As leaders continue to call on young people to act in the fight against Genocide ideology and denialism, so do youth in Rwanda and the diaspora create initiatives to not only actively play their role but also highlight the country’s progress over the years. Thirty-one years after the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, the fight against denial, minimization, and revisionism remains relevant, especially with extremist views from Western and European countries where perpetrators are still at large. After successfully holding 16 editions of Our Past event, a youth-led initiative tailored to spark conversations about Rwanda’s past and simultaneously educate the youth on the Genocide, the organizers announced plans to take the initiative to European countries. ALSO READ: ‘Our Past’ founder on the role of youth in nation-building The New Times’ Alice Kagina caught up with Christian Intwari, the founder of Our Past Initiative, who shed light on the next steps and the significant relevance during this period. Below are excerpts. What do you observe as outcome of this year’s Our Past edition? We held Our Past event on April 9, at Nyanza Genocide Memorial in Kicukiro District, and the attendance has been increasing over the years. As many people know, last year we had an audience of 6,000 people and this year, the event attracted over 8,000 people. We also had enriched content, it was not too long, but the message was very clear. We had Malaika Uwamahoro as our main actor who played a big part in improving how our content is delivered and the impact it should create. ALSO READ: How young Rwandans should fight Genocide denial The attendance showed us how thirsty young people are to learn about our history and how youth organizations and government institutions need to double their efforts in sharing and educating them about the country’s history and empower them to actively play their part in not only preserving it but also sustaining the development momentum. More than 65 percent of the country’s population is under the age of 30, and we only managed to attract 8,000 of them. This means we need as many events as possible and find different ways to approach them. Another milestone is that we were able to get more partners and successfully covered the event with our budget, and after that, we also held our second Our Past event in Qatar at Georgetown University in partnership with the African Student Association, which includes Rwandans. Tell us more about your next steps in European countries We are organizing our Europe tour, where we are going to have two commemoration events in Rome, Italy. The first one will be held on April 30 at the University of Rome Tor Vergata and the second one at Salesian Pontifical University on May 1, in partnership with Ibuka Italia and Inganji traditional troupe. These events will bring together Rwandans from Rome and Milan. After that, we will head to Paris, France, for an event scheduled for May 4, at Mémorial de la Shoah, a well-known memorial, where we are expecting Rwandans living in Paris and from across France. From there, we will join Rwandan students in Poland who are also organizing a youth commemoration event. We are doing this tour with Malaika Uwamahoro, who is going to present our play Rhymes of Remembrance. We are organizing all these events in collaboration with Ibuka in those respective countries. Why did you choose those three countries? We have Rwandan diaspora in these countries interested in learning about our history, and who are also fighting against misinformation and a force of denialism, hate speech, and anti-Rwanda campaigns we continue to see coming from European countries. Most importantly, we will use this as an opportunity to show them that the country is progressing despite the history we cannot change, expose them to the success stories of our development journey, and invite them not only in the fight but also in the efforts to protect what was achieved by those who came before us and build on it. What’s your main purpose on this tour? The goal is to fight Genocide ideology and its roots. The 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi was planned for years and executed, there were killings in 1959 and the following years, long before 1994. Now, we are facing the last stage of genocide, which is denial, and we can’t just fight as usual when the masterminds are at large in those countries, transmitting hate and ideology to the next generation, our peers. We have to strategically fight this in unity. ALSO READ: First Lady urges youth to be critical thinkers, fight Genocide denialism We believe that through different messages, songs, plays, and poems, it’s going to change how young people are going to fight against this Genocide ideology in the near future. For so many years, these European countries imposed their narrative on us, so it's time we take our narrative to them, and to do it, we have to find them where they are. If we are going to change the narrative that is out there, that is being supported by some westerners and some Genocide apologists and deniers, we need to go where they are and show them the facts, share with them the truth, our truth. That's why I believe we need to do this. This is just the start. Hopefully, we'll be able to reach many countries in the future. Any parting shots? We need the support of young people to join us and learn about our history. We also need the private sector and government institutions, especially those that have youth as part of their mandate, to come on board and support us. Such trips are expensive, but we have to do them.
