Genocide Memorial Site. Rwanda Cultural Adventure Tour
Kigali genocide memorial site is the area or location where most Rwandese commemorate the 1994 genocide in the country that claimed thousands of people. It is estimated that over 250,000 people’s remains are kept in there. It is believed that in April 1994, there were reports of a systematic murder that had begun in Rwanda though there was nothing much done at the time this was between the Hutu and the Tutsi and all this fighting was mainly based on tribalistic differences. In the year 2000, Kigali City Council began constructing a building that was meant to become the memorial centre. There are other memorial centres in the country and these include Nyamata, Murambi, Ntarama, Bisesero, and Nyarubuye genocide memorial centres.
Kigali Genocide Site
This is located in Gisozi, just outside Kigali city centre, and is believed that over 250,000 people’s remains are kept there. At this particular site, there is a student study centre as well as other people who are interested in knowing more about the events that led to the occurrence of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. It is also a permanent memorial site for those that fell victim to the 1994 genocide and this is where the bereaved buried their family, friends, and relatives. It is run by the Aegis Trust on behalf of the National Commission for the Fight Against Genocide.
The centre was started with the help of the Rwandan Commission for the Fight against Genocide and the Kigali City Council as they commissioned a U.K based genocide prevention organization called Aegis Trust to start the Kigali genocide memorial centre. It was later inaugurated at the commemoration of 10 years of the genocide in April 2004.
Murambi Genocide Site
This was founded on 21st April 1994 and is considered one of the sites of a massacre during the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. About 50,000 Tutsis were murdered here in a church where they were believed to have been hiding. It is believed that only 34 people are believed to have survived the massacre in Murambi. Therefore, the Murambi genocide memorial site houses about 50,000 mass graves of the people killed during this time and the school building act as a genocide museum with skeletons and mummified bodies of the people that were killed in the Gikongoro Province.
Nyamata Memorial Site
This is located 30 kilometres South of Kigali and around 50,000 remains of the Rwandan victims are buried at this particular site. During the 1994 genocide, most people went to hide in churches since they were considered safe but sadly the people ended up being shot and killed by throwing grenades and machetes. Up now as you visit this site, you will see that the altar cloth is stained with blood. Most people are buried at this site though identity cards and clothes have been kept to identify whether they are Hutu or Tutsi. The church ceiling also shows the bullet halls and it is believed that over 50,000 victims are buried at the Nyamata genocide memorial site.
Ntarama Genocide Site
This is located in the Bugesera district, just an hour’s drive from the Kigali City Centre. It is believed that here, over five thousand people were killed on 15th April 1994 as they tried to hide inside a catholic church and the church is now a memorial site as most tourists go to visit this area.
Bisesero Genocide Memorial Site
It is located 60 kilometres by road from Kibuye on a small hill at the small settlement of Bisesero.
Nyarubuye Memorial Site
At this point, it is believed that over 20,000 civilians were killed on 15th April 1994 at Nyarubuye Catholic church in Kibungo province. This is located 140 kilometres East of Kigali and here the main victims were the Tutsi men, women, and children who were indiscriminately killed by using spears, arrows, clubs, grenades, and machetes.
Tourists who are interested in knowing more about the 1994 Rwanda genocide, they can choose to visit any of the above six genocide memorial sites for more information that will be provided by an experienced site guide at any of the above sites.
