President Kagame made the appreciation as he attended the ceremony for the 25th Commemoration of the Genocide Against the Tutsi held at the United Nations Headquarters in New York where the ceremony is held for the 15th time.
He commended UN General Secretary, António Guterres and the President of UN General Assembly María Fernanda Espinosa for co-organising the event with Rwandans.
President Kagame explained that “A remembrance is an act of honor. More than a million lives were lost. We honor the victims. We honor the courage of the survivors. And we honor the manner in which Rwandans have come together to rebuild our nation.”
He said that a Remembrance is also an act of prevention.
“Denial is an ideological foundation of genocide. Countering denial is essential for breaking the cycle and preventing any recurrence,” reiterated Kagame.
The General Assembly voted overwhelmingly last year to adopt the proper terminology: Genocide against the Tutsi. President Kagame thanked member states with most sincere appreciation for this measure highlighting that there is evidence showing that foreign countries draw a lesson from the 1994 Genocide Against Tutsi pushing them to prevent re-occurrence.
President Kagame reflected how in 1994, three representatives on the United Nations Security Council consistently called for action, despite the resistance of more powerful states. They were Ibrahim Gambari of Nigeria, Colin Keating of New Zealand, and Karel Kovanda of the Czech Republic.
President Kagame said there is a milestone in the prevention of genocide with apparent evidence.
“France, Italy, Luxembourg, Poland, and Switzerland have criminalized denial of the Genocide against the Tutsi, and Belgium has announced its intention to do so. Canada and France have designated April 7th as a day of commemoration. We applaud these steps, and encourage others to follow suit,” he noted.
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President Kagame emphasized that there is a significant advance related to peacekeeping where civilian protection has moved to the heart of peacekeeping doctrines with the strong support of the Secretary-General and the Member States.
“In 1994, the warnings of the United Nations Force Commander, General Roméo Dallaire of Canada, fell on deaf ears. In the absence of a protection-of-civilians mandate, there are limits to what good commanders can achieve. Nevertheless, he stayed and his forces did what they could. Captain Mbaye Diagne of Senegal saved countless lives, before giving his own,” he said.
For several years, Rwanda has been among the top five troop contributors to United Nations peacekeeping operations. President Kagame said that Rwanda intends to maintain this commitment saying: “Rwanda does not only contribute soldiers and police. We come to the task with the values instilled by our tragic history. As a nation once betrayed by the international community, we are determined to do our part to make things better, going forward.”
The commemoration event which gathered the Bank Employees from its different branches and Head Office started with a walk to remember from the Bank Headquarters to the Executive Suite building where the commemoration activities took place.
Speaking at the commemoration event, the Chief Executive Officer, Mrs. Arah Sadava said that the commemoration period is an opportunity to reflect on what happened and to strive for hope, Unity, and peace in the daily lives.
“Every year, as we remember and honor the lives lost, what happened 25 years ago is never too easy to comprehend. As the effects of what happened 25 years ago still ring in our minds, hearts and our homes; commemoration is an opportune moment for us to remember to bring back hope in our lives, to pray for unity, peace, and love amongst us and also to improve our lives and the lives of those who have lost their loved ones during the Genocide,” Mrs. Sadava said.
She added that on behalf of the Board of Directors, the Management and Employees, AB Bank Rwanda joins the Rwandan Community and friends of Rwanda to honor the memory of the victims of the Genocide against the Tutsi and to stand against any Genocide ideology. The bank is going to contribute as much as possible to Remember-Unite-Renew.
The commemoration event featured a discussion titled the Unity of Rwandans in rebuilding Rwanda after Genocide, fighting against Genocide ideology and rebuilding an ideal vision moderated by Mr. Prosper Rwigemera, a Bank Employee. Among other activities were prayers for peace and healing, the light of Hope, the testimonies from Genocides Survivors and the screening of a documentary film on the 1994 Genocide.
AB Bank Rwanda is a fully-fledged microfinance bank, which offers a wide range of financial products that serve both retail and corporate clients. The bank has a network of 6 branches in Rwanda; 5 of which are located in key areas of the capital city, Kigali, while the 6th branch is in Musanze, covering the Northern part of the country. The bank also has 6 credit outlets which are located in Muhanga, Rwamagana, Kabarondo, Huye, Gicumbi and Nyagatare.
Commenting on the activity, the bank CEO, Dr. Diane Karusisi said: “As a company operating in Rwanda we thrive to create a positive impact in the community where we work. Today’s gesture and those previously done, are in line with our commitment to remember and honor the lives that were lost in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. We hold dear the genocide survivors because they fought hard and need to be accompanied in their journey to rebuild.”
The solar systems installed will meet the families power needs, they are stand-alone photovoltaic systems that offer a cost-effective mode of supplying amenity power for lighting and appliances to remote off-grid households. With the donated fund, the households will meet their energy demand to fulfill basic electric needs
This year’s commemoration, under the theme of Remember-Unite-Renew, is focusing on the legacy of strength, resilience, honor, and unity that the new generation is called upon to sustain and carry forward to adapt to today’s global challenges and future aspirations
“Since light signifies hope, intelligence and the capacity of humans to develop on a rational level, we believe that the solar system will be beneficial as a tool of advancement,” added Dr. Diane Karusisi.
