Youth inspired to uphold a united future amid the 31st commemoration of the Genocide against the Tutsi at Huye Campus

In line with the 31st commemoration of the Genocide against the Tutsi, the University of Rwanda community honored over 500 victims who studied and worked at the former National University of Rwanda. The event was preceded by a night vigil attended by high dignitaries, including the Minister of Education, who served as the guest of honor.

In his remarks, the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Kayihura Didas, noted that the University of Rwanda reflects with a sense of shame on the fact that elite academic leaders at the former National University of Rwanda were integral to the architecture of the Genocide against the Tutsi. However, he expressed encouragement at the resolve shown by the young students, stating that they are already carrying the torch of a new Rwanda, ushered in by the Inkotanyi, free from racial hatred and disunity.

“The university community is overwhelmingly dominated by youth who are being shaped into leaders that remain reflective of the tragic past,” said the Vice Chancellor.

Speaking on the occasion, the Minister of Education underscored the enduring role of youth in safeguarding Rwanda’s unity, peace, and development. He noted that the Genocide was courageously halted by young members of the Rwanda Patriotic Army (RPA), led by today’s President, Paul Kagame. This legacy, he emphasized, is a call for the youth to maintain their spirit of resolve, as young Rwandans remain central to the country’s progress and transformation.

The historian Prof. Nkaka Raphael, a professor at the University, reminded students that the inclusive education system they now benefit from should never be taken for granted. For decades before 1994, successive Rwandan governments deliberately imposed segregationist policies that systematically denied Tutsis equal access to education at all levels.