The Rwandan Community in Switzerland, Austria and Liechtenstein, along with friends of Rwanda, diplomats and members of international Organizations based in Geneva on Tuesday, July 6, celebrated the 27th Anniversary of Rwanda Liberation Day. 

The celebration of Kwibohora27 was held virtually due to the prevailing Covid-19 pandemic and was broadcasted on the Rwandan Embassy’s youtube channel.

In this ceremony, a special tribute was paid to the men and women of the Rwanda Patriotic Army (RPA) for their courage and sacrifice to liberate Rwanda.

The celebration was marked by video-performances of the National Ballet, Urukerereza, speeches and poems, songs as well as testimonies by both members of the Rwandan community living in the three european countries, expressing their feelings on Liberation Day. 

The celebration was also an opportunity to showcase Rwanda as a world-class tourism and investment destination.

Testimonies shared focused on the courage and sacrifice by the RPA/RPF to liberate Rwanda and the exemplary leadership of President Paul Kagame that has changed the way of thinking of Rwandans towards rebuilding the country.

In her remarks, the Ambassador of Rwanda to Switzerland and Permanent Representative to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva, Marie Chantal Rwakazina, paid a tribute to the Rwanda Patriotic Army led by Kagame, for their courage and sacrifice to liberate the country.

According to Rwakazina, July 4 is and will remain an unforgettable date not only for all Rwandans and their friends who love peace and humanism, but also for the rest of the world, because it marked the end of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi. 

She added: "A genocide which could have been avoided but was committed by an extremist regime in place, in the sight and knowledge of the international community."

Amb. Rwakazina underlined that in the aftermath of the 1994 genocide, one of the RPA/RPF's primary goals was to provide a homeland where every Rwandan could leave and build a better future. 

"Today, Rwandans stand together as united and liberated People."

She highlighted key achievements by the Government of Rwanda over the last 27 years in the socio-economic transformation of the country.

The Ambassador called on "all Rwandans in diaspora, especially young people, to remain committed in preserving what has been accomplished over the past 27 years and to work tirelessly" to achieve what the liberators fought for.