After failing in their mission to preach love of neighbour during the 1994 genocide against the Tutsis, religious denominations today play an important role in the reconciliation of Rwandans.
In a RTV television programme presented by Basile Uwimana on the role of religious denominations in the reconstruction of Rwandan identity, all participants acknowledged the failure of religious denominations during the genocide against the Tutsis.
Three religious denominations were represented. The Catholic Church, Mgr Philippe Rukamba of the Diocese of Huye answered questions by video-conference. Pr Antoine Rutayisire and Mufti Hitimana Salim were in one of the RTV studios. The first is from the Anglican Church and the second is the head of the Rwanda Muslim Community.
He pleaded for the Muslims. He tried to show their refusal to get involved in the genocide. But Pastor Antoine Rutayisire quickly set the record straight. He accused the Muslims of having taken no action against Ngeze Hassan. He was a journalist and founder of the newspaper Kangura. He published the Ten Commandments of the Hutus, two months after the RPF-Inkotanyi attack on the Habyalimana regime. This publication served to stir up Hutu hatred of Tutsis.
In the end, some clerics of all faiths without exception were involved in the 1994 genocide against the Tutsis. Religious denominations served as a sounding board for successive regimes until the genocide against the Tutsis in 1994.
A turnaround after the genocide
In his intervention, Pr Antoine Rutayisire showed how much time he took to reflect on the message to be given after the genocide. Only one message seemed appropriate, that of the reconciliation of Rwandans. “You can verify that most of the executioners and victims who were reconciled were helped in this process by the religious denominations. “He said.
Churches have had access to prisons to preach the message of reconciliation. But, regrets Antoine Rutayisire, no religious was really prepared for this task. “Courses in the theology of reconciliation do not exist in the training curriculum for religious. “Everyone has to cope with this unprecedented situation.
Bishop Philippe Rukamba, Bishop of the Diocese of Butare, implicitly recognizes the role of politicians in the good and bad governance of a state. “The State has all the prerogatives over its population. If it had decided otherwise, …” He says. A bit like the biblical account in the book of Genesis. “The woman whom you put by me gave me of the tree, and I ate thereof. “Genesis 3:12.
Gerard Rugambwa
