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The Kwibuka Flame of Remembrance today travels to Muhanga District, the twelfth stop on its nationwide tour. The flame will return to Kigali on 7 April 2014, the start of the national mourning period and twenty years since the Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda. You can view an interactive map of the tour here.
Today’s community event is hosted by Mayor Yvonne Mutakwasuku and will reflect on the events of 1994 as well as the journey of Muhanga and Rwanda since. The special guest is Hon Anastase Murekezi, Minister of Public Service and Labor.
The Flame of Remembrance will be received from Nyamasheke District by two 20-year-old Muhanga students, Jacqueline Niyonsenga and Jean-Marie Vianney Uwishema, who attend St Joseph’s School in Kabgayi. A choir from Kabgayi School and St Joseph’s School will sing ‘Urumuri Rutazima’ to welcome the flame. The Master of Ceremony for today’s event is Jean Baptiste Mugunga.
Testimony will be given by Osward Kayihura (55), a survivor of the genocide and now the President of IBUKA in Nyarusange Sector. Osward was a farmer before the Genocide against the Tutsi. Osward recalls the news on the radio and says this is how he knew the genocide was going to happen. He took refuge with his family in Kabgayi and was one of the few to survive. A poem will be read by Sgt Clarisse Mukamusana (28).
Testimony will also be given by Dominique Mukeshimana, a perpetrator of the genocide from Muhanga District. He was responsible for the death of Tutsi in Kabgayi and Rugendabari (specifically a place known as Cyome). Tutsi were taken to this place to be killed and then put into the Nyabarongo River. Today Dominique has been released from prison and says he regrets what he did in 1994. Dominique has returned to school and is now in P4.
Kwibuka20 Flame Tour Event: Muhanga Program
When: 2:00 – 4:00pm, 12 February 2014
Where: Kabgayi, Muhanga District
Welcoming Remarks from the Master of Ceremony Jean Baptiste Mugunga
Children’s Choir signing Urumuri Rutazima as the Kwibuka Flame arrives
Remarks by Muhanga Mayor Yvonne Mutakwasuku
Kwibuka20 Short Film – Remember, Unite, Renew (Kwibuka Twiyubaka)
Testimony from survivor Osward Kayihura
Poem from Sgt Clarisse Mukamusana
Testimony from perpetrator Dominique Mukeshimana
Guests invited to write Ribbons of Remembrance while Ntibizongera is performed
Remarks by Special Guest Hon Anastase Murekezi, Minister of Public Service and Labor
Final performance of Urumuri Rutazima
Background Information on the Kwibuka Flame of Remembrance
The Kwibuka Flame symbolises remembrance as well as the resilience and courage of Rwandans over the past twenty years. Carried in a simple lamp, it will be used to light other lamps in communities around Rwanda. To mark twenty years since the Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, all memorial fires throughout the country will stem from this single Kwibuka Flame. On returning to Kigali, President Paul Kagame will use the Kwibuka Flame to light the National Flame of Mourning. This will take place on 7 April 2014, marking the official beginning of the national mourning period. The flame will also be the source of the fire used at the candlelit vigil at Amahoro Stadium on the evening of 7 April 2014. Learn more about the Flame and its nationwide tour here.
Photos from today’s event will be available on the Kwibuka Flickr and videos on the Kwibuka YouTube channel.
Source: Kwibuka.rw
