We had a good night in the Mille Collines, quite a swish abode for us and a far cry from a canvas walled mansion in the Botswana desert.
Theogene our guide picked us up and took us to an artisan market. Here we had to bargain for goods which is never pleasant...we find ourselves aggressively trying to save 50 cents on a $2.00 sale item. They had a heap of carved animals in ebony wood and other material which will no doubt cause eyebrows to raise when we hit NZ Biosecurity.
Following shopping we had a quick lunch in a very nice restaurant, as clean and well managed as most kiwi premises. Then we were off to the Genocide Museum which has to be one of the most appalling history stops we have had. Nazi Germany and the concentration camps were never a thrill but this place is even more uncomfortable. For 100 days in 1994 the "Hutus" planned and killed 6 people per minute, every hour, every day.........for the entire 100 days. They killed the rival minority tribe of "Tutsi's". Men, women and children were massacred often with a machete and not just by army and militia but by civilians and neighbours. There are reports that some victims were given the option of paying for a bullet if they wanted a quick death. The Museum holds the mass graves of 250,000 of the dead and relatives are often visiting to remember lost family members.
Over 125,000 people were accused after a new government took control. This was taking ages in the Court system. The National Courts still dealt with those who planned or raped but they decided to return to 'grassroots' justice systems. "The Gacaca trials served to promote reconciliation by providing a
means for victims to learn the truth about the death of their family
members and relatives. They also gave perpetrators the opportunity to
confess their crimes, show remorse and ask for forgiveness in front of
their community."
The convicted included two Catholic priests who encouraged people into
their church, then allowed Hutu renegades in to murder them.
After our visit our guide told us his father and brother were genocide victims while he was at school. His mother is Hutu and was
spared though her own brother said she should die for marrying a Tutsi.
Rwandans move forward to the future all equal it appears now but they still have a memorial day in every village in April.
How the country has got itself back on track, is peaceful and safe and where there is no corruption, all in a very short time is quite amazing. Unfortunately the scars will remain for many decades but it appears that their government is doing their very best to put the atrocities behind them. We can hope for the best and encourage anyone who enjoys travelling in the third world to visit and contribute to their economy. The people were extremely friendly and very respectful. The country is very clean (plastic bags are banned), the food very good, the climate as close to perfect as it could be and the National Parks are all different with amazing highlights. Rwanda deserves more travellers...we had a wonderful time and were quite sad to leave.
It is now time to fasten our seatbelts, stow our tray table away and prepare for the journey home with short stops in Johannesburg and Perth, and even shorter stop in Auckland and if all goes to plan we will be back in Blenheim by noon on Thursday this week. Hope you enjoyed your virtual trip with us.
