African countries need to draw lessons from the genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda and make sure it will never happen again, Rwanda’s Ambassador to Ethiopia Hope Tumukunde Gasatura said.
The 29th genocide against Tutsi in Rwanda was commemorated today under the theme “Remember-Unite-Renew” at the African Union Headquarter in Addis Ababa.
In her opening remark, Rwanda’s Ambassador to Ethiopia Hope Tumukunde Gasatura said that the commemoration is a communal plea to redouble efforts to stop similar horrors from ever occurring again elsewhere.
“The continued troubling trends of growing expressions of racism and intolerance that results in the dissemination of hate speech and cause for violence cannot be left unchallenged,” she noted.
The Ambassador called on AU member states, international organizations, and civil society organizations to recommit to preventing and fighting against genocide and other serious crimes under international law.
Foreign Affairs State Minister, Ambassador Birtukan Ayano lauded Rwanda for rising from the ashes and be able to build a community founded on the ideas of justice, forgiveness, tolerance, reconciliation, and unity.
Ambassador Birtukan said the tragedy that befell close to one million innocent citizens of Rwanda is a sore point in history and the commemoration should be a collective commitment to prevent the crime of genocide in Africa and elsewhere.
The state minister also reaffirmed Ethiopia’s firm commitment to work together with the African Union, the international community and other stakeholders to prevent genocide and to ensure that impunity is not tolerated anywhere, anytime, for any reason.
She added that the enormous challenges faced by countries with advent of cyber technology require collective and urgent action.
Ambassador Birtukan stated that there is a clear imperative for all to invest on improving governance of emerging technologies.
“We should unite against those who stew hatred, ethnic and religious division, intolerance and violent extremism to prevent genocide,” she noted.
In his opening speech, Moussa Faki Mahamat, the Chairperson of African Union Commission, said the occasion is an opportunity to show solidarity with our Rwandan brothers and sisters, and we should work on creating peace and security for our continent.
Officials from the African Union Commission (AUC), AU organs and member states, diplomatic corps, religious institutions, intergovernmental organizations, and civil society organizations have attended the commemoration.
Source: Ethiopian News Agency
