Author: Publisher

{President Paul Kagame yesterday paid special tribute to soldiers and police personnel who died while on duty in 2013 and referred to them as “patriots whose legacy will live on.”}

The homage is contained in the President and Commander-in-Chief’s season’s greetings to the Armed forces.

“Their sacrifices were not in vain; they will be remembered and emulated by new generations of patriots,” he said in the message released yesterday.

“Serving just causes far from home, saving other people’s lives beyond our borders, remind us of who we are as a people.
It enshrines the lessons we learned from our own history, and reinforces our sense of purpose and direction.”

President Kagame also commended servicemen and women and Police officers serving in foreign missions for their consistent record of professionalism, discipline and resilience in addressing regional and global security challenges.

“Many of you are not able to be with your families and friends during this festive season. Yet, thanks to your selfless service, many vulnerable families are able to survive the flames of violence and persecution.
It is that commitment which makes Rwanda’s Defence and Police forces stand out among the most reliable partners for global peace and security,” he said.

Rwanda is the sixth biggest troop contributing country in the world, with troops in five missions abroad. RDF has 3,212 officers in AU/UN Hybrid mission in Darfur known as UNAMID. RDF also maintains 850 officers and an aviation unit with 119 air force personnel in South Sudan. RDF currently deploys 82 military observers
The force lost seven officers and men in foreign missions in 2013. More than 500 Police officers are on missions overseas.

The Commander in Chief of the armed forces said 2013 has been yet another time of distinguished service to the people of Rwanda.

He praised the Armed forces for defending the sovereignty of the country and ensuring the safety of its people.

“Each of you servicemen and women effectively contributed, through your collective work, to delivering the peace and safety Rwandans, residents and foreign guests have continued to enjoy within our national borders.
The people of Rwanda are grateful for your selfless service, sacrifices and continued commitment,” reads the message.

He cited initiatives such as Army Week and anti-Gender-Based Violence programmes that “provided a meaningful input toward achieving national development goals.”

Kagame urged the forces to maintain and improve the standards of professionalism, discipline and patriotism they demonstrated in 2013.

{After appreciating the way Rwandan government reacted positively on their issue, Rwandan deportees from Tanzania decided to send a message wishing His Excellency President Paul Kagame a merry-Christmas and happy-new-year.}

According to the website of the ministry of Local Government, this message was sent this Saturday through government ministers and local leaders after they attended the monthly social work (umuganda) together with these deportees on 28th December 2013.

Deportees confirmed they were appreciated on the way they were received by the government as they were deported from the neighboring Tanzania.

According to the Minister of Local Government, in 2007 Rwandese were deported from Tanzania, and the govt managed to settle them, therefore, there is no reason for Rwandans to penetrate into Tanzania illegally, however they should seek for legal travel documents.

Speaking to IGIHE, the mayor of Kirehe Murayire protais, “deportees should thank God because they reached their motherland”.

Among the guests who visited and interacted with these deportees include; the Minister of Local government, Musoni James, MIDIMAR’s Seraphine Mukantabana and other district leaders.

{Hundreds of people gathered at centre christus in remera, Kigali, on Friday to mark the 50th anniversary of the massacre of the Tutsi that took place on the Christmas Eve of 1963.}

Although large scale killings had taken place before, from 1959, this was the beginning of state-sponsored systematic massacres that targeted the Tutsi elite, starting with politicians and the well-to-do before spreading to other sections of society.

More than 30,000 are estimated to have lost their lives in the few months that followed.

Survivors who lived through the ordeal said it was their dream to see a Rwanda where their children and grand-children never experience what they endured.

Those who lived to tell said it marked the beginning of a well-planned and executed Genocide against the Tutsi by the First Republic under the leadership of Gregoire Kayibanda.

Senator Prof. Jean-Damascene Bizimana has extensively researched and written about the killings.

Bizimana, 50, said there was no conclusive research on the number of people who died back then although historians have recorded between 30,000 and 32,000.

“The largest number of those killed were Tutsi, but even the Hutus who stood firm for their democratic principles and human rights, in the UNAR (Union Nationale Rwandaise) and Rader (Le Rassemblement Democratique Rwandais) political parties were also killed,” Bizimana said

He stressed that the killings were prepared long before and supported by the then government and the Belgian colonial administrators and sections of the Catholic clergy.

