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Rwanda:
25 year after the genocide
For 25 years ago, Theodosie Mukarutabana was convinced that she was condemned to a life of misery and unhappiness. She did not have the strength to work; nor did she feel there was any reason to do so. Her life had become meaningless. JEAN PIERRE BUCYENSENGE (text)
A few months previously, Mukarutabana had lost her husband and two children in one of worst atrocities in recent times: the genocide in Rwanda in 1994. On the 7th of April, a few hours after the aeroplane carrying President Juvenal Habyarimana was shot down above the capital, Kigali, a well prepared, systematic killing machine was put in motion. The country descended into hell. Over the next 100 days, and with the support of government soldiers, 800 000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were killed by Hutu militias who moved from town to town, village 4 l APPELL 2/2019
to village and house to house, slaughtering people with rifles, spears, machetes, clubs and arrows. The country lost key skills. Many teachers, health workers, politicians, journalists and economists were killed in the bloodbath while many others fled the country. The carnage came to an end after three months when a Tutsi rebel group, led by the current president, Paul Kagame, took over power. The country was then devastated. Roads were destroyed and hospitals, schools, office buildings and homes lay in ruins. It was then that the painstaking work of rebuilding the country began. There was a
lack of resources, however, and the people of Rwanda were dependent on support from the international community. 25 years later, Rwanda has undergone a transformation with enormous social, economic and political benefits and has become one of the fastest growing economies in Africa. SELF-HELP GROUP. Theodosie Mukarutabana was fortunate to survive the genocide but, after the harrowing experience of the loss of her family, she was unable to see a way forward in her life. “I was desperate and had lost the will to live. I didn’t have the energy to work because
I felt I had no future and was living on the help I got from others,” the 57 year-old says. Her breakthrough came a few months later when she was invited to take part in a selfhelp group back home in Karama, in the Huye District. The group, which called itself Ubutwari bwo kubaho (Courage to live), was formed to help survivors recover from their traumatic experiences and take back their lives. It later reached out a hand to the wives of men who had participated in the killing to provide emotional and social support. A little later, the members of Ubutwari bwo
kubaho received some good news: Norwegian People’s Aid had offered to give them some support. A NATION GETS BACK ON ITS FEET. In the immediate aftermath of the genocide, Norwegian People’s Aid began what was to prove one of the most successful aid projects in Rwanda. Jean Claude Rugera, who has been working in the organisation since the early 2000s, remembers how enormous people’s needs were at the time. “People lacked both the knowledge and
resources to pick up the pieces of their lives and improve their living conditions,” he says. “It was here that the support from Norwegian People’s Aid was invaluable.” To begin with, Norwegian people’s Aid concentrated their efforts on providing emergency relief to a society struggling to get back on its feet. Rebuilding healthcare and legal infrastructure, recruiting qualified personnel and direct support of vulnerable groups were all key activities. Specific programmes were then developed in which the local population was offered education and vocational training so that they could contribute to reconstruction efforts. Supported by Norwegian People’s Aid, Ubutwari bwo kubaho undertook an intensive course in financial management and bought a minibus which they used to offer transport to local communities. “When we started the minibus project, money began to stream in,” Theodosie Mukarutabana remembers. She was one of the first members of Ubutwari bwo kubaho and now sits on the board. “The money was shared out between the members so that we were able to pay school fees and health insurance and cover our basic needs such as food and clothes. Later on, we invested in livestock to increase our income still further. But the most important result of NPA support was that we were given the opportunity to develop our knowledge and skills.” She is supported by Francoise Mukagatare (58), another member, who says that this also helped survivors recover from the traumas left by the atrocities. “When you’re hungry, go to bed on an empty stomach and are unable to take care of your family, you begin to wonder why you survived. But when you start developing and improving your living conditions, hope of a better future begins to grow. And then processing the traumas goes faster too,” she says. PEACEFUL COEXISTENCE. In parallel with the members of Ubutwari bwo kubaho rebuilding their lives, another organisation, Abaruhuje, was founded in 1995 with the intention of bringing together surviving women and women who were married to those who took part in the killings and encourage them towards peaceful coexistence. After the genocide, and without stable income, the women were struggling to cope. So when 2/2019 APPELL l 5