Lessons Rwanda can share with humanity

THE 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi is a stark reminder of the triumph of virtue over evil. We can say with certainty that the crimes of the 20th century have been unprecedented in the history of mankind. Fewer centuries can claim an incredible level of inhumanity and bloodshed than the 20th century. I am not oblivious of the 100 years’ war, nor am I not cognisant of the 30-year war as well as the Italian and Germany unification wars and several others that blighted Europe in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries. The two World Wars, the Holocaust against the Jews, genocide in Rwanda - one of the fastest in living memory - civil wars and famine, all characterised the blood-filled 20th century. The 21st century ought to pick some crucial lessons from the previous century. For us in Rwanda we have learnt lessons of the yesteryears with the seriousness they deserve. We are aware for instance that mistakes made and crimes committed in the past by those who took charge of the affairs of the state were no doubt monumental. A rethink of the way forward by the Rwandan people was critically important after 1994. But one thing that I find incredibly important is the act of forgiveness that has characterised the Rwandan people. Perhaps we could use the remaining days that will mark the 100 days during which we remember the mayhem that befell our country, to recall a few things about biblical teachings. From my understanding of the Holy Bible, Christ for instance taught that those who ask for forgiveness must also grant it, and enshrined this maxim in the prayer that his disciples repeat each day. The love-one’s neighbour idea, which Jews and Christians espouse to be the core of morality, is unintelligible without the context of mutual forgiveness. The South African retired Archbishop Desmond Tutu, a Nobel Laureate, has perhaps done more than any other public figure to emphasise the necessity for forgiveness in the healing of communities. It will be recalled that Archbishop Tutu was the brain behind the path-breaking Truth and Reconciliation Commission in South Africa and the work of this Commission has already influenced a lot of people around the world especially those interested in thoughts on reconciliation and peace building. Witnesses who were identified as victims of gross human rights violations were invited to give statements about their experiences and some were actually selected for public hearings. Perpetrators of violence could reportedly also give testimony and request amnesty from both civil and criminal prosecution. Rwanda’s post-genocide experience has also influenced and has probably had reasonable impact on societies and countries that have and continue to have conflict. From Liberia, Sierra Leone, Cote d’Ivoire, the new Republic of South Sudan, now enmeshed in internecine conflict, to the embattled Somalia, delegations from these countries have trooped to Rwanda over the last few years in search for the magic bullet for peace and reconciliation. Rwandans have freely shared, in the African spirit of solidarity, their humble experience with their brothers and sisters from across the African continent and beyond. We have learnt in Rwanda that forgiveness is not achieved unilaterally. We have learnt too that it is the result of dialogue, which may be tacit, but which involves reciprocal communication of an extended and delicate kind. The one who forgives for instance goes out to the one who has injured him, and his or her gesture involves a changed state of mind, a reorientation towards the other, and a setting aside of resentment. Such an existential transformation is not always or easily attained and can only be achieved. What seems to be happening is that through the effort of cooperation and sympathy, each person strives to set his or her own interests aside and look on the other side from the posture of the “impartial spectator”. The Rwandan Gacaca semi-traditional courts that have done a commendable job have gone a long way in creating an enabling environment for peace and reconciliation. In the Gacaca proceedings, each party’s narrative was both an account of the injury and an allocation of blame; ideal and reality, exoneration and fault, are all woven together. Forgiveness can be seen in part as an attempt to harmonise the narratives, so that the story comes to an end in a new beginning. But forgiveness can sometimes be hard, and penitence no less so, and that in the political arena, it is not forgiveness but apology that counts. As Rwandans let us learn from the bitter lessons of the past to forgive but not to forget, since it is unique to rational beings and is a gift of freedom. May you all have a renewed spirit of reconciliation and forgiveness? The writer is a consultant and visiting lecturer at the RDF Senior Command and Staff College, Nyakinama

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Lessons Rwanda can share with humanity