Gisozi Genocide Memorial Site
The Gisozi genocide memorial also known as the Kigali genocide memorial is situated in Kigali Rwanda, it’s a place for the commemoration of over 250,000 people that were killed during the Rwandan genocide of the Hutu against the Tutsi.
The centre helps visitors get an insight of the occurring’s of the Rwandan genocide; the memorial was established in 1999 and managed by Aegis trust and Kigali city council. People buried here were brought from either the streets or rivers after the killings they were abandoned, there are also weapons and tools used for their killings.
The Gisozi genocide memorial is divided into three sections, the first one contains documents leading to the genocide, the second is a children’s memorial with details of their favorite toys, last words and how they were killed, and the third one has got collections of genocidal memorials worldwide.
There are also other memorial centers commemorating the Rwandan genocide and this are Murambi memorial centre, Ntarama genocide memorial center, Bisesero genocide memorial center, Nyarubuye memorial center and Nyamata genocide memorial center.
The Rwandan genocide spark off in 1994 when an airplane that was carrying the president of Burundi and Rwanda crushed, this paved way for the Hutu to violet all the Tutsis in Rwanda and in about 100 days an estimated number of about 800,000 people were killed. The Hutu took control of the country even government radio stations were ordered to kill all the Tutsi neighbor’s.the genocide also led to the killing of the Belgian soldiers in Rwanda that led the United Nations to withdraw support to Rwanda.
The genocide memorial is open to visitors’ everyday from 8:00 am-5:00 pm the last entrance is at 4:00 pm local time. Its open daily except the last Saturday of the month when it opens at 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm and on Christmas and New Year. There is a café at the memorial where tourists can get variety of drinks and continental meals from. The income got from the café is used to support the work of the memorial.
Rwanda is not only about the dark past but it also has got unique experiences to offer like gorilla trekking, Rwanda is one of the three countries in the world where gorilla trekking can be done. Several gorilla families can be trekked at the famous volcanoes national park at only $1500.
The other national parks that tourists can visit are Nyungwe forest national park and encounter the stunning Nyungwe canopy things one of its kind in the Nile of east Africa, tourists can also view various animals like giant forest hogs and elephants.
Rwanda is one of the African countries with very rich cultural values, tourists can visit the people and learn about there cultural values and ways of lives in addition to performances from the local traditional dancers. You can also acquire some of the beautiful handmade crafts to take home for remembrance. The Gisozi genocide memorial is situated in Gisozi just a few minutes drive from Kigali city center. Today, Rwanda is one of the most peaceful counties in Africa and also among the safest to visit. There is neither Hutu nor Tutsi but peace reigns in Rwanda.
