Emmanuel Habyarimana is a former Rwanda

Rwanda

Rwanda or , officially the Republic of Rwanda , is a country in central and eastern Africa with a population of approximately 11.4 million . Rwanda is located a few degrees south of the Equator, and is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo...

n soldier and politician.

Habyarimana, an ethnic Hutu

Hutu

The Hutu , or Abahutu, are a Central African people, living mainly in Rwanda, Burundi, and eastern DR Congo.-Population statistics:The Hutu are the largest of the three peoples in Burundi and Rwanda; according to the United States Central Intelligence Agency, 84% of Rwandans and 85% of Burundians...

, was a former member of the Rwandan Armed Forces in the Hutu-dominated state of Juvénal Habyarimana

Juvénal Habyarimana

Juvénal Habyarimana was the third President of the Republic of Rwanda, the post he held longer than any other president to date, from 1973 until 1994. During his 20-year rule he favored his own ethnic group, the Hutus, and supported the Hutu majority in neighboring Burundi against the Tutsi...

. Following the successful conquest of Rwanda by the RPF, he joined the newly constituted Rwandan Defence Forces

Rwandan Defence Forces

The Rwanda Defence Forces is the national army of Rwanda. Largely composed of former Rwandan Patriotic Army fighters, it comprises The High Command Council of the Rwanda Defence Forces; the General Staff of the Rwanda Defence Forces; the Rwanda Land Force; the Rwanda Air Force; and ...

 and held the rank of colonel

Colonel

Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...

.

In 1997 he was made Minister of State for Defence in the Rwandan government. In 2000, he became Rwanda's Minister of Defence, and was later sometime afterwards promoted to Brigadier-General. While serving in this position he played a significant part in Rwanda's actions in the Second Congo War

Second Congo War

The Second Congo War, also known as Coltan War and the Great War of Africa, began in August 1998 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo , and officially ended in July 2003 when the Transitional Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo took power; however, hostilities continue to this...

.
In November 2002 he was removed from his post as Minister of Defence, which government spokesperson Joseph Bideri attributed to his "extreme pro-Hutu" views. He was replaced by Marcel Gatsinzi

Marcel Gatsinzi

Marcel Gatsinzi is a Rwandan soldier and politician, and Rwanda's current Minister of Defence.An ethnic Hutu from Butare, Gatsinzi is a former member of the Rwandan Armed Forces , which was the national army prior to the conquest of Rwanda by the RPF following the 1994 Rwandan Genocide...

.

On March 30, 2003 he defected

Defection

In politics, a defector is a person who gives up allegiance to one state or political entity in exchange for allegiance to another. More broadly, it involves abandoning a person, cause or doctrine to whom or to which one is bound by some tie, as of allegiance or duty.This term is also applied,...

 to Uganda

Uganda

Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...

along with several other Rwandan army officers, including Lieutenant Ndayambaje
and Lieutenant Colonel Balthazar Ndengeyinka.