Mzee Simon Sebagabo was a young man during the pogroms; he has a vivid memory of the events, especially in the former Bufundu region, later renamed Gikongoro.

{{Testimony}}

In 1963, Sebagabo was in his final year at a seminary in Kansi. His testimony, like all others, was heartrending. But he remains optimistic.

“The bad seed sown at the time has not been uprooted. However, even though many people died, the number could have been higher had it not been for some upright people who saved lives,” Sebagabo said.

“But being Rwandan first and foremost, ahead of being Hutu or Tutsi, is still a challenge and it’s everyone’s duty to participate in turning a new page.”

Former senator Prof. Chrysologue Kubwimana said Rwandans need to understand that to this day, former colonial powers do not want to see a united Rwanda.

“The colonialists, be it the past or the present, can’t be happy when they see people shaping their own future. This is the biggest problem,” Kubwimana said, recalling how African nationalists such as Thomas Sankara (Burkina Faso), Modibo Keita (Mali) and Patrice Lumumba (Zaire, now DR Congo) met their demise.

Pastor Antoine Rutayisire, who was young at the time, stressed the consequences of the pogroms such as trauma. After a testimony that moved many to tears, the pastor concluded:

“I only remain with one mission. Building a nation where my child will not experience what I lived through. We saw our fathers get killed, but let’s work such that no Rwandan child, be it a Hutu, Tutsi or Twa, or whatever other origins, ever experiences such trauma again.”

From 1959 onwards, the Tutsi were targeted, resulting in hundreds of thousands of deaths. Thousands of others fled into exile in neighboring countries and beyond.

The First Republic, under Kayibanda, institutionalized discrimination against the Tutsi and periodically used massacres against them as a means of maintaining the status quo. This, later, as most affirm, prepared the ground for the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi that laid the country to waste, with more than a million people killed.

Senior politicians, religious leaders and members of the business community gathered for the event.

{The management and staff of Development Bank of Rwanda (BRD) joined sick children hospitalized at the Muhima Hospital to celebrate Christmas on Wednesday 24th December, 2013.}

The staff of BRD led by the Chief Executive Officer, Alex Kanyankole delivered Christmas presents (consisting of goodies worth about one million Rwandan francs) to the sick children resident at the Pediatric ward of the Nyarugenge District based hospital.

Speaking at the occasion organized in honour of the visiting contingent, Kanyankole explained that BRD has always celebrated Christmas with the needy and vulnerable members of the Rwandan public, and emphasized that during this year’s celebrations, the sick children were singled out to benefit from BRD’s staff humanitarian efforts.

Kanyankole said, “These are our children and it is necessary for us as employees of BRD to share the festive cheer and blessings with them in their time of sickness. We highly believe and hope for their quick recovery as they are the future employees of BRD as well as future doctors of hospitals like Muhima”

Kanyankole further added that showing compassion to the needy is part and parcel of the Rwandan culture and more so, it is in line with exhibition of BRD’s commitment to its corporate social responsibility mandate of giving back society.

“BRD is consistently at the forefront of financing Rwanda’s socio-economic development, and as a result registers considerable profits which it invests back in the community through such initiatives of assisting the needy and vulnerable members of our society,” he added.

The Director of Muhima Hospital, Dr. Mulindwa Patrick, expressed his gratitude and appreciation towards BRD’s initiative to show solidarity (‘act of kindness and love’) with the sick children during this festive season.

Dr. Mulindwa said: “This commendable act of selflessness signifies BRD’s expression of love and care towards the children of Rwanda. I encourage all other stakeholders to consolidate and support such initiatives”

Uwanyirigira Olive, a mother to one of the sick children, expressed surprise at BRD’s timely humanitarian intervention saying: “It is admirable to see people leaving their work premises and come here with lots of gifts to visit the sick – this is surely a sign of love as lived by Jesus Christ, whose birth we celebrate during Christmas!”

