UN offices in Nairobi, Geneva solemnly mark anniversary of Rwandan genocide
United Nations offices in Nairobi and Geneva this week held solemn ceremonies marking the International Day of Reflection on the Genocide in Rwanda, paying tribute to the memory of the 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus who died at the hands of Hutu militias and others in a three-month orgy of violence.
United Nations offices in Nairobi and Geneva this week held solemn ceremonies marking the International Day of Reflection on the Genocide in Rwanda, paying tribute to the memory of the 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus who died at the hands of Hutu militias and others in a three-month orgy of violence.
In the Kenyan capital today, the Director-General of the UN Office at Nairobi and Executive Director of UN Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT), Anna Tibaijuka, called upon the international community to “never stop working to prevent another genocide.”
Reading from a message delivered by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon when the Day was marked in New York on Monday, she recalled that UN peacekeepers had “saved as many lives as they could, and should be remembered for their courage and commitment.”
The event, organized by the UN Information Centre in Nairobi, included representatives of the diplomatic community, religious leaders and UN staff members who all observed a minute of silence in memory of the victims.
A minute of silence was also on the programme during a solemn ceremony on Wednesday in Geneva.
“In remembering the horrors of the genocide in Rwanda, we honour its victims and we show our respect to the survivors,” Sergei Ordzhonikidze, the Director-General of the UN Office at Geneva, told participants.