UN reflects on the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda

António Guterres joined survivors, diplomats and civil society members for the annual ceremony in the UN General Assembly Hall to mourn the lives lost in this “chilling chapter in human history” and to prevent it from ever happening again.

He recalled that the genocide occurred at terrifying speed.

The atrocities took place over 100 days, starting on 7 April 1994.  Some one million children, women and men were killed.  While the overwhelming majority were Tutsi, Hutu and others who opposed the genocide also were slaughtered. 

Collective failure to act

“This was not a spontaneous frenzy of horrendous violence,” he said.

“It was intentional. It was premeditated. It was planned, including through the hate speech that inflamed division, and spread lies and dehumanization. And it was the product of a collective failure to act.”

The President of the UN General Assembly, Philémon Yang, also addressed the international community’s inaction.

“Despite early warnings, despite clear signs of impending catastrophe, the world stood by as the killing unfolded. Governments debated while cries for help went unanswered, while lives were lost,” he said.

“Today, as we reflect on our failure, we must ask: Have we truly learned from the past? Have we done enough to ensure that such atrocities never happen again? Or is it happening somewhere as we speak?”

Testimony of survival

Global health researcher and author Germaine Tuyisenge Müller shared her harrowing testimony of survival. She was just nine when the genocide began and was living in the capital, Kigali, with her mother, aunt and two young cousins. Her three siblings were visiting relatives at the time.

“Our country was plunged into unimaginable horror,” she said. “Families torn apart; children, including the unborn, slaughtered; women raped, often in front of their loved ones, and entire communities wiped out simply because they were Tutsi.”

The period was marked by efforts to seek safety, separation from beloved family members, and news of death. At one point Ms. Tuyisenge Müller stayed alone in an abandoned house for two months, living off powdered milk and sugar dissolved in rainwater.

It would be seven months before she would see her mother again, who had been shot in the early stage of the genocide.  

Her mother and aunt were at that point living with 13 members of their extended family from across the country. The eldest was her grandmother, who joined them after her husband was killed.

Remembrance and resilience

“Today, I share this testimony in memory of the more than one million lives lost during the genocide,” said Ms. Tuyisenge Müller.

“I also speak for the survivors: for our resilience, our strength, our unwavering commitment to remembrance. Thirty-one years later, we continue to carry this truth, even in the face of growing genocide denial and revisionism.”

In his remarks, the Secretary-General noted that Rwanda has made an extraordinary journey towards reconciliation, healing and justice since the genocide, yet this terrible period in its history is a reminder that no society is immune from hate and horror.

Lessons for today

“As we reflect on how these crimes came about, we must also reflect on resonance with our own times,” he said, referring to divisions today.

Mr. Guterres warned that “the narrative of ‘them’ versus ‘us’ is increasingly polarizing societies in the Great Lakes region and around the world.” At the same time, “digital technologies are being weaponized to inflame hate, stoke division, and spread lies.”

He also pointed to the “alarming array of racism, misogyny, and genocide denial” circulating online.

“We see conspiracies, untruths, and deep fakes spread at an alarming pace. We must stem the tide of hate speech and stop division and discontent mutating into violence,” he said.

The UN chief called for the international community to work to “stem the tide of hate speech and stop division and discontent mutating into violence.” 

In this regard, he urged countries to fully implement the Global Digital Compact, adopted last year, which outlines important commitments to tackle falsehoods and hate.

“Above all, we all must act, to prevent human rights violations. And to hold those who commit them to account,” he said.

He called on all countries to become parties to the Genocide Convention “and to honour the responsibility to protect their populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity.”