Yesterday one of Rwanda’s most valuable daughters was laid to rest, having left us too early. She was still needed by her husband, her children, and the rest of us. Goodbye Rwandan rose, you will be deeply missed…
I mean to pay her a tribute in the only way I know; in writing; Knowing that it is to her and her comrades that I owe my country, my life, my pride…
To her loved ones I would like to offer a poem: “je serais toujours” (I shall live on); written by a Lebanese activist Ayadi el’hadi in 1981 from a prison cell, after being sentenced to death. The original version is in French. here’s my short translation:
‘Even after I will be gone; I shall live on
I shall live in the laughter of a happy moment; the spark that ignites the fires;
I shall be in the handshakes between friends; in the shooting star that travels light years;
I shall be I, with no flesh nor life; and God I shall worship on…’
To those who did not know her well, I would like to share what I know of her legacy, what her fight represented for me: patriotism, unity and brotherhood for all Rwandans.
The President, in his epilogue to her, described her as a good cadre and Ideologically clear. He urged for her Ideology to live on…
Inyumba was a freedom fighter, who dreamed to consolidate the freedom of Rwandans. Through the Rwandese Patriotic Front, she continued to promote the goals of the revolution; Having identified that the weakness of a revolution, it’s Achilles tendon lies in its failure to address differences internally without ego but with selflessness and patriotism, she strive to promote the ethos of unity of ideas; she met her share of obstacles…
I too share her dream. I strongly believe that people who once shared a goal do not have fundamental differences, and if they all aim for a consolidated unity of Rwandans, in true patriots, they need to find a point of understanding, by bringing about change peacefully and from within. What Michael Gorbachev once called the perestroika – the restructuring; what today the RPF calls change in continuity.
For that to happen, we need to make concessions: no Rwandan should live in exile any longer; be it self-imposed or otherwise! Let’s all come together and be strong; United we stand!
After colonialism, war and genocide, I think it is clear to each one of us that war and violence are not a solution. We are not tired of conflict as such, because from conflict comes progress. But polarity, controversy and undermining, especially among ourselves, that’s indeed our point of decay.
Having said that, I find it hard to understand how a Rwandan goes out there and criticize his motherland, his sisters and brothers to foreigners and strangers;
Rwandans are generally proud of their country. They prefer respect, esteem, even jealousy to pity and empathy. Rwandans I know, are not victims; their are striving and nostalgic individuals whom, once they engage in a tale of their beloved motherland, are unstoppable: they speak of the Gods’ retiring home, flowing milk and honey, mighty warriors, beautiful mountains and legendary hospitality; its admirable!
Yesterday, I saw on South African TV an advertisement promoting tourism in Rwanda. well-done RDB! I said to myself… a few hours later though, over dinner, I found fellow Rwandans vehemently criticizing Rwanda in a café in Pretoria; to random diners. They described a dangerous dictatorship, where arbitrary arrests and summary killings were commonplace. Hearing them, you would rather spend your upcoming summer vacation in northern Mali of Mogadishu, even if you were a woman…
Then I told them I was also Rwandan, and gave a different version of the story. After a quick inquiry, I realized it was not their fault, they know no other way. They left Rwanda in 1994 when they were 12 and 15 respectively and have not gone back since. They get their updates from fresh Rwandan refugees.
Everyone in the restaurant was eager to listen to my version of the story, I spoke to them of the secession clause of UNHCR and told them there was no risk to come home. To my fellow countrymen I said: go and see for yourself. If you find something you don’t like, change it. Otherwise you will love it there…
As I left, we agreed to meet again, but the experience kept troubling my mind. What is happening? Why are Rwandans out there, who would say bad things about their own country? Is it because they do not identify with the progress in their motherland; is it because they have not visited since 1994 and have been mislead by their parents, who are trying to justify their existence in exile, or do they still have red on their ledger and don’t see how to wipe it clean?
In any case that is a shame…
Every Rwandan is an asset, if working for the benefit of Rwanda, as an agent and an ambassador of motherland, wherever he is. Some countries live off remittances, others export human capital as a form of foreign investment. We just can’t have Rwandans telling other people not to come to Rwanda, that is counter-productive to the nice RDB add on tourism and to other efforts in the country…
For those who criticize Rwanda to the face of humanity I say to you: Whom are you telling? Who cares about you? What pride does it give you? Go home and participate, contribute…
To those who criticize fellow Rwandan opponents I say: When a son was unruly or stubborn, our parents brought them back in line gently with parenthood. Why don’t you emulate them? What obstructs your heart?
And to all Rwandans I say: for Inyumba, you have to surpass yourselves: You were ready to give up your life for the betterment of Rwandans, I am surprised you are not ready to give up a little bit of generosity to settle all problems. You are ready to criticize your brother, your blood, in the face of strangers, you are even ready to align with adui, and betray the only thing that you ever lived for, the peace of Rwandans.
When did you forget who you are and what matters? When did you start putting other things first: wealth, ego, personal pride, etc., before your country, your people?
Today, for Inyumba: Taha, babarira, oroherana, so that we have a chance to survive within this hostile region. Ntuzatatire urwakubyaye. Even if you have differences with someone, put that aside, even if you are guilty of something, your country needs you. I am not judging you, I am appealing on your bupfura, your patriotism.
Inyumba was not killed by the struggle but she died while still in the struggle; an equally important and difficult struggle, of fostering and consolidating the stability and progress of the Rwandan people. Her last words were not told to us, but if they were, they may have been similar to those said by Solomon Kalushi Mahlangu, A South African anti-apartheid hero who was the first to be hanged by the apartheid regime. Just before he died, he said: ‘Tell my people that I love them, and that they must continue the struggle.’
Rwanda is the only country we have, without it we are nothing: let’s cherish it. Do it for Inyumba, do it for future generations, your children, my children…