French actors portray Paris role in Genocide

A French theater group that calls itself ‘Uz et coutumes’ is in Rwanda on a country wide tour to perform 8 ‘plays’ showing how the French government under former President Francois Mitterrand was culpable in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. The France based drama group is composed of 10 French actors who are in the country for a month, performing a number of drama pieces, including its popular ‘Entre Nous’ (Between Us) at different colleges and memorial sites. The tour follows campaigns by the two Ibuka (Genocide umbrellas groups) associations from France and Rwanda, from which the artists, who have been attending commemoration activities here in Rwanda, decided to bring the shows to Rwanda after performances in France. Moved by the failure to serve justice to genocide survivors living in Rwanda and the inability to bring genocide suspects to account by the French government, the group seeks to widely spread the messages of what really transpired during the Genocide. Dr. Jean Damascene Bizimana, the Executive Secretary of the Commission for the fight against Genocide (CNLG) said the initiative is a result of many visits made to Rwanda by some artistes who witnessed the role of France during the Genocide. “Their intention is to clearly show the reality of what happened at the same time advocating for justice. There have been performances across France but it was also good to play in Rwanda. “They normally perform in broad areas which look more like how the genocide unfolded, it was in broad day light, they do it to portray better embodied messages,” he said. France’s Ibuka wing which started way back in 2002, managed to liaise with ‘Uz et Coutumes’ to spread the message using artistic mediums. Broussard Esperance Mutayisha, who heads the genocide umbrella group in France, told Sunday Times that their coalition with “Centres des Arts des Lyons” helped organise performances in more than 38 locations in France. “The drama piece is heavily informed by a number of literatures, including Boris Diop’s book that managed to capture the truth of the matter and we have to say that we received great support from them,” she said. Mutayisha further noted that together with the group they aim to eradicate the genocide ideology across Europe; fight negativism and demonstrate a clear role of the French government during the genocide. “We also need to communicate that French people have taken serious our messages, there is a clear difference now unlike before, many are willing to expose the lies behind politics, that the French Government did not have a hand in the genocide,” she added. One of the plays being performed entitled “Entre nous” literally translated as “Between US”, is divided into three parts showcasing Rwanda pre, during and post genocide, an eventful drama that shows solidarity and the power of unity in its last phase at the same time advocating for Rwanda development stages after the genocide.

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French actors portray Paris role in Genocide