UN honours Senegalese peace-keeper who died saving Rwandans

The United Nations on Wednesday posthumously honoured Captain Mbaye Diagne who risked and lost his life in the process of saving many during the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. Diagne, a Senegalese national, is believed to have saved between 600 and 1,000 Rwandans before he was killed on the morning of May 31, 1994. Media reports at the time said he was hit and killed by a fragment from a mortar that exploded near a checkpoint of the genocidal government where he had stopped as he came from collecting a written note for his superior. While presenting the award to his wife and children, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said that the late Diagne never turned a deaf ear to victims of the Genocide and always acted out of courage. “He did not turn a blind eye or a deaf ear. He did not ignore his conscience or walk away in fear. He acted from his heart. He was exceptionally courageous,” the UN head said. Captain Diagne was known to often break protocol at times putting his life at risk while on duty to save lives. Those who worked alongside him said he was driven by the belief that, as a peacekeeper, he could not sling his weapon to his shoulders and watch as innocent civilians were being butchered in broad-day light. The United Nations’ recognition follows the Rwandan government’s honour presented to Diagne’s widow in 2010 for his courage in saving lives during the Genocide. The Senegalese officer was awarded with the Umurinzi, Rwanda’s campaign against Genocide medal, and was handed to his widow by President Paul Kagame. In honouring him, Rwanda recognised his selfless efforts during the Genocide to save lives to the point of paying with his life. “After the then Prime Minister Agathe Uwilingiyimana was murdered, you took it upon yourself to ensure the safety of her orphaned children,” a citation accompanying the award read in part. “Your actions stunned the Unamir (United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda) commander, Gen. Romeo Dallaire, when he realised the risky operations you were undertaking in a dangerous environment and with restrictions imposed by Unamir. You paid the ultimate price for your extraordinary humanitarian deeds,” it added. In 2014, the United Nations Security Council passed a resolution to create a medal in honour of Diagne’s courageous acts, the “Captain Mbaye Diagne Medal for Exceptional Courage”. The medal is to be awarded to those military, police, civilian UN personnel and associated personnel who demonstrate exceptional courage in the face of extreme danger while serving humanity and the UN. editorial@newtimes.co.rw

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UN honours Senegalese peace-keeper who died saving Rwandans