Participants in the 16th cohort of Itorero Indangamirwa on Wednesday, July 22, visited Kiziguro Genocide Memorial in Gatsibo District to honour victims and learn about the history of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi and reflect on Rwanda’s journey of national unity.

The participants said the visit strengthened their resolve to safeguard national unity and confront genocide denial after hearing firsthand testimony from a Genocide survivor.

The visit brought together 771 youth at the memorial, where more than 23,000 victims are laid to rest. The visit was part of the civic education programme they are currently attending at the Rwanda Defence Force Combat Training Centre in Gabiro.

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Jean Nepo Sibomana, a survivor, recounted how years of discrimination, hate ideology and organised violence culminated in the massacre at Kiziguro, where thousands of Tutsi who had sought refuge at a local Catholic parish were killed in April 1994.

Sibomana said that discrimination against Tutsi had become part of everyday life long before the Genocide began. At school, children were counted and separated everyday according to ethnicity.

He recalled being stopped with his father at a roadblock, where they were beaten after identity cards revealed they were Tutsi.

"They called us cockroaches,” he said. "From that day, my father knew there would come a time when we would be killed.”

Sibomana also described how former Murambi mayor Jean-Baptiste Gatete organised Interahamwe militias and spread anti-Tutsi ideology and later oversaw the killings in the area.

He recounted how thousands of Tutsi fled to Kiziguro Catholic Church hoping to find safety, only for Interahamwe to return days later to kill them.

"They entered the church armed with newly distributed machetes and began killing everyone inside. It was one of the most horrifying days of my life,” Sibomana recalled.

"Your own government and your fellow citizens were attacking you, and there was nowhere to turn for help.”

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He survived after escaping from the attackers despite being struck in the leg by an arrow before being hidden overnight by a man who risked his own life to save him.

"The people who killed us were not strangers. They were our neighbours. They were our friends. They were people we knew personally,” he said.

Reflecting on his rescue by the Rwanda Patriotic Army, he added: "For us survivors, Inkotanyi means life.”

‘Facts that cannot be denied’

Shekinah Ishimwe, a 19-year-old student at Middlesex University Dubai, said the visit reinforced the responsibility young people have to preserve the truth about the Genocide and challenge deniers.

"We can see the mass graves, the names and pictures of victims. Those are facts that cannot be denied,” she said.

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She said the survivor’s account also demonstrated how the Genocide was planned and executed.

"When people deny the Genocide, they deny the pain that survivors continue to live with. They should be willing to learn and accept the facts instead of dismissing something that truly happened.”

Linda Amanda Kalinda, 20, a professional medical interpreter and daughter of two genocide survivors, said she arrived at Itorero believing she already understood Rwanda’s history.

"I realised what I knew was basically nothing,” she said.

Listening to Sibomana explain how Tutsi families had already been living in fear years before 1994 gave her a deeper understanding of how the Genocide was systematically prepared, she said.

"I would encourage young people not only to visit this memorial but other memorial sites as well because they help you understand your country, its history and yourself much better,” she said.

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Audric Mupenzi, 19, an economics student at Carleton University in Canada, said hearing directly from a survivor provided a perspective that books alone cannot offer.

"We all know the basic history of the Genocide but hearing it from someone who lived through it makes you understand it much more deeply,” he said.

He said memorial sites provide tangible evidence that should encourage those who deny the Genocide to seek knowledge.

"When you come here, you see the graves and hear testimonies. The facts are in front of us. Those who deny should allow themselves to learn.”

Eric Mahoro, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of National Unity and Civic Engagement, said memorial visits form part of Itorero’s efforts to help young people understand the historical roots of the Genocide against the Tutsi and the importance of safeguarding national unity.

"The Genocide against the Tutsi was rooted in the discrimination introduced during colonial rule and later perpetuated by successive governments,” Mahoro said.

"What we want is for this history to become a lesson that guides young people to make better choices, especially choosing unity.”

Mahoro said memorial visits by trainees also reinforces the values taught during Itorero programme, such as patriotism, integrity and responsible leadership.

"They are the generation that will soon take on many of the responsibilities we hold today,” he said.

"It is therefore essential that they understand our country’s history, what led to the Genocide against the Tutsi, and how Rwanda rebuilt itself so they can continue safeguarding the unity and progress the country has achieved.”