Members of parliament have recently called for sustained efforts to uproot the genocide ideology in the country and beyond, following a report of increased cases of the vice that were registered during this year’s commemoration period. A report by the National Commission for the fight against the Genocide (CNLG) indicates that 246 cases related to genocide ideology were registered during the three-month commemoration period that spanned between April and July. While the assumption would be that such cases should reduce each year we drift away from the horrible experience of the Genocide against the Tutsi, the numbers show otherwise. These cases include harassment that is directed at Genocide survivors, implicit and explicitly, by some members of the communities in which they live, and other acts that negate or trivialize the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, in which over a million people lost their lives, remain rampant, especially during the commemoration period. Even more worrying is the fact that you find younger people getting involved in these acts, some of whom were either not yet born or were very young when the Genocide took place 26 years ago. The Genocide ideology is not only being perpetuated in the country and often times not limited to the period of commemoration of the Genocide against the Tutsi, and certainly not restricted to the boundaries of the country. Actually, to some, it has become a day job. Take an example of Jambo ASBL, an organization that was founded by descendants of some of the architects of the Genocide. They are using all the resources available to them and platforms given to them to openly deny the Genocide and skew the entire historical context of the country, so much sustainable effort is needed to counter this toxic narrative. This means that to fight this narrative should be embraced not just by officials at the National Commission for the fight against the Genocide, but by all Rwandans, young and old. The youth are most especially key in this fight because of the more prominent role that social media is playing in the dissemination of information. It is therefore imperative that consciousness is raised among the youth and for them to use information available to counter this toxic information. Similarly, there is need for more people, especially survivors to document their different experiences during the Genocide in form of books to ensure there is enough literature to counter the fabricated lies peddled by genocide ideologues and their descendants like Jambo.
