Twenty years after the defeat of the genocidal machinery and the fall of the capital Kigali, Rwandans say they look back at the bravery of the then Rwanda Patriotic Army (RPA)/Inkotanyi with a deep sense of admiration and gratitude.

Venuste Nsabimpuhwe, a Genocide survivor who lives in Biti Village, Nyamabuye Sector in Muhanga District, says he will forever remember a particular day in June 1994 when the RPA fighters rescued his family from the ambit of the genocidal army and the interahamwe militia who had arrived in the then Gitarama prefecture in large numbers a few days earlier.

"They are our heroes, our saviours,” the 63-year-old told The New Times in reference to the RPA heroes who turned up in the small town of Muhanga to rescue hundreds of Tutsi and other targeted people from the Theodore Sindikubwabo-led extremist government that had just relocated into the premises of the current Rwanda Institute of Administration and Management in Muhanga.

Today’s liberation day celebrations will be held at Amahoro National Stadium in Kigali, the scene where the RPA provided shelter for hundreds of Tutsi from the machete-wielding killers two decades ago.

The stadium is situated about four kilometres from Parliamentary Buildings in Kimihurura, the base of the 600 gallant RPA fighters who had been dispatched to Kigali from the RPA headquarters in Mulindi, Gicumbi, in late 1993, to provide protection for politicians who had been fronted by the Rwanda Patriotic Front to be part of a broad-based government as per the Arusha Peace Accords.

The peace deal later collapsed when extremists within the ruling MRND party ordered the shooting down of President Juvenal Habyarimana’s plane on the night of April 6, 1994, and a well-planned genocide.

Soon after, government troops attacked RPA’s 3 battalion at Parliamentary Buildings with the latter not only engaging the enemy but also going on to save people and securing some venues that hosted refugees, such as the Amahoro Stadium.

Liberation monument

A liberation monument installed at the Parliamentary Buildings is expected to be unveiled today.

Today’s event at Amahoro is expected to be attended by several foreign dignitaries, including Presidents Yoweri Museveni of Uganda, Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya and Salva Kiir of South Sudan.

The Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, President Paul Kagame, who was the Chairman of the High Command of the RPA during the 1990-1994 Liberation Struggle, is expected to deliver a major national address, reflecting on the country’s dramatic recovery over the last two decades and giving a glimpse into the future.

As part of the ‘Kwibohora20’ activities, the Rwanda Defence Forces (formerly RPA) has joined hands with local communities to construct up to 500 health posts across the country, in keeping with the Force’s community service doctrine. 

The servicemen and women are also carrying out free medical care services targeting the vulnerable, including ailing Genocide survivors.

Christine Tuyisenge, the executive secretary for National Women Council, lauded RPF for not only ushering in a new era of equal opportunity to all Rwandans, but also empowering Rwandan women.

"Previously, women were more or less than household items, without any role in national development. After the Genocide we did not only take part in rebuilding the country but also took up leadership positions thanks to the RPF politics of inclusiveness,” Tuyisenge said.

The Director of Institute of Research and Dialogue for Peace, Prof. Peter Rwanyindo Ruzirabwoba, said: "Under previous governments, Rwandans were oppressed and excluded from affairs of their own country; this government has united Rwandans and rallied them around the national values of dignity and patriotism.”

He said over the last two decades, the country also opened up to the rest of the world, earning memberships in vital groupings such as the East African Community and the Commonwealth.

Ernest Rwamucyo, Rwanda’s High Commissioner to India, in an opinion piece in this paper, wrote: "What was a failed state two decades ago has become a model for successful post-conflict reconstruction.”

He pointed to Rwanda’s average annual GDP growth of 8 per cent over the last decade, adding that the stable macro-economic environment and inflation rate that’s been maintained in single digits for the last 10 years were worth celebrating.

The country aspires to become a middle income economy by the year 2020 and has seen its per capita income triple, from $220 in 2000 to $640 in 2012.

Madeleine Nirere, the chairperson of National Commission for Human Rights, accused the past governments of abusing basic human rights with impunity.

"Children were denied education and pregnant women denied access to health services just because they were Tutsi,” Nirere said.

United and common goal

Today, she said, all Rwandans are one people, with the post-Genocide government having abolished the ethnic-based identity cards and issued a unifying ID, as well as guaranteeing fair competition and meritocracy in all aspects of public life.

"Our Constitution emphasises human rights in more than 35 articles, the death penalty has been abolished and vulnerable households have been empowered through social protection services,” she added.

 Protais Mitali, the president of the Liberal Party, who is also the Minister for Sports and Culture, praised the "evident positive changes” on the political scene, citing freedom to exercise responsible politics, the decentralisation programme and democracy.

"Today, opposition parties are operating freely, and we are happy that for the last 20 years we have registered solid gains in security, economy and political landscape,” Mitali said.

Dr Jean Pierre Dusingizemungu, the head of Ibuka, the umbrella organisation of Genocide survivor associations, commended the RPA for liberating the country and rescuing those who were being hunted down by the killers.

"We have seen liberation in the way we live, in the hope that we now have for the future, in the way the survivors now live together with their former tormentors,” Dr Dusingizemungu said. 

"The government has constructed houses for disadvantaged Genocide survivors and our children have gone to school, we are grateful and are proud of what we have achieved as a people, as a nation.”

After the Genocide, government reintroduced Gacaca courts, a semi-traditional community based justice system, which adjudicated nearly two million Genocide-related cases in 10 years. The courts helped reconcile the victim and the perpetrator.

Senator Chrysologue Karangwa attributed the gains to date to the RPF-led government as well as the people of Rwanda. He said the ruling party has laid a strong foundation for prosperity, urging Rwandans to make the most of the prevailing peace and security to rebuild their lives further.