Kagame receives Danish Students

KIGALI - President Paul Kagame, yesterday at Village Urugwiro, met with a group of 34 psychology students from the University of Copenhagen, Denmark.The students are in the country on a one-week study tour. The group opted to visit the country during the commemoration week, to better understand the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, particularly the psychological aspects of life after the Genocide. The students discussed with the President a wide range of issues, including unity and reconciliation, as well as, the country’s journey to recovery. Speaking to the media after meeting the President, one of the students, Nina Thorup Dalgard, said that the group travelled to Rwanda to study the reconciliation process, and as psychologists, to experience how the country was recovering. “From a psychological point of view, what has happened in this country, especially the amazing reconciliation process that has been going on in the country, is very impressive and interesting,” she said. Thorup added that they had learned many lessons from their discussios with the President, particularly how Rwandans were able to get back on their feet with determination to rebuild their country. “He told us about his political vision to make everybody a winner and how his major ambition as President is to make people realise that looking at ethnic differences is not constructive in any way,” Thorup said. “You would rather look at a person, not as who they are, but rather what they can contribute towards the development process. To us, this is very important,” she noted. She added that the students were impressed by how everyone had played a role in the reconciliation process, and at the same time, participated fully in the development process. The Minister of Education, Dr. Charles Murigande, who had accompanied the students, said that the group was impressed by Rwanda’s rise from ashes to where it is today and President Kagame gave them an insight into that. “They got a clear image of where the country has come from, where it is today, and where it is going;and they are ready to spread this message to their colleagues back home,” Murigande said. Murigande noted that the students vowed to become “ambassadors” who will send a positive message about Rwanda, having experienced the real picture on the ground. The study tour is aimed at making the Danish students understand conflicts and post-conflict reconciliation, using Rwanda as a case study. They studied the policies, strategies and actions the country has applied. During their stay, the Danish Students visited Ndera Psychiatric Hospital, Gisozi Genocide Memorial Centre, National University of Rwanda (NUR) and also interacted with female Members of Parliament. Ends