Esther Mujawayo-Keiner | „…because I didn’t believe there could be justice.“

The genocide in Rwanda took place from 7 April to mid-July 1994. Around 1 million people were killed when members of the Hutu majority persecuted the Tutsi minority and rebellious Hutus. There was no humanitarian intervention by the UN and France was accused of involvement in the crimes. Trials were held in Rwanda itself, before the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda in Arusha, Tanzania, and from 2005 to 2012 before the so-called Gacaca Courts in Rwanda. At these trials, elected lay judges passed judgement in public assemblies. However, many of the perpetrators remained unpunished for the rest of their lives and continue to live without consequences. At the same time, the survivors struggle with their memories and the grief for their relatives and friends.

Esther Mujawayo-Keiner herself testified as a witness in court and was involved in registering many of the perpetrators. What role does the legal reappraisal of the genocide play? What has the International Criminal Court achieved? How did Rwandan society deal with the perpetrators and survivors and what can we learn from this? And also: how can future generations be protected?

We would like to explore these and other questions in a lecture and discussion with Esther Mujawayo-Keiner.

Esther Mujawayo-Keiner lost her husband and 17 family members during the genocide in Rwanda. She survived with her two young daughters in Kigali. Together with 50 other women, she founded the organisation „AVEGA“, which primarily looked after the women who had to completely rebuild their lives. The organisation provides medical care, does educational work, grants small loans and supports the survivors in a wide range of areas. Today, she works as a trauma therapist for severely traumatised refugees in Düsseldorf, writes books and gives lectures.

Moderation: Magdalena Köhler (Research Associate at the Fritz Bauer Forum)

An event organised by the Fritz Bauer Forum in cooperation with Medizinische Flüchtlingshilfe Bochum.