On Wednesday June 5, 2024, over 250 people gathered in Monrovia, the Liberian Capital City, in a ceremony for the 30^th commemoration of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi organized by the High Commission of Rwanda in Ghana accredited to Liberia in partnership with the United Nations in Liberia particularly the Peace Building Fund.

Participants at the event included Liberia’s 2^nd Lady Her Excellency Stephanie Dahn-Koung, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs in charge of International Cooperation Honorable Ibrahim Nyei, Ambassador Christine Umutoni, UN Resident Coordinator in Liberia, several Ambassadors representing their countries to Liberia, young people including several Liberian youths who studied in Rwanda among many others.

The event started with a “Walk to Remember” that started from the 540 Junction in Monrovia to the Ministerial Complex where the ceremony was held.

Delivering key remarks on behalf of His Excellency Jeremiah Kpan Koung, Vice President of Liberia, Hon. Nyei called on all Liberians and people of the world to embrace unity, and to draw lessons from Rwanda’s experience.

He emphasized that there is so much to learn from Rwanda, which after experiencing the horrors of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi has managed to pull itself together, transforming in all spheres to the admiration and envy of many.

In her remarks delivered virtually, Ms. Clementine Mukeka, the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of the Republic of Rwanda emphasized the need for historical clarity on the truth of what happened in Rwanda.

She reminded the gathering that the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi did not happen by accident; it was a planned and deliberate process put in place by the extremist genocidal Government to wipe out the Tutsi in their entirety. It targeted every man, woman and child identified as Tutsi. In the span of a hundred days, more than 1 million people were killed.

To provide more insight into this truth, Mr. Charles Habonimana, a survivor of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi and currently the Managing Director of Rwanda Airports Company shared his testimony of narrowly surviving only because the Rwandan Patriotic Army rescued him in the struggle to end the genocide and liberate the country.

In a moving testimony that gave the audience a glimpse in the cost of the Genocide against the Tutsi, Mr. Habonimana also took the opportunity to showcase Rwanda’s recovery, using his example of a young boy who survived and later managed to forge forward under empowering leadership to now being a father of four.

The United Nations Resident Coordinator who also delivered remarks at the event reminded people of the historical importance of continuing to remember the Genocide against the Tutsi, recalling that the UN designated April 7^th as the International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Genocide again the Tutsi since 2003.