Today is the international day of remembrance for the 1994 Genocide in Rwanda.
MESSAGE FROM SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON ON THE 17TH COMMEMORATION OF THE GENOCIDE IN RWANDA, 7 APRIL 2011
“Today, we honour the memory of more than 800,000 people murdered in the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. Our thoughts are also with the survivors, left to rebuild shattered communities and an entire nation. On this day of remembrance, let us pay special tribute to the people and Government of Rwanda for the resilience and dignity they have shown in working towards national recovery and managing the trauma of this atrocious episode of history. I encourage them to continue promoting the inclusive spirit and dialogue necessary for healing, reconciliation and reconstruction.
The United Nations is committed to preventing the recurrence of similar tragedies. The recognition of the collective failure of the international community to come to the assistance of the people of Rwanda, and to shield the victims of the wars in the Balkans, led to the endorsement by the 2005 World Summit of the responsibility to protect.
Preventing genocide is a collective and individual responsibility. Rwanda’s survivors have made us confront the ugly reality of a preventable tragedy. The only way to truly honour the memory of those who perished in Rwanda 17 years ago is to ensure such events can never occur again.”
To read the full statement, click here.
Project
Between 2003 – 2007, Soroptimist International worked with Women for Women International on a project to help women in the aftermath of conflict.
The partnership closed with Soroptimist International wildly exceeding its fundraising and outreach goals. Over the course of the project, many women were helped to become active and engaged citizens once more, to gain vital skills needed to give them independence and to provide them with emotional and financial support.
The impact in Rwanda has been especially significant as 25% of the women who received training went on to become elected leaders in their communities!
SI provided sponsorship to 1,960 women, exceeding goals by 63%! 600 woman received a microcredit loan and were assigned a Soroptimist sister who sent letters to her of encouragement and support for that entire year.
Each woman participated in Renewing Women’s Life Education Training which gave them practical skills for life, health, money management, leadership development and rights training. They learned about their human rights and how to assert these rights in different contexts. Most importantly, they learned that they were an important part of their community and were guided in how they could best contribute to their community as a leader.
Through these programmes, the participants were helped to move from victim to survivor to active citizen.
As we remember the victims and survivors of the 1994 Genocide and continue to look to the future, we would like to share one story of survival from Project Independence:
Jeanine’s Story
Jeanine is a 35 year-old widow who lost her husband during the 1994 genocide.
When Jeanine married her first husband, they dreamed of moving to a rural area and purchasing their own plot of land to raise a family. Shortly after they moved, the genocide began. Jeanine and her husband were a "mixed" couple — one was Hutu, the other Tutsi. Because of this, they were always in danger. In order to protect Jeanine and their baby daughter, Christine, Jeanine’s husband suggested that they split up. Her husband left, and Jeanine remained at their home. "I never heard from my husband again," Jeanine said.
In 1999, Jeanine’s in-laws insisted that she marry her brother-in-law against her wishes. With him, she had her son Eve. The following year, Jeanine’s daughter Christine was old enough to enter school. However, Jeanine didn’t have enough money to pay the school fees – approximately $40 USD a year. "I went to my second husband, my brother-in-law. I asked him for help in sending Christine, his niece, to school. He told me, ‘I am not the father of this child. Educate her yourself.’" After this, I said to him "If you don’t want to educate my daughter or help us, leave here. This house was built by me and my husband. Leave us alone." Shortly after, he left.
Jeanine was forced to beg on the streets in order to support herself and her two children. She used to also help tend people’s farms, and they would pay her in food. She had no way to earn money.
Jeanine heard about Project Independence and she entered the programme. She was linked with Dinah Scudder,
In February 2006, Jeanine had just completed her first harvest of beans and peanuts. With her profits and additional sponsorship funds, Jeanine has been able to send her daughter, Christine, back to school.
Jeanine also enjoys the camaraderie she has established with other women in the program. Jeanine says: “I was so isolated. I had lost love for other people. Now, I am so happy that our trainer starts our program with the words, ‘Gather together with your friends.’ The most important thing for me in this program is being together and sharing with the other women in my group. We learn so much from each other.”
“I now see myself as a strong woman,” Jeanine says. “My daughter says, ‘Mom, I can see you are so happy now.’”