Kigali Genocide Memorial Centre

I’m still eating goat but today there were mini-pizza type things that were a welcome change from our menu here at Amani guest house. Our typical breakfast consists of white bread, one egg omelet, jam and nutella-type spread. Lunch: beans, rice, friend potatoes, fried fish, goat in sauce, pineapple for dessert, Fanta. Supper: see lunch. Really, it’s fine. Enjoying things and learning a lot. Spider count is at the 3. Not making nearly the same noises when I have to take a cold shower. I leave for Kibungo on Wednesday and I’m looking forward to having a home for a year. I’ve been transient since the end of May and would like to just settle down!

 

Today we went visited the Genocide Memorial Centre (www.kigalimemorialcentre.org). You know, I arrived in Rwanda knowing about the genocide. I’d seen Hotel Rwanda, I’d read about the genocide and I tried to prepare myself. I’ll admit that seeing the first UN truck on day one was a bit off-putting and made me very uneasy. Surely, it should make me uneasy. As I told you before, I’m reading a powerful book about the genocide. In fact, I’ve talked about this with other volunteers. I wish I’d had time to read it before I got here. I thought I was doing the smart thing by reading it in the place where it all happened, but I regret that now. When I come across a location (a church, a district, a road) in Kigali that’s describe in the book, I can picture it all happening there. Churches where people came to get protection and help, were used to lure victims before they were massacred. It’s very distressing and I’ve actually been near tears during the whole read. As I said before, though, it’s my responsibility to read it, but it’s hard. So, today, as part of our In Country Training, we visited the Memorial Centre. It’s been opened for 5 years now and its intention is to develop education programs for youth, as well as a place of remembrance. There are mass graves at the site (Rwandans were still burying their dead up to 9 years after the genocide at these graves) that are not unlike those at Bergen-Belsen and certainly just as terrifying. It’s embarrassing that Romeo Dallaire warned the UN of situation in Rwanda and but was refused a mandate to act. Apparently the international force that was used to repatriate citizens back to their country when the genocide began would have been enough to stop it all together! I was okay for most of this, until I visited a room dedicated to the children who were massacred. Large pictures of children are on the walls with descriptions of their age, favourite food, characteristics and lastly, how they were killed. One picture included the child’s last words which were “Mom, where can I run to?” I don’t know if it would be possible to visit this centre without crying. I won’t go into more detail about it. I guess, suffice to say, it was powerful and an important part of our understanding of Rwanda and what it has suffered.