The United Nations staff in Rwanda on Wednesday, April 12, remembered former UN staff who were killed during the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, in which more than one million lives were lost. At least 68 people who worked for the different UN agencies in Rwanda were killed in the Genocide. The event, organized as part of the 29th commemoration period, was attended by UN Rwanda staff members, relatives of the fallen UN staff and government officials, members of the diplomat corps and representatives of Genocide survivors' organizations. ALSO READ: 29 years later, Rwanda remembers Officials paid tribute to the Genocide victims, recognized the resilience of the survivors and renewed their calls to fight against the denial of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. “This is an important time for us to be able to come together and pay tribute to the victims of the Genocide, as a shared responsibility for all of us, Rwandans, and non-Rwandans,” the Resident Coordinator of UN Rwanda, Ozonnia Ojielo, said. “This annual commemoration affords us an opportunity to indeed reflect and continue to unite our efforts and renew ourselves to a compass that ensures that ‘Never Again’ shall the world experience such a heinous crime against humanity. “As we look back at the difficult recent history of Rwanda and in particular the history of the Genocide against the Tutsi, it is of paramount importance to sustain the gains that Rwanda has achieved in areas of unity, reconciliation and social cohesion, while striving to do more in these areas, and to fight all trends that deny justice and genocide denial of the genocide against the Tutsi.” Ojielo said there is no stronger message of hope than of what Rwanda has already accomplished. He thanked the country for committing to unity and reconciliation and for leaving no ground to hatred, to divisionism and to hate propaganda, which led to the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. ALSO READ: Kwibuka 29: There is no hiding place from facts of our history – Kagame The Minster of National Unity and Civic Engagement, Jean Damascene Bizimana, called upon the international community to support Rwanda in the conservation of memorial sites in order to preserve the history of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. Bizimana reminded the international community of Callixte Mbarushimana, a former UNDP official who took part in the Genocide against the Tutsi and yet remains at large. Mbarushimana, one of the leaders of the genocidal militia FDLR, contributed to the killing of his colleagues in 1994. “Rwanda will continue to do everything possible, with the support of the international community, to bring to justice genocide fugitives, who live in foreign countries,” he said. The government of Rwanda has issued more than 1,100 arrest warrants for genocide fugitives, Bizimana said, but multiple countries remain unwilling to support its efforts to deliver justice. In particular, he said, no African country has ever tried a genocide suspect. ALSO READ: Resilience and humanity in the face of adversity: Mama Sevota’s story Philbert Gakwenzire, President of Ibuka, an umbrella association of Genocide survivors, said the remembrance time is an occasion for the UN to evaluate its main purpose in maintaining peace and security on the planet and examine its attitude when the Genocide against the Tutsi happened in Rwanda. “We know that the international community, represented by the UN, is not proud of this period. However, we recognize the effort made by the same organization when the irreparable had just been committed,” Gakwenzire said. The establishment of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, he said, was one of the leading actions by the UN in the aftermath of the Genocide. He added that the UN court, which tried genocide masterminds, contributed to the recognition of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi at the international scene. The Genocide commemoration week, also known as Kwibuka week, began on April 7 and will conclude on April 13. However, commemoration activities across the country and abroad will continue for 100 days until July 3, the eve of Liberation Day.
