Rwanda: 30 Years On
Can victims and perpetrators of the Rwandan genocide live together?
30 years ago, one of the bloodiest periods in Rwandan history began: the genocide of ethnic Tutsi citizens. With an estimated 800,000 dead, how does the Rwanda of today remember this terrible chapter?
"We still find the bodies of the victims in mass graves. Do you see those coffins? There are the remains that we recovered recently." Eric Muhaturukundo is the keeper of the Nyamata Memorial of the Rwandan Genocide, one of the bloodiest sites of this episode in Rwandan history: "over ten thousand people were massacred here alone. On that day, 45,000 Tutsis had gathered in the area: 10,000 were killed in the church, the others in the surrounding area and then buried nearby." 30 years on since the ethnic cleansing of Tutsi citizens at the hands of Hutu militia, the racial hatred and deep wounds that tore Rwanda apart have started to heal. It is still crucial, reminds Eric, to pay homage to the victims by "paying tribute to the victims, not leaving them anonymous."
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