Grégoire Kayibanda Overthrown in Military Coup; Juvénal Habyarimana Becomes President

On July 5, 1973, Grégoire Kayibanda, Rwanda’s first elected president, was overthrown in a military coup d'état led by Major General Juvénal Habyarimana, who was then serving as Minister of Defense and head of the national army. This bloodless coup marked a significant political shift in Rwanda, bringing an end to Kayibanda’s increasingly unpopular regime, which had been characterized by ethnic tensions, political repression, and economic struggles. Following the coup, Habyarimana declared himself President, becoming Rwanda’s third head of state. He quickly dissolved all existing political parties and established a one-party system under the newly formed National Revolutionary Movement for Development (MRND). Habyarimana’s rise to power shifted political dominance to northern Hutu elites, marginalizing Kayibanda’s southern Hutu faction, which had held power since Rwanda’s independence in 1962. The coup also led to the arrest of Kayibanda and many of his supporters. Kayibanda was later placed under house arrest, where he died in 1976 under suspicious circumstances, reportedly from starvation. Although Habyarimana’s regime initially brought a degree of political stability, it continued the exclusion of Tutsis from political life and education, further entrenching ethnic divisions in the country. Juvénal Habyarimana ruled Rwanda for 21 years, maintaining a tight grip on power until his assassination on April 6, 1994, which triggered the Rwandan Genocide. His presidency is often remembered for its authoritarian rule, ethnic favoritism, and the deepening of Hutu-Tutsi divisions, which would culminate in one of the darkest chapters in Rwanda’s history. #RwandaHistory #JuvénalHabyarimana #GrégoireKayibanda #MilitaryCoup #HutuPower #RwandanPolitics #OnePartyState #ColonialLegacy #EastAfrica #MomentsOfLife #MoofLife_Moment #MoofLife