R50 Rwanda - The 1994 Genocide, Now a Beautiful Progressive Country.

Tuesday, 2 May 2017 1:26 am

Our border crossing into Rwanda went well. Took about 1 hour to complete, then changed our Tanzanian Shillings to Rwanda Franks.

For full details see:

Overlanding Rwanda

Very green here as it is rainy season and the river valleys are full of rice paddies.

The travel is slow at sub 40kph as we wind our way through the mountains and numerous villages, but it is pleasant travelling.

R205/6: In Kigali city at ‘Camping One Love Club’

We thought a “Hire by the hour” place but was Japanese sponsored place rehabilitation of people without limbs. Opened in 1996 and not changed much since and maybe not used for the original purpose ??

Cost: RF 7,000 (A$11) /person

Camping in the parking lot is better than the rooms. Actually all the external toilets were locked so that proved a challenge until we discovered the workers toilet.

Warning: Only use when extremely necessary !

Today: 297 Kms

Africa Total: 38,307 Kms

Altitude: 1,385 Metres

Camped here again as we have our CLEAN truck, with shower etc and we only need some ground to park on. It is also very close to town and a great hot bread shop up the road !

Tuesday 2nd May 2017:

First impression of Rwanda is a nation that has progressed significantly since its horrible past.

Streets are the cleanest in Africa, houses smart, well kept and many with nice gardens. The capital of Kigali progressive and modern. Traffic rules are obeyed, and a significant number of new and modern buildings.

Into the city and surprise ! surprise ! After visiting the Rwandan Tourist office we have two tickets to see the Gorillas on the 7th May at Volcanoes National Park.

The ugly past !

The Kigali Genocide Memorial left us both moved, sickened, and empty.

Over a million Tutsi were massacred by the Hutu in the 100 days from 6th April 1994.

Over 250,000 are buried here.

Way back the identity of all Rwandans was originally associated with eighteen different clans and they intermixed and inter-married. In 1932 under the Belgium colonial rule, the categories of Hutu and Tutsi were made. They were actually a socio-economic classification and could change with personal circumstances.

This was racial with the introduction of a identity card by the colonials.

How was the distinction made?

If you had more than 10 cows you were classed as Tutsi if less then you were Hutu, this then applied to their descendants.

For all history they had existed as one, now the divide began.

In 1959, religion got involved with politics and Bishop Perraudin in an address for Lent supported the view of Rwandan society being divided by ‘race’, portraying the majority Hutu ‘race’ as being oppressed by the minority Tutsi.

This became the turning point in the society, and unrest brewed.

On the 6th April 1994 the then presidents plane was shot down by the Hutu lead regime. The following day they assassinated the 10 Belgium peace keepers in this building !

The horror then began with the Hutu mission to kill, maim and mutilate 1,000 Tutsi every 20 minutes !

The rest of the world including the UN stood by and did nothing !

The Kigali Genocide memorial is well presented and moving.

Photographs of thousands of men, women and children, and some of their stories.

It also highlights similar genocide events of recent history:

The Germans of Namibia in 1904 and the Hereros.

The Turkish systematic slaughter of the Armenians

The Germans ‘Final Solution’

Pol Pot in Cambodia

And more recently Bosnia.

It makes one realise why Australia is called a ‘Lucky Country’.

On the other hand I have to congratulate the now Rwandan society.

It is progressive, united and friendly.

A credit to the government for the transformation.

Simple environmental things like plastic bags are illegal in Rwanda !

Take note South Africa, Zimbabwe and others, maybe even Australia can learn something !

An Interesting article from the New York Times on Rwanda and President Kagame:

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/08/magazine/paul-kagame-rwanda.html

Wednesday 3rd May 2017:

30kms south on Kigali is the village of Nyamata.

During the genocide victims fled to churches seeking refuse only to find that some of the clergy were providing information to the Hutu Interahahmwe.

As a result of this lack of compassion, some of the most horrific massacres took place inside the sanctums of the church.

In this church in Nyamata 10,000 were grenaded, shot and chopped with machetes. Another 40,000 were killed in the surrounding town.

Today their clothing is draped over the church pews and many skulls and bones are in the church, there are tens of thousands buried in the church grounds. It is left as such, so as to provide firm evidence to would be genocide deniers.

It is important that we showed respect for something we heard about in our lifetime and that such places exist to show the world the horrors of some of mankind.

I think now we have been sickened enough to not visit another such site in Rwanda and focus on the positive future this country is enjoying.

South to Huye ( old name Butare) to see the best museum in Rwanda. ( No pictures allowed) The National History Museum was a gift from Belgium and has a great ethnological and archaeological display.

Brightly dressed ladies carry their produce to market and boys hitch a ride up a hill behind slow moving trucks.

R206: Behind the Ibis Hotel in Huye.

Cost: RF 10,000 (A$11)

Today: 212 Kms

Africa Total: 38,519 Kms

Altitude: 1,717 Metres

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=-2.60202,29.74203&ll=-2.60202,29.74203&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

Thursday 4th May 2017:

Today lovely mountain scenery as we drive the mountains and valleys. 1400 meters up to 2300 then back down.

Bananas, and root crops, with rice in the valleys, and cattle and goats inbetween.

NOTE: All the big trees you see are Eucalyptus, they dominate the vegetation.

In the mist at 2200 metres a village is having a cattle auction on the hill behind the town.

Finding a quite place for coffee proved challenging, with the locals coming up to stare then smile and wave as we wave to them.

We shared some biscuits with this family and they were happy for a picture.

The ladies are always so elegantly dressed, and all polite and quietly spoken. This time in French and broken English.

Toys are rare and the children make do with what is available.

We see this bicycle tyre being lead along by a stick as the most popular toy.

In Rwanda you drive on the RIGHT SIDE so this note on my dash keeps me reminded.

I have written RIGHT and an arrow ->

R207: beside the Bethanie Hotel right on the lake.

Cost: RF 12,000 (A$18)

Today: 162 Kms

Africa Total: 38,701 Kms

Altitude: 1,479 Metres

Shouted ourselves dinner, but the buffet was VERY ordinary, should have cooked our own as usual.

Friday 5th May 2017:

A great day driving. We only travelled 100+kms but spectacular up and down mountains, new road construction and vast views.

The Chinese are building a new road from Kibuye to Gisenyi and its mountainous terrain.

We were dodging heavy machinery, and trucks and at the same time trying to look at the scenery along the way.

(John and Bill you remember when we overland China....it was like that ! )

When you stop for construction work we gather a crowd.

This time they were rattled by the rubber snake and stuffed toad in our front window. I explained to the foreman, who spoke good english, they were our football mascots. The snake is Lyn’s and the Toad mine. We support different football teams and constantly we are battling who is the best.

He explained to all in the local language and they all cracked up !

Travelling in the 1800+ metre areas are tea plantations.

In Gisenyi , right on the Democratic Republic of the Congo border, we purchased a ‘Peace Basket’

After the genocide the ladies from all communities made these baskets to sell. They were promoted as a place to store your special things, memories, jewellery etc.