STAFF REPORTER
The international community will from Friday begin commemorating the 29th anniversary of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.
During the Genocide against the Tutsi in 1994 over one million men, women and children were killed in cold blood in 100 days from the 7th of April 1994. The mass killings were stopped by forces from the Rwanda Patriotic Front who
defeated the genocidal regime.
The United Nations recognizes the 7th of April as the International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda
“On this International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, we mourn the more than 1 million children, women, and men who perished in 100 days of horror 29 years ago, “the UN Secretary-General António
Guterres said in his message for the International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda — Twenty-ninth Anniversary.
The UN Secretary General added: “A generation since the genocide, we must never forget what happened — and ensure future generations always remember. How easily hate speech — a key indicator of the risk of genocide — turns to hate crime. How complacency in the face of atrocity is complicity. And how no place, and no time is immune to danger — including our own.
Preventing genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and other serious violations of international law is a shared responsibility. It is a core duty of every member of the United Nations. Together, let us stand firm against rising
intolerance. Let us be ever vigilant — and always ready to act. And let us truly honour the memory of all Rwandans who perished by building a future of dignity, security, justice, and human rights for all.”
The AU said this annual commemoration of the genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda aims to awaken greater awareness of the African peoples and the international community about the value of life and humanity and to renew our
collective commitment to protect and uphold fundamental human rights.
The specific objectives include:
- To remember the atrocities brought by the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda;
- To unite together in our fight against the crime of genocide, genocide ideology as
well as genocide denial;
- To collectively commit to justice and the fight against impunity; and
- To renew the commitment to fight against genocide, hate speech and other crimes
against humanity.
In Zimbabwe, the commemoration will be held at the Embassy of Rwanda in Harare next Friday the 14th of April.
His Excellency Paul Kagame, President of Republic of Rwanda will preside over the main commemoration to be held in the capital, Kigali. This year’s commemoration is being held under the theme Remember –Unite- Renew.
