Africa

[Visited: July 2024]

We have seen the Genocide Memorial the day before, which is a must-see and a place that cannot leave any human untouched. We see many more places in Kigali, the pleasant capital of Rwanda. On our last day, we decide to visit the memorial for the Belgian peacekeepers. It lies in the middle of the city, in a quiet neighbourhood. But as soon as we step inside the compound, we are taken to a different world with a different feel. The wall of the low building is riddled with bullet holes. A Rwandan guard welcomes us, and takes us inside. It turns out that the building houses a small museum. It gives an explanation of the events that happened here, and puts them into the perspective of the horribly black period of Rwanda in 1994. It is a chilling account of the beginning of one of the most terrible periods in our recent history.
There were already plans for a genocide, and the international community had sent peacekeepers to the country. Belgium was the only western country to send commandos, and there were others from Ghana, Bangladesh and a few other countries. Then, on April 6 1994, the Rwandan president was killed: his plane was shot down upon approach to Kigali airport. This sparked all kinds of reactions. The Belgian peacekeepers were assigned to protect Rwandan prime minister Agathe on the morning of April 7. They were told that the Belgians had assassinated the president. Hutu soldiers attacked her house, disarmed the Belgians, and took them to the military base in the city. That is where we are standing now. Four Belgians were killed on the spot, the other six barricaded themselves, managed to get hold of weapons, but were eventually brutally killed as well by grenades and machine gun fire.
The prime minister was also killed, as were peacekeepers from other countries. The bodies were mutilated and discarded in a nearby hospital. The international community was so shocked by the events, that they withdrew their people from Rwanda. The Rwandan rebels had achieved their goal: they now had free rein to carry out their cruel plans. Many hundreds of thousands of Rwandans were killed in the 100 days following the tragic death of the Belgian peacekeepers. Next door, in the room with the bullet holes in its exterior wall, we see a Belgian and Rwandan flag. We see a plaque commemorating the slain soldiers, and in the corner, we see flowers on the floor. The wall is completely full of bullet holes. The guard tells us that this is the exact spot where the poor young guys were killed. We can only stand in silence, in horror at the events. Outside, we find ten columns, made of Belgian stone. They have horizontal lines representing their ages, and initials at their base. In the lines, we see quite a few flowers. It is a few months after the thirty year commemoration of these brutal events. Events that we can only hope will never occur again, anywhere.

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Belgian Peacekeepers memorial (Rwanda)

Belgian Peacekeepers memorial > Rwanda > Africa

[Visited: July 2024]

Around the World in 80 Clicks