French President Emmanuel Macron admitted French responsibility in the Rwandan genocide, during a visit to the Rwandan capital Kigali on Thursday.
"Standing here today, with humility and respect, by your side, I have come to recognize our responsibilities," Macron said in a speech at the Kigali Genocide Memorial where more than 250,000 Tutsi are buried.
He said that France had a duty to admit the "suffering it inflicted on the Rwandan people by too long valuing silence over the examination of the truth."
Relations deteriorated after the 1994 genocide and Macron is the first French leader to visit the country in ten years.
Macron: France 'not an accomplice'
The French president said only Rwandans could forgive France for its role in the genocide: "On this path, only those who went through that night can perhaps forgive, give us the gift of forgiving."
Macron is the first French leader since 2010 to visit the East African nation
France did not listen to those who warned it about the impending massacre in Rwanda and stood de facto by a genocidal regime, Macron said.
But France "was not an accomplice" to the genocide, Macron added.
Was it an apology?
Rwandan President Paul Kagame said: "His words were something more valuable than an apology. They were the truth," he told a joint press conference after the two leaders met in Kigali.
Kagame said relations would only strengthen going forward: "France and Rwanda are going to relate much better to the benefit of both our peoples, economically, politically and in terms of culture," he said.
"But the relationship between our two countries will never be entirely conventional. There is a special familiarity resulting from the complex and terrible history we share, for better or for worse," he added.
"We have chosen to make it for the better. We wish to form a strong and sustainable relationship, based on priorities that matter to both Rwanda and France."
Jean Paul Kimonyo, a former aide to President Kagame, said: "I think that speech was a very strong speech because he asked for forgiveness in a subtle manner but in a strong manner. It was subtle but substantively strong."
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Portrayals of Rwanda's genocide, 25 years on
Black Earth Rising
In the British Netflix series, Kate digs into the turmoil of her past. She wants to put those responsible for the genocide in her home country behind bars, but that puts her in grave danger. It's a dramatic reappraisal of the genocide — and its aftermath to this day, accompanied by Leonard Cohen's dark "You want it darker" as the soundtrack.
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Portrayals of Rwanda's genocide, 25 years on
Hotel Rwanda
Paul Rusesabagina ran the Hotel des Mille Collines in Kigali in 1994. During the genocide, he protected more than 1,200 people from certain death. In 2004, the story was turned into the film "Hotel Rwanda." The disturbing drama was not only nominated for three Oscars, but also reminded the general public of the atrocities of the genocide.
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Portrayals of Rwanda's genocide, 25 years on
Shake Hands with the Devil
Romeo Dallaire (photo) was commander of the UN mission in Rwanda before and during the genocide. In his book "Shake Hands with the Devil," he lays blame on the international community for the catastrophe of 1994. The Canadian had said that intervention was vital in order to stop the murder, but his cries for help and those of the Rwandans went unheeded. His book was turned into a film in 2007.
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Portrayals of Rwanda's genocide, 25 years on
Hate Radio
The radio was used by the génocidaires, who perpetrated the genocide in Rwanda, as a propaganda tool to spread their hate messages throughout the country. The RTLM broadcaster called the Tutsi and the moderate Hutu "cockroaches." In his play "Hate Radio," the Swiss theater director Milo Rau stages a frighteningly authentic day in the studio of the infamous station.
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Portrayals of Rwanda's genocide, 25 years on
We Wish to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed with Our Families
The church is also partly to blame for the genocide in Rwanda. This dramatic, formal sentence from a Tutsi pastor's letter to a church superior collaborating with the génocidaires was chosen by US journalist Phillip Gourevitch as the title of his book. In Rwanda, he collected reports from survivors. Through them he tried to understand the psychological aftermath of the genocide.
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Portrayals of Rwanda's genocide, 25 years on
Shooting Dogs
The film "Shooting Dogs" shows how quickly a supposedly healthy world became hell on earth. In a school in Kigali, hundreds of people seek shelter from the murderous militias waiting outside the gates. They initially believe that the UN blue helmets can protect them, but then the evacuations of Americans and Europeans begin. The Rwandans are left behind — and the killing starts.
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Portrayals of Rwanda's genocide, 25 years on
Left to tell
For 91 days, Immaculée Ilibagiza hid in the bathroom of a pastor's house. Machete-wielding men had been looking for her and the seven other women who had taken refuge in the small room. When they were finally able to leave, she discovered that almost her entire family had been murdered. She believes that it was her faith that saved her and has written about the genocide and its lasting effects.
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Portrayals of Rwanda's genocide, 25 years on
Rwandan Records
Even 25 years after the genocide, Rwanda remains inextricably linked to the darkest chapter in its history. But many Rwandans also want to look to the future — including rapper Eric1key and the "Rwandan Records" project. Their goal is to show there is more than just a victim mentality by promoting the perspective of self-confident people. They are holding shows in Berlin and later, in Rwanda.
Author: Felix Schlagwein (als/ct)
The Ibuka association, Rwanda's main genocide survivor group, criticized Macron for not giving "a clear apology and not asking for forgiveness.
Egide Nkuranga, the group's president, added that Macron had "really tried to explain the genocide, how it happened, what they didn't do, their responsibilities... It's very important, it shows that he understands us."
Rwandan President Paul Kagame, who has accused France of responsibility in the genocide, earlier said they could "maybe not forget, but forgive" France for its role.
Why are relations between Rwanda and France strained?
