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UNITAR Roundtables

6 April 2006

Speaker: H.E. Dr. Emile Rwamasirabo

Ambassador of Rwanda to Japan

"The Management of Post Genocide Challenges"

Dr. Emile Rwamasirabo was born in March 1951 in Rwanda. He completed his medical studies (surgery) and Fellowships in urology and surgical oncology at the University of Lille (France). He practiced surgery in France and then taught and practiced urology in Makerere Medical School (Uganda) and the National University of Rwanda. From 1998 to 2004 he became the Rector of the National University of Rwanda and was a member of various higher educational executive boards. He is the current Ambassador of the Republic of Rwanda to Japan since February 2005.

Roundtable Topic

In April 2006 Rwanda will commemorate the 12th anniversary of the Genocide. In April 1994, the World witnessed the “live” slaughter of over one million innocent people because of what they were. The then state leadership made the choice of annihilating its own citizens in order to find a “lasting” solution to its political challenges. This brought about the total collapse of the nation-state within three terrible months, from April to July 1994. The country was expected to disappear from the world map. Faced with both the need to manage the immediate humanitarian crisis as well as the long-term survival as a society, Rwanda today, despite all odds, looks at the future with confidence, even as it is aware of the challenges ahead. This speech gives a glance at the major historical landmarks that led to the Rwandan Genocide and then goes on to describe how the country recovered from the ashes while trying to find again its lost identity. It looks at the management of justice after genocide, governance issues and the reconstruction of the country’s socio-economic fabric.

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