“25 years ago, the country came to its knees. It was total devastation; there was no private sector, no government services, just blood flowing across the country,” said Kagame.
“Everything was a priority and the biggest challenge was where you start from. We started from scratch, we started by putting pieces together, bringing people back together, reconciliation, justice, security, rebuilding schools, hospitals, and different public services,” he added.
In a period of 12 years, Rwanda created a traditional justice system through Gacaca court where over one million suspects were tried.
“25 years on we look back and find things have come together in a way that even ourselves are very much surprised. We have reconciled people of our country, national unity has been holding, justice has taken place, there has been forgiving,” observed Kagame.
President Kagame explained that it was challenging because the country experienced a situation where people killed neighbors and family members. “ We had situations where people would kill their family members. For example, a man or a husband at home kills children who don’t look like him, looking like a mother who is from a different identity. So you have a society in this kind of situation. It is really not only troubling but also extremely difficult to try and think of how to move the country forward.”
He explained that women have been empowered with 61.25% in parliament and 50% in the cabinet.
In the 2019 World Bank Doing Business report, Rwanda is the 2nd in Africa in easing doing business and 29th in the World.
President Kagame told NBA board of governors and executives that “Africa is open to doing business with the world, they have a lot to offer but Africa has a lot to offer as well. This is the moment to invest in Africa.”
“You don’t have to wait, invest now and grow with Africa. What we have understood is to create trust among people and trust with their leaders. Trust doesn’t just come about, you have to invest in it. Trust is the single point that binds things together. You have to figure out how you bring things together and people must feel they are relevant,” he added.
In partnership with International Basketball Federation (FIBA); NBA expanded to Africa launching Basketball Africa League (BAL) where it will provide financial, technical support and building infrastructures for the league.
It is expected that nine countries including Angola, Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sénégal, South Africa and Tunisia will begin the tournament in January 2020.
This was addressed by Christabel Dadzie, the Human Resource Manager at Ashesi University College and Founder of Ahaspora, while in Rwanda.
“We are encouraging Africans, mostly the youth in the West, to return to their home countries. We are putting in place a guideline and facilities to help them return. They must repatriate the knowledge they got so to advance the African continent. Our approach is to organize a platform for young Africans so that they exchange constructive ideas for the benefit of Africa,” said Christabel Dadzié.
The Mo Ibrahim Foundation’s 2018 report revealed that 60% of the African population is under 25 years old. More than 70,000 African intellectuals migrate annually to other continents in search of remunerating jobs.
The Rwanda Education Board (REB) issued a report in July 2017 making about 120 young people receiving scholarships abroad. According to the report, they consume each year around 6 to 8 billion francs, and that, at the end of their studies, only half of them return to the country.
January Gasana, the former CEO of REB, said these young people studying in the West, are asked to return home, free ticket offered, do everything to show that they are not wanting to return to participate in the reconstruction of their country.
Christabel Dadzie, the founder of AHASPORA, also went to university in the US 13 years ago. She decided to return to her country Ghana, after college, to start an organization sensitizing the Ghanaian youth in foreign universities to come back to their country to build self-confidence, development, and leadership in their country.
” I loved my homeland for an important reason. Everything I do in my homeland is totally different from how I would do it in the USA. There, social wealth is there enough. Yet at home, there is a person financially unable to afford school. A good financial or counseling action on their behalf can help the person finish university studies. Why do I have to stay in the West when my presence in the country is more needed,” said Dadzié
Dadzié added that African states are struggling to put in place promotional policies that allow their citizens living in the diaspora to return home to do business and invest.
President Kagame was accompanied by a delegation including Ambassador Valentine Rugwabiza representing Rwanda to UN.
As Rwanda entered the commemoration period on 7th April 2019, Guterres called on world population to fight against the evil wherever as the best way to honor victims of the 1994 Genocide against Tutsi.
“As we renew our resolve to prevent such atrocities from ever happening again, we are seeing dangerous trends of rising xenophobia, racism, and intolerance in many parts of the world. Particularly troubling is the proliferation of hate speech and incitement to violence. They are an affront to our values and threaten human rights, social stability, and peace. Wherever they occur, hate speech and incitement to violence should be identified, confronted and stopped to prevent them leading, as they have in the past, to hate crimes and genocide,” reads part of the message.
“I call on all political, religious and civil society leaders to reject hate speech and discrimination and to work vigorously to address and mitigate the root causes that undermine social cohesion and create conditions for hatred and intolerance. The capacity for evil resides in all our societies, but so, too, do the qualities of understanding, kindness, justice and reconciliation. Let us work together to build a harmonious future for all. This is the best way to honor those who lost their lives so tragically in Rwanda 25 years ago,” reads the message.
