Kigali, May 28 2011
President Kagame today received in his office 14 Canadian graduate law students who are in the country to reflect on Rwanda program run by SHOUT Canada. The program was put in place to help Canadian students learn about the history of the 1994 genocide and the post-genocide efforts in Rwanda from Rwandans themselves. The students use the knowledge obtained to share with other Canadians and also use it to strengthen positive efforts of genocide prevention worldwide.
Speaking to the press after meeting the President, Murangwa Faustin Bismarck who represented the students said: “We learnt a lot of lessons and gained experience on genocide from here. We have even learnt much more from our discussions with the President as someone who led the forces that stopped the genocide.”
Dane Degenstein, also one of the students involved in the programme said: “We have taken back messages of awareness, awareness, the history of the genocide and how it is important to always remember that genocide against the Tutsis happened here so that it does not occur again”.
While in the country, the students met with officials from CNLG, AVEGA, NURC, IDRP, as well as visiting several genocide memorial sites at Gisozi, Nyamata, Ntarama, Murambi, and Nybuye.