Over 43,000 Genocide victims moved to new memorial in Gisagara District

Remains of over 43,000 victims of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi were on Saturday relocated to a newly constructed memorial centre in Ndora sector, Gisagara District. The remains had been previously buried in different mass graves in Ndora Sector, and they were in a deteriorating state, which not only undermined the memory of the Genocide but also eroded the dignity of the victims. According to district officials, the modern memorial centre was constructed by the district at Rwf450 million. The facility has different sections such as the place where the remains will be kept, an archives wing and screens that will play documentaries detailing the killings in Gisagara. It also has a room reserved for counseling people in case of trauma. The memorial is constructed on Kabuye Hill in Ndora Sector where large numbers of Tutsi were exterminated on the express orders of the interim President Théodore Sindikubwabo. Maria Nyirabatutsi, 71, a Genocide survivor whose relatives are among those that were relocated, welcomed the gesture saying that ,for years, they have been worried about the state of the remains of their loved ones. “I am grateful that our loved ones are now interred in a befitting manner. The new memorial site is a demonstration of how our loved ones are valued. We are happy and we wish that all victims still scattered in different areas are exhumed and given a decent burial here,” Nyirabatutsi added. Clemence Gasengayire, the vice mayor in charge of social affairs, explained that having the memorial on the Kabuye Hill was part of the effort to document history, however bad it is, especially regarding the nature in which people here were killed. It also demonstrates how the Genocide was organised and executed from the highest office of the country. Gasengayire said that many people had come for refuge at the hill. Sindikubwabo is said to have visited Butare prefecture (of which Gisagara was part) on April 19, 1994, and warned Hutu on radio that if they refused to kill Tutsi, they would be killed. According to the survivors, the memorial shows the difference between the bad leadership of yesteryear and the good leadership which is helping them lead a decent life. Julienne Uwacu, the Minister for Sports and Culture, who presided over the event, said that the memorial will preserve the history and facts of the Genocide. “The new memorial shows the great work and commitment of everyone who participated in its construction. The proper burial of the victims is one of the ways to heal wounded hearts,” she said. The president of Ibuka, the umbrella body of Genocide survivors associations, Prof. Jean Pierre Dusingizemungu, said that the memorial will enable mourners to gather periodically to pay tribute to their loved ones. editorial@newtimes.co.rw

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Over 43,000 Genocide victims moved to new memorial in Gisagara District