EDITORIAL: Keep up fight against Genocide denial

Twenty-one years after Rwanda suffered the worst genocide in recorded history, the people of Rwanda find themselves in a situation where they must confront a small but venomous group of extremist Genocide deniers that seem to reach another low by the day in their extremely dangerous and illegitimate game. Indeed it is very unfortunate and exceedingly harsh on the people of Rwanda, and Genocide survivors in particular, that two decades after losing a million of their dear ones they have to contend with distortions of the history of the Genocide by heartless thugs that continue to collude to misinform and manipulate unsuspecting audiences around the world about the tragic events that engulfed this country in 1994. From Genocide suspects and like-minded sympathisers to former loyalists and partners-in-crime of the genocidal regime, and self-conscious academics and opportunistic activists, a myriad of conspiracy theories have been manufactured with the view to turn the victim into the perpetrator or draw false moral equivalence. These dangerous narratives about the Genocide have lately been pushed down the throats of listeners, viewers and readers of western media, including mainstream broadcasters and publications. BBC is among those that have generously given a platform to these ill-motivated conspiracy theorists, notably through their October 2014 so-called ‘Rwanda’s Untold Story’. According to genocide scholars, and from experience elsewhere, including among communities that suffered the Holocaust, the Armenian Genocide and the Bosnian Genocide, denial is the last phase of any genocide – it is an integral part of a meticulous plan to commit genocide and later on, perhaps due to the great shame that comes with the severity of the crime, seek to revise the history of that genocide. Nonetheless, the people of Rwanda should not be shaken or even discouraged by these wicked individuals who are bent on denying the Genocide or minimising its scale or cruelty. As we pause and remember the over one million compatriots whose lives were brutally cut short 21 years ago, starting tomorrow, April 7, we must draw from inner strength and keep up our resolve to keep the memory alive and to protect the history of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi and the events surrounding it. It is our responsibility to use all legal means necessary not to allow anyone to dance on the blood of any Genocide victim. This can be done through sustained education, public lectures at home and abroad, advocacy for adoption of laws that punish Genocide denial in other countries, telling the truth through books and other publications, and social media, among others. The people of Rwanda will continue to be grateful for the outpouring of support and messages of solidarity from all corners of the world during the annual commemoration events and will continue to count on ubumuntu (humanness) in the continued struggle against Genocide denial. To Rwandans of all ages and backgrounds, the battle is far from being won – we must carry on the good fight.

Opinions

EDITORIAL: Keep up fight against Genocide denial