Rwamagana remembers youth killed in Genocide

Hundreds of mourners walked over five kilometers in Rwamagana town in honour of the youth who perished in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. The walk, that took place on Monday amid drizzles, was jointly organised by Miss Rwanda 2014, Colombe Akiwacu and Unity Family. Unity Family is an organisation of young Genocide survivors based in Rwamagana District. The event, that attracted hundreds of youths was characterised by testimonies from survivors, including chilling tales of how children were executed during the Genocide. Juliette Nyinaumunu, who was seven years old then, told the gathering of how she witnessed horrific scenes of children being hacked to death. “It is by God’s mercy that I survived because what I saw was horrific. I saw fellow children being butchered, smashed against walls, while others were slaughtered like chicken. Babies were grabbed from their mothers’ backs and hacked to death,” she said amid tears. Miss Rwanda urged the youth to be patriotic and work toward a better Rwanda. “I call upon the youth to love their country and remain united. If we uphold unity, there is no doubt we can achieve a lot,” she said. “It took years to plan the Genocide. It may take us the same time or even more to transform some of the poisoned minds,” she said. MP Constance Rwaka Mukayuhi urged the youth to shun anything that may lead to a repeat of of the country’s dark past. “We should shun unnecessary differences. Youth should be guided by values that can be cherished and passed on to the future generations,” she said. Jean-Damascène Rwasamirira, who lost wife and most of his children during the Genocide, said the number of youth killed was still difficult to establish. “An unspecified number of children were mercilessly killed in this district. It is very difficult to ascertain the exact number. Most of them were dumped in pit latrines and were never retrieved,” he said. Over 80,000 Tutsi were killed in Rwamagana alone during the Genocide.

National

Rwamagana remembers youth killed in Genocide