Genocide victims share moving testimonies at two-day conference

Tuesday marked the second and concluding day of the post-Genocide ‘Dialogues’ conference organised by the National Unity and Reconciliation Commission (NURC) with the intention of rebuilding a sense of belonging for Genocide victims. The theme of the conference was ‘Umunyarwanda’, or national pride. A variety of post-genocide organisations applied to participate in the conference but only three were selected. They included Hope and Peace Foundation, Best Hope Rwanda and Peace Foundation. Collaboration The Director of Peace Building and Conflict Management within the NURC, Richard Kananga, said the conference aimed at creating collaboration between the selected organisations. “All organisations deal with similar activities and so we wanted to bring them together to share their experiences and to offer support to one another,” Kananga said. The two-day conference involved group work and larger presentations by members of the different organisations. “The individuals shared experiences in smaller groups, organised according to their ages, and then a representative from each group would present their stories and findings to the larger conference,” Kananga said. The children There were 210 beneficiaries at the conference, 60 of which were children representing Best Hope Rwanda. The children from this organisation were all born from rape during the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. “When these children were speaking to other beneficiaries, they never knew that there were people with similar experiences,” said Kananga. Testimonies, singing The testimonies were punctuated with singing, dancing and short skits. Members from the audience acted out a scene where a Hutu and Tutsi couple are challenged by their parents for wanting to get married. The drama caused bursts of laughter from the audience. At the end of the conference, each organisation presented an action plan outlining the biggest challenges faced by the victims. Angelique Uwase of the Best Hope Foundation, discussed the challenges faced by the children born of rape. “We need more educational support and proper identity. We no longer want to be referred to as “children of bad memories,” Uwase said. Kananga said the conference is one of the many governmental initiatives organised by NURC for the victims of Genocide. Twitter: @KimHarrisberg