1) Belgian Memorial. In April 1994, ten Belgian soldiers were there to protect the Prime Ministre, Agathe Uwilingiyimana, who was a moderate Hutu, in the tense times before the genocide began. After President Habyarimana's plane was shot down, the Prime Ministre was killed along with her family. The ten soldiers were taken to this site and were killed by grenade, gun, and machete. The memorial area has ten pillars set up in memory. Inside the building, one part is just the room where the men were shot. There are bullet holes outside and inside, and there is still some blood on the walls. The other rooms have more information on the walls to read about this incident and the genocide, etc. It was a sobering way to be introduced to Rwanda. But things didn't lighten up after that.
2) Genocide Memorial. Beautifully and thoughtfully put together. The grounds had many locations of mass graves -- thousands of people are buried there. Inside is more like a museum. The story of the genocide is told in some detail, including stories of specific people and their suffering and deaths. There is a section also just about the children who were murdered. The top floor talks about genocide worldwide and covers different instances, such as Cambodia, Armenia, the Holocaust, etc. I hate that I have to put an 'et cetera' on there. I hate that this has happened so many times on earth that there has to be a museum about it. It makes me angry and sad all at once. It reminds me of something Theoden says in The Two Towers (film), regarding the Uruk-Hai (an army bred for a single purpose: to destroy the world of men): "What can men do against such reckless hate?"
I'm not sure that it's a rhetorical question...
I came to feel physically sick towards the end. I can't imagine what I would have felt if I had gone in not already knowing what had happened here. I am so disappointed with the international community for acting in ways that really made it all worse. I'm also amazed at how Rwanda is recovering; more about that to come.
I haven't said anything about today (Wednesday) yet, but it's bedtime so I'll work on it tomorrow. Still trying to catch up from the journey.
Things of note:
- Americans worry about silly things.
- Jesus' words about anger and hatred are so true. They totally count as murder; in this case, they led to it.
- I have a lot to learn.