Rwanda has repeatedly accused France of being complicit in the 1994 genocide that killed around 800,000 people, mostly Tutsi Rwandans and moderate Hutus.
A report by a French panel released in March said French officials bore "serious and overwhelming" responsibility for not foreseeing the slaughter. It said that a colonial attitude had blinded French officials. The report absolved France of direct complicity in the killings.
President Kagame said the report "meant a lot" to Rwandans.
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100 days of slaughter: Rwanda's genocide
A signal to extremists
On April 6, 1994, unidentified attackers shot down a plane carrying Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana as it was about to land at Kigali airport. President Habyarimana, his Burundian counterpart and eight other passengers died in the crash. The next day organized killings began. Massacres continued over the course of three months, and at least 800,000 Rwandans lost their lives.
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100 days of slaughter: Rwanda's genocide
Targeted killings
After the assassination of the president, Hutu extremists attacked the Tutsi minority and Hutus who stood in their way. The murderers were well prepared and targeted human rights activists, journalists and politicians. One of the first victims on April 7 was Prime Minister Agathe Uwiringiymana.
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100 days of slaughter: Rwanda's genocide
Foreign nationals rescued
While thousands of Rwandans were being killed every day, Belgian and French special forces evacuated about 3,500 foreigners. On April 13, Belgian paratroopers rescued seven German employees and their families from Deutsche Welle's relay transmitting station in Kigali. Only 80 of 120 local staff members survived the genocide.
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100 days of slaughter: Rwanda's genocide
Appeals for help
As early as January 1994, UNAMIR commander Romeo Dallaire wanted to act on information he had received about an "anti-Tutsi extermination" plot. The warning he sent to the UN on January 11, later known as the "genocide fax", went unheard. And his desperate appeals after the genocide began were rejected by Kofi Annan, who was Under Secretary General for Peacekeeping Operations at the time.
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100 days of slaughter: Rwanda's genocide
Hate media
The Mille Collines radio station (RTLM) and Kangura, a weekly magazine, stoked ethnic hatred. In 1990 Kangura published the racist "Hutu Ten Commandments." Mille Collines radio, which was popular for its pop music and sports programs, fuelled the genocide by urging Hutu civilians to hunt down and kill Tutsis. Director Milo Rau devoted his film "Hate Radio" to these appalling broadcasts (photo).
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100 days of slaughter: Rwanda's genocide
Refuge in a hotel
In Kigali, Paul Rusesabagina hid over 1,000 people in the Hotel Des Mille Collines. Rusesabagina had taken over the position of the hotel's Belgian manager, who left the country. With a great deal of alcohol and money, he managed to prevent Hutu militias from killing the refugees. In many other places where people sought refuge, they were not able to escape the slaughter.
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100 days of slaughter: Rwanda's genocide
Massacres in churches
Churches were no longer sanctuaries. About 4,000 men, women and children were murdered with axes, knives and machetes in the church of Ntarama near Kigali. Today the church is one of the country's many genocide memorials. Rows of skulls, human bones as well as bullet marks in the walls are a reminder of what happened there.
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100 days of slaughter: Rwanda's genocide
France's role
The French government maintained close ties to the Hutu regime. When the French army intervened in June, it enabled soldiers and militiamen responsible for the genocide to flee to Zaire, now the Democratic Republic of Congo, and take their weapons with them. They still pose a threat to Rwanda today.
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100 days of slaughter: Rwanda's genocide
Streams of refugees
During the genocide, millions of Rwandan Tutsis and Hutus fled to Tanzania, Zaire and Uganda. Two million of them went to Zaire alone. They included former members of the army and perpetrators of the genocide, who soon founded the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), a militia that is still terrorizing the population in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo today.
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100 days of slaughter: Rwanda's genocide
Capture of the capital
On July 4, 1994, rebels from the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) patrolled the area around the Church of the Holy Family in Kigali. By that time they had liberated most of the country and routed the perpetrators of the genocide. However, human rights activists also accused the rebels of committing crimes, for which no one has been held accountable to this day.
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100 days of slaughter: Rwanda's genocide
End of the genocide
On July 18, 1994, the RPF's leader, Major General Paul Kagame, declared that the war against the government troops was over. The rebels were in control of the capital and other important towns. Initially, they installed a provisional government. Paul Kagame became Rwanda's president in the year 2000.
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100 days of slaughter: Rwanda's genocide
Lasting scars
The genocide went on for almost three months. The victims were often slaughtered with machetes. Neighbors killed neighbors. Not even babies and elderly people were spared, and the streets were strewn with corpses and body parts. It's not only the physical scars on the bodies of the survivors that remind Rwandans of the genocide. There is also a deep trauma.
Author: Andrea Schmidt / gu
In 1994, during the Rwandan civil war, then-President Juvenal Habyarimana's plane was shot down, killing him. This led to the genocide that lasted around 100 days.
"French officials armed, advised, trained, equipped and protected the Rwandan government," said the French report. Until now, France has denied a role in the killings.
Not a warm welcome in Kigali
Macron's visit marks the culmination of his efforts to rebuild relations with Rwanda since assuming power in 2017. The last French official visit to the country was when former President Nicolas Sarkozy visited in 2010.
AP news agency reported that the streets of Kigali bore no crowds welcoming the French president with flags, unlike the usual attention that high profile visits receive.
After the visit, Macron is scheduled to visit South Africa.
kmm, tg/rt (AFP, AP, Reuters)