On behalf of the Government of Rwanda and on my own behalf and my family, I wish all of you officers, men and women of our Armed Forces and your families, a Happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year 2014.

The ending year has been yet another time of distinguished service to the people of Rwanda and our Nation’s interests. Each of you servicemen and women effectively contributed, through your collective work, to delivering the peace and safety Rwandans, residents and foreign guests have continued to enjoy within our national borders.

The people of Rwanda are grateful for your selfless service, sacrifices and continued commitment.

The Government and leadership of Rwanda, at the various levels, commend you for successfully achieving your core mission; securing our homeland and deterring hostile activities against our nation.

Your contribution to socio-economic activities through various initiatives such as ‘Army Week’ and Gender Based Violence programs provided a meaningful input towards achieving our national development goals.

Beyond our national borders, I want to commend you for your consistent record of professionalism, discipline and resilience in addressing regional and global security challenges in line with our Nation’s principles, interests and priorities. Many of you are not able to be with your families and friends during this festive season. Yet, thanks to your selfless service, many vulnerable families are able to survive the flames of violence and persecution. It is that commitment which makes Rwanda’s Defence and Police Forces stand out among the most reliable partners for global peace and security.

Most importantly; serving just causes far from home, saving other people’s lives beyond our borders, remind us who we are as a people. It enshrines the lessons we learned from our own history, and reinforces our sense of purpose and direction.

Let me take this moment to remember our departed comrades who passed away while in the service of our nation both at home and in missions abroad in 2013. Their sacrifices were not in vain; they will be remembered and emulated by new generations of patriots.

As we begin a New Year, I urge you all to maintain and improve the standards of professional conduct, discipline and patriotism you have demonstrated in 2013. Above all, I ask you to uphold our most important attribute; the Rwandan Spirit.

I want you to preserve the core values that enabled us achieve success in 2013 and previous years; selflessness, honour, resilience and humility among others.

The year 2014 will bring new promises and challenges. We will undoubtedly be confronted with more threats and hardships, but I am confident that with our spirit and experience, and resilience, we will prevail. Not only shall we survive those challenges; working together with patriotism and commitment, we shall also achieve greater successes for Rwanda and the larger international community.

{{Kagame Paul is the President of Rwanda}}

{Unemployed persons who participated in the 2014 U.S. Green Card Lottery have told this website that they cannot plan for the year 2014 before knowing the results of the Lottery they participated in.}

Every Year the Diversity Visa Lottery (DV) Program Grants 50,000 visas to people all around the world. All 50,000 Winners are issued a US GREEN CARD authorizing them and their families to live and work in the United States.

Rwandans like other people around the world participate in this Lottery Program.

Makuza Mohammed, 26, a resident of Rwezamenyo sector in Kabuguru Cell said that although the year 2013 is ending, he has not planned for 2014 until the time he will know whether he was selected among the winners of 2014 US Green Card.

“I cannot lie to you that I have planned so much for the next year. But this is because I don’t have a job. I am waiting for the results of the 2014 US Green Card then after I will plan for the next year”

Many Rwandans especially unemployed youth believes that through US Green Card Lottery they can have chance of better life abroad than remaining unemployed in their native country.

Murebwayire Zaituna, 30, whose sister is living in USA after winning a Green Card, also said she is waiting for the results of the Lottery and she is optimistic that she will win the US Diversity Visa Lottery.

Mateso John, 37, says that he has so many projects in 2014 but all of them will be thought about after the release of results of the 2014 US Green Card program.

Whether it is unemployment that is pushing youth to wait for the results of the US Lottery, the Government of Rwanda has put in place different initiatives that aim to improve living conditions among youth. These include Hanga Umurimo Program, Entrepreneurship programs and investing in many other projects that can create more jobs among youth.

Rwanda planned, through the second economic development and poverty reduction strategy (EDPRS II), to provide economic opportunities to young people through skills development programs and investment in ICT.

While university enrolment numbers are increasing, not everyone can and should go to university. The government introduced Integrated Polytechnics Regional Centres (IPRCs) and Technical Vocational Education and Training institutions (TVETs) to increase Rwanda’s technical and vocational capacity as well as providing young people competitive labour market skills that meet growing demand.