), pages 44-54.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Yuko Otake & Fabien Hagenimana, 2021. "Gift economy and well‐being: A mode of economy playing out in recovery from Rwandan tragedies," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(5), pages 930-940, September.
    2. Bonumwezi, Jessica L. & Grapin, Sally L. & Uddin, Monica & Coyle, Samantha & Habintwali, D'Artagnan & Lowe, Sarah R., 2024. "Intergenerational trauma transmission through family psychosocial factors in adult children of Rwandan survivors of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 348(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Panter-Brick, Catherine & Eggerman, Mark, 2018. "The field of medical anthropology in Social Science & Medicine," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 196(C), pages 233-239.
    2. Haroz, E.E. & Ritchey, M. & Bass, J.K. & Kohrt, B.A. & Augustinavicius, J. & Michalopoulos, L. & Burkey, M.D. & Bolton, P., 2017. "How is depression experienced around the world? A systematic review of qualitative literature," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 183(C), pages 151-162.
    3. Sikkema, Kathleen J. & Choi, Karmel W. & Robertson, Corne & Knettel, Brandon A. & Ciya, Nonceba & Knippler, Elizabeth T. & Watt, Melissa H. & Joska, John A., 2018. "Development of a coping intervention to improve traumatic stress and HIV care engagement among South African women with sexual trauma histories," Evaluation and Program Planning, Elsevier, vol. 68(C), pages 148-156.
    4. Jayawickreme, Nuwan & Mootoo, Candace & Fountain, Christine & Rasmussen, Andrew & Jayawickreme, Eranda & Bertuccio, Rebecca F., 2017. "Post-conflict struggles as networks of problems: A network analysis of trauma, daily stressors and psychological distress among Sri Lankan war survivors," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 190(C), pages 119-132.
    5. Mushavi, Rumbidzai C. & Burns, Bridget F.O. & Kakuhikire, Bernard & Owembabazi, Moran & Vořechovská, Dagmar & McDonough, Amy Q. & Cooper-Vince, Christine E. & Baguma, Charles & Rasmussen, Justin D. & , 2020. "“When you have no water, it means you have no peace”: A mixed-methods, whole-population study of water insecurity and depression in rural Uganda," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 245(C).
    6. Jorge Díaz-Esterri & Ángel De-Juanas & Rosa Goig-Martínez & Francisco Javier García-Castilla, 2021. "Inclusive Leisure as a Resource for Socio-Educational Intervention during the COVID-19 Pandemic with Care Leavers," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-13, August.
    7. Checkel, Jeffrey T., 2014. "Mechanisms, process and the study of international institutions," Discussion Papers, Research Unit: Global Governance SP IV 2014-104, WZB Berlin Social Science Center.
    8. Simons, Claudia & Zanker, Franzisca, 2012. "Finding the Cases that Fit: Methodological Challenges in Peace Research," GIGA Working Papers 189, GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies.
    9. Mendenhall, Emily & Bosire, Edna N. & Kim, Andrew Wooyoung & Norris, Shane A., 2019. "Cancer, chemotherapy, and HIV: Living with cancer amidst comorbidity in a South African township," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 237(C), pages 1-1.
    10. Kohrt, Brandon A. & Carruth, Lauren, 2022. "Syndemic effects in complex humanitarian emergencies: A framework for understanding political violence and improving multi-morbidity health outcomes," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 295(C).
    11. Ramos, Amaya Alexandra, 2022. "Interventions and participatory clinical research for the enhancement of health systems interfacing with displaced Afghan women," SocArXiv hysbu, Center for Open Science.
    12. Sarkar, Nandini D.P. & Baingana, Florence & Criel, Bart, 2022. "Integration of perinatal mental health care into district health services in Uganda: Why is it not happening? The Four Domain Integrated Health (4DIH) explanatory framework," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 296(C).
    13. Milena Claudius & Elizabeth N. Shino & Sylvanus Job & Daniel Hofmann & Amber Gayle Thalmayer, 2022. "Still Standing Inside: A Local Idiom Related to Trauma among Namibian Speakers of Khoekhoegowab," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(21), pages 1-26, November.
    14. Slagboom, M. Nienke & Crone, Mathilde R. & Reis, Ria, 2022. "Exploring syndemic vulnerability across generations: A case study of a former fishing village in the Netherlands," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 295(C).
    15. Nathalie E. J. Dijkman & Catrien Bijleveld & Philip Verwimp, 2014. "Sexual Violence in Burundi: Victims, perpetrators, and the role of conflict," HiCN Working Papers 172, Households in Conflict Network.
    16. Thomas Wenzel & Jan Ilhan Kizilhan & Reem Alksiri & Daniela Dörfler & Eva Jana Messerschmidt & Anthony Fu Chen, 2021. "FGM and Restorative Justice—A Challenge for Developing Countries and for Refugee Women," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(17), pages 1-8, August.
    17. Andrea Guariso & Bert Ingelaere & Marijke Verpoorten, 2018. "When Ethnicity Beats Gender: Quotas and Political Representation in Rwanda and Burundi," Development and Change, International Institute of Social Studies, vol. 49(6), pages 1361-1391, November.
    18. Betancourt, Theresa S. & Agnew-Blais, Jessica & Gilman, Stephen E. & Williams, David R. & Ellis, B. Heidi, 2010. "Past horrors, present struggles: The role of stigma in the association between war experiences and psychosocial adjustment among former child soldiers in Sierra Leone," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 70(1), pages 17-26, January.
    19. Gouda, H.N. & Kelly-Hanku, A. & Wilson, L. & Maraga, S. & Riley, I.D., 2016. "“Whenever they cry, I cry with them”: Reciprocal relationships and the role of ethics in a verbal autopsy study in Papua New Guinea," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 163(C), pages 1-9.
    20. Gabriel Fuentes Cordoba, 2021. "Growing up in a civil war and political participation: Evidence from Guatemala," Economics of Transition and Institutional Change, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(2), pages 197-225, April.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:222:y:2019:i:c:p:171-179. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/315/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.