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Genocide prevention: Catching them young

Friday June 24 2016
Neva

Peace Building Institute, a bi-annual programme run by Never Again Rwanda, a human-rights organisation, hopes to empower Rwandan youth to become active citizens through peace building. ILLUSTRATION | JOHN NYAGAH |

Concern has been rising over lack of education programmes, especially on building sustainable peace in the country, tailored to those born after the Genocide against Tutsis.

This concern is justified since empowered young citizens play a big role in building a cohesive society for the country’s stable future.

An effort to this end, Peace Building Institute, a bi-annual programme run by Never Again Rwanda, a human-rights organisation that hopes to empower Rwandan youth to become active citizens through peace building, ended last week.

Participants were drawn from young Rwandans, and others from elsewhere like the US and the wider East African region, especially post conflict and unstable countries, to come and learn from experts about The 1994 Genocide and draw lessons from it.

As part of peace week, the country is hosting “Ubumuntu International Youth Conference,” which brings together 100 young peace builders from 16 countries. Participants will learn post-genocide reconstruction and genocide prevention.

However, not all the youth participate in similar opportunities yet, according to Florence Batoni, peace-building co-ordinator at Never Again, youth participation is crucial for sustainable peace, “because they are part and parcel of the national development.”

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Never Again says more needs to be done to educate the youth to increase the impact of similar programmes for genocide prevention and conflicts resolution initiatives.

The National Commission for the Fight against Genocide is running a sensitisation campaign in secondary schools as part of youth education for genocide prevention and the fight against its ideology.

Laurence Sande, a 24-year-old university student says he is interested in peace building because of the country’s sad history.

“I call upon the media, government, civil society to emphasise constant education and youth mobilisation on peace building,” Mr Sande said.

On her part, university student Doreen Uwera, 21, says she knows the country’s history but she has learned more on its genocide history and consequences at the Peace Building Institute.

“The youth need constant education,” Ms Uwera told Rwanda Today.

According to the university student, there are many ways their peers can get involved in genocide prevention and peacebuilding including dialogues.

Never Again says it creates programmes on society healing, participatory governance for peace; spaces for youth discuss sensitive issues, and reconciliation but there is a lot to be done as some youth are misled.

“What we are learning is that most of the youth tell us that when they meet as colleagues they discuss these issues, they feel supported and part of the processes, but when they go back their parents take them back because of their own ideological understanding,” said Ms Batoni.

Never Again hopes to create peaceful critical thinkers who are able to challenge the community and parents.