Ex-combatants’ lives transformed by craft of peace

MOSES GAHIGI finds out how demobilised combatants are benefiting from making crafts Habiyaremye Ngirababyeyi was a combatant with ex-FAR, up to the day in 1996 when, he put down arms and accepted to be demobilised. He painfully narrates the unbearable life he endured fighting fellow Rwandans, but though he regrets the time he wasted and the pain he caused, he has already picked up and now is focused at being productive both for himself and his country. To date, Habiyaremye prides in the decision he undertook, when he juxtaposes the life he lived while still in the bush to what he is now. “I don’t regret anything, ever since I came out of the bush because I am a happy person now. I have managed to put together my family and I am in position to provide for it,” recounts Habiyaremye. He says those still in the jungles should also put down their arms and return home. He was one of the 230 demobilised soldiers who turned up at Mukamira sector in Nyabihu district, to receive certificates for completing thirty days of training in crafts. Agaseke weaving is just one of the many projects put in place by the Council for Demobilisation and Reintegration, to foster proper livelihoods and cultivate a culture of hard work in demobilised soldiers and ex-combatants. Interestingly, the best agaseke was woven by a man, yet it is widely believed women are better at weaving. François Tabaro, started weaving while in prison, and he has been able as a result to send his kids to school, and also buy a bicycle. He admits all these benefits are a result of the demobilisation commission. “I started weaving while I was in prison, the lady trainer used to come to us and inspire us, and her consistent help like selling the products for us strengthened our motivation and skills,” he narrates. The lady trainer is Pascasie Nyirabazungu, a genocide survivor. She says Agaseke has helped her a lot. When talking about Agaseke, Nyirabazungu talks with sheer enthusiasm what weaving agaseke has brought into her life. She narrates how it saved her life. She calls Agaseke “a craft of peace” owing it to the invaluable role it has played in fostering unity and reconciliation as well as cultivating self worth among the people who have been victims of a cruel past. Considering the ideological differences between these two, there was a need for a factor That would mutually connect people from these two backgrounds while harnessing their efforts for a common goal. Jean Sayinzoga, the Chairman of the Rwanda Demobilisation and Re-integration Commission (RDRC) said the process of peace and reconciliation has not been an easy one but with commitment to activities like Agaseke weaving and other projects, relations have been restored between the demobilised soldiers and have been accepted back into the communities. Demobilised soldiers are also involved in projects like agricultural production through partnering with the Rwanda Animal Resources Development Agency (RARDA). Others have been trained in plumbing and construction. These have also completed their course and consequently given facilities to start practicing their skills for a living. Some of the demobilised combatants have been facilitated to participate in the ongoing Jua Kali expo in Gikondo, to exhibit their crafts. Ends