Rwandans in Malaysia and South Africa on Wednesday paid homage to the victims and survivors of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.

The Rwandan Community in Malaysia (RCM), comprising mainly university students, together with friends of Rwanda there organised a commemoration event attended by about 200 people.

The event, held at the INTI International University in Malaysia’s capital, Kuala Lumpur, and attended by several officials of the University, started with a Walk to Remember around Nilai District where the campus is located.

It featured a movie about the 1994 Genocide as well as speeches from student representatives, university officials and a representative from the Rwandan High Commission in Singapore, Lucas Murenzi.

The speakers reflected on the causes and scale of the Genocide, the process of healing and reconciliation as well as the various achievements Rwanda has registered in the past 20 years.

Rwanda’s contribution to international peacekeeping missions bent mainly on protecting civilians under threat of mass massacre or genocide was also highlighted.

Meanwhile, at the South African Army Museum in Johannesburg, about 180 Rwandans living in Gauteng, South Africa, together with the Jewish community there also commemorated the 1994 Genocide.

The South African Government was represented by Advocate Lawrence Mushwana, the chairperson of the South African Human Rights Commission.

The event was jointly organised by the Rwandan High Commission in partnership with a Holocaust and Genocide centre supported by the South African Jewish community.

More commemoration events are scheduled to take place in South African cities of Durban and Cape Town, and neighbouring Botswana.