MEMBERS OF UNITY CLUB INTWARARUMURI INAUGURATED DIALOGUES AND COMPETITION IN ULK GISENYI CAMPUS
This Wednesday, 17th May 2023, Unity club Intwararumuri members visited ULK-Gisenyi community with aim of opening dialogues and inaugurating competitions on ‘Ndi umunyarwanda’ programme. The theme of the public lecturer was ‘The role of Ndi umunyarwanda in strengthening unity and resilience among Rwandans.
Unity Club is an organization founded on 28th February 1996 by Her Excellence Madam Jeannette KAGAME, the First lady of Rwanda. She brought together spouses of male Cabinet members and women Cabinet members with the aim of planting culture of unity and peace which is the foundation of sustainable development of a country.
“Today, our campus is honoured to host Unity club members who have come to let you understand better the role of Ndi umunyarwanda in strengthening unity and resilience among Rwandans. I beseech you to lend them your ears and attention so that you understand very well this public lecture related to our own history. He declared.
In this event, Lieutenant Colonel KABENGERA Viateur, the RDFCSC, kick-started by defining ‘Ndi Umunyarwanda programme where he said that Ndi umunyarawanda, means ‘I am Rwandan’. It is a programme initiated to build a national identity based on trust and dignity. It aims at strengthening unity and reconciliation among Rwandans by providing a forum for people to talk about the causes and consequences of the genocide as well as what it means to be Rwandan. The theme was the role of Ndi umunyarwanda in strengthening unity and resilience among Rwandans.
“As a matter of fact, our history faced threats to our relationship, it is our duty and responsibility to take time to read or inquire about the history of Rwanda so that we can get to know past drastic events that marked our country over the years. Considering the genocide perpetrated against the Tutsi, history will unequivocally show you how that genocide draws its root in the past, where the Tutsi were marginalized, discriminated and nullified; by the end over one million of them were killed. So Ndi umunyarawanda is here to heal some scars caused by that drastic history. For instance there is youth who had never known their origin. They grew up in orphanage camps that have affected them emotionally. Besides, Rwanda has youth who were born to a genocide perpetrator, they were affected emotionally too. Not only these mentioned above, but also youth who were born to raped ladies during genocide perpetrated against Tutsi in1994 and youth who are genocide survivors, etc all of them are living with emotional scars caused by the drastic history they have been passing through all along their life. ’’. He mentioned
He concluded by thanking Her Excellence Madam Jeannette KAGAME, the First lady of Rwanda who initiated Unity club Intwararumuri with its aim of planting culture of unity and resilience which is the foundation of sustainable development of Rwandans.
In this event, Mr. ERIC NIYONGABO, a member of Unity club and guest of honour from the ministry of Education, raised his voice on the nature and function of unity and resilience forum in universities and higher learning institutions. He introduced his speech by saying that Rwanda is a country that has known unimaginable pain and suffering. For, the world watched in horror as over one million lives were lost in the Genocide perpetrated against the Tutsi. The scars of that dark period still linger, but Rwanda has shown remarkable resilience in its efforts to heal and reconcile. Through collective efforts, the country is creating a better future for the children and generations to come. It is in that line the ministry of education plays a great role to partner with Unity club Intwararumuri in its initiative of planting culture of unity and resilience which is the foundation of sustainable development of Rwanda.
He went further by saying that student at university and higher learning institution level has obligations to be a trigger of unity and resilience as they are remarkable intellectuals. ‘You have the focal points here, your lecturers; you need to work hand in hand with them to operate a club of unity and resilience. He concluded.
