The Ministry of Education, on Wednesday, April 26, held an event to remember employees of the former ministries in charge of education who perished during the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. Up to 77 employees of the former Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education, as well as that of higher learning institutions, research, and culture, were killed during the Genocide. ALSO READ: Teachers tipped on overcoming challenges associated with teaching genocide studies Held at the Kigali Genocide Memorial site, the commemoration event was attended by people from the education sector, and government officials, among others. Addressing the participants, the Minister of State in charge of Primary and Secondary Education, Gaspard Twagirayezu, paid tribute to the victims of the Genocide, noting that education was a key tool used in the preparation of the bloody tragedy. “The Genocide against the Tutsi was possible because of the bad leadership that taught and encouraged Rwandans to hate and kill a certain section of people. Education, as you know, was one of the tools that were used to spread Genocide ideology,” he noted. “The Tutsi were dismissed from the national university of Rwanda and secondary schools. Some of these institutions were managed by religious people, yet some of them were in support of such policies. Some even played a role in the killings,” he added. ALSO READ: Teachers tipped on role in documenting genocide history Canon Michel Kayitaba, a survivor of the Genocide and the pogroms that preceded it, gave his testimony during the event. He talked about how as a young boy in the 1950s, was threatened by an attacker who had a machete. Though he did not get killed, his growing up was a tough one characterized by segregation in the education system and at the workplace. He also highlighted that the education system was stained with history lessons that sowed divisionism, an example of which, is that the teachers used to tell students that the Tutsi are not Rwandan, but rather came from a foreign country and wanted to take over Rwanda. In 1994, Kayitaba lost many members of his family, but he managed to survive, thanks to some good Samaritans who took him to their home on the 9th of April and hid him until the tragedy was over. Raphael Nkaka, a lecturer and genocide studies researcher at the University of Rwanda, delivered an informative lecture that featured topics ranging from what Genocide means to how the Genocide against the Tutsi was planned. ALSO READ: Teachers decry lack of books on Genocide studies On a specific note, he talked about the education system prior to 1994, and how it was tainted with discrimination. “Thadee Bagaragaza (former minister of foreign affairs) said there should be 90 per cent Hutus in school, and only 10 percent Tutsis. When he was asked why the Batwa were not included, he responded that they did not love studies,” Nkaka said. Valentine Uwamariya, the Minister of Education called upon the educators, researchers and learned people to play a key role in writing the true history of Rwanda, as well as teaching the younger generation about unity. “As educators, parents, and the general Rwandan community, we have a great responsibility of teaching the children of Rwanda to totally separate themselves from genocide ideology,” she noted.
