The security situation across the country was generally calm during the 24th commemoration of the Genocide against the Tutsi, Rwanda National Police spokesperson, Commissioner of Police Theos Badege, has said. Badege said the official commemoration week was marked with mass participation in commemorative events and security organs ensured that security was well maintained at all sites. Normally, cases of genocide ideology are widely reported during the commemoration period but, according to the police publicist, these cases keep dropping each year, “an indication that there is hope that at one point there won’t be a single case.” “Most of the cases we recorded were verbal in nature against Genocide survivors and a few physical cases…Some of the cases have been transferred to the prosecution while others are still being investigated,” he said. Without disclosing the number, he said that 90 per cent of the cases they received were utterances, which is different from last year’s situation where most attacks towards survivors were through text messages and social media. Badege however said that there was no case of murder related to genocide ideology reported during the commemoration week. “There were also some physical incidents like hacking of a cow belonging to a Genocide survivor in Bugesera, uprooting plantations of another Genocide survivor in Kayonza and pelting stones to houses of Genocide survivors but these were isolated incidents and those involved were arrested,” he said. Meanwhile, the police spokesperson attributed the continued decrease in cases of genocide ideology to early preparations for commemoration, effective coordination among all stakeholders and the general public attitude where people are standing up against genocide ideology. Badege hailed public partnership in reporting such cases and continued vigilance in fighting genocide ideology and related crimes. editorial@newtimes.co.rw
