FRENCH singer Gaël Faye shared a few days ago that he has been working on a documentary film about three women who were raped during the 1994 Genocide against Tutsi. On Instagram, he posted a picture captioned, "Last night I took this photo in my living room in Kigali. It is a photo of a private screening of the documentary film ‘Le silence des mots’ (The silence of Words) that I co-directed with Michael Sztanke.”

He explained more about that film that tells the story of three Rwandan women; Concessa, Marie-Jeanne and Prisca, who for the first time, unmasked, narrate their ordeal—being raped by French soldiers in the course of Operation Turquoise—during the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi that claimed the lives of over one million innocent people. 

In the post he also explained how the women got to his place in Kigali. "The women were going to open themselves on screen months after filming. @didouskaduha my friend and co-producer of the film had brought the projector, Prisca had travelled from Butare for the occasion, Concessa was accompanied by her friend Jacqueline who is seen in the film and Marie-Jeanne had arrived by moto taxi from the outskirts of Kigali. We were joined by Françoise, a psychologist.”

The entire time of the film was a moment of great tension, suffocated crying, and suppressed hiccups. After end credits, when the lights were switched on, the silence was intense, the caption stated.   

Gael Faye had a private screening of the documentary film.  Photos/gaelfaye(Insta)

Thanks to a gentle approach, Françoise freed up speech and the discussion lasted three hours, he wrote.

For making this film, the three women expressed gratitude to Faye for telling their story, having felt abandoned for so long. Faye praised the immense strength of the women, to be able to speak in front of a camera about their ordeals.

At the end, he said, "My dearest wish is that this film puts the world back a little, that it allows shame to switch sides, that it highlights the dignity and courage of these women.” 

39-year old Faye was born in Bujumbura, Burundi of a French father and Rwandan mother. The singer, rapper, and writer who moved to France when he was 13, escaping from the Burundian civil war, later wrote a semi-biographical book about it called ‘Small Country’.

‘Le Silence de Mots’ will be released on April 23.