HUYE- The National University of Rwanda (NUR) has been urged to help keep records on the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, so as to preserve the country’s history.The call was made in Huye District by the Executive Secretary of the Southern Province, Jeanne Izabiriza, during the 18th commemoration of the Genocide.The activities started with a Walk to Remember from Huye town to the University, with residents of Tumba and Ngoma sectors taking part in the march.Mourners marched in silence to the University grounds, the venue for prayers and speeches paying tribute to the Genocide victims. The march was preceded by a visit to the University’s Genocide memorial site, where an estimated 500 victims, mainly former students and lecturers, are buried. Izabiriza noted that it is everyone’s responsibility to write about the Genocide, but that the intellectuals must play a key role.“It is now 18 years down the road when the Genocide occurred, but records about it are still very scanty,” she said. “Each and everyone, including Genocide survivors and repentant perpetrators, must commit themselves to write about the Genocide for truth to be uncovered”.“We must tell the world the truth about our history,” she said.Izabiriza urged residents to approach survivors and listen to their stories, as a way of helping them to heal the wounds of Genocide.Prof Silas Lwakabamba, the Rector of the Huye-based University, called for everyone’s involvement in making Rwanda a better and safe place.He said: “It is responsible to remember those who departed from us, but we must also fill the vacuum they left”. Huye District Mayor, Eugene Kayiranga Muzuka, observed the need to build a bright future.He emphasised the need to commemorate the Genocide, noting that it is a time for the population to reflect on the history of the country.“We must remember, for the population to keep valuing the lives of every citizen and understand that no one has the right to take life,” Muzuka said.“As we remember, we must discover our strengths to build a brighter future...strengths to rebuild this nation, to develop, and to face the Genocide consequences.”A survivor who testified at the ceremony noted that the then intellectuals, mainly former staff and students of the National University of Rwanda, played an important role in the planning and execution of the Genocide.Venantie Nyirabahire, who was a primary school teacher near the University before the Genocide, noted that instead of using their skills to stop the hatred against the Tutsi, the elite used their knowledge to plan how to exterminate Tutsi. “They were no longer humans, but rather animals,” she said.“The role of intellectuals from this University is very clear. We saw what they did, even before the killings spread. They were involved in meetings, demonstrations and political gatherings which called for the extermination of the Tutsi. Many times, they spearheaded such events,” she observed.She called on religious leaders and intellectuals to spread the message of reconciliation and forgiveness as a way of building a united society.This year’s commemoration week is held under the theme: “Learning from our history to build a bright future”.
