Kibeho
Kibeho is a place in the high mountains in southwestern Rwanda in the southern province (formerly Gikongoro province), around 20 km from the Burundian border. Massacres took place there during the 1994 genocide and April 22, 1995.
| Kibeho | |||
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| State : |
 Rwanda
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| Province : | Southern Province (Rwanda) | ||
| Coordinates : | 2 ° 38 ' S , 29 ° 33' E | ||
| Area : | 79 km² | ||
| Residents : | 21,456 (2012) | ||
| Population density : | 272 inhabitants per km² | ||
| Time zone : | CAT (UTC + 2) | ||
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Place of pilgrimage
In 1934 a parish was founded in Kibeho and consecrated to the Virgin Mary . The first apparitions of Mary are said to have occurred on November 28, 1981 ; the "nyina wa jambo" (mother of the word) is said to have revealed herself and called for conversion, repentance and reconciliation. In 1988 Bishop Augustin Misago gave his permission for Marian devotion and Kibeho became a place of pilgrimage, the "Lourdes of Rwanda". In November 2001, the apparitions of Mary were recognized by the Roman Catholic Church in Rome - it was the first recognized apparition of Mary in Africa. Kibeho is the only place of pilgrimage in Africa recognized by the Vatican. The place was considered a landmark for the triumphant advance of Catholicism in Africa's most Christian country (measured by the proportion of Christians in the population). In 2003 a new, larger pilgrimage basilica was built.
Kibeho massacre
During the 1994 genocide , which killed almost a million people within 100 days, many people flocked to Kibeho, believing they were safe at a place of pilgrimage. On April 14th, the Kibeho massacre began, first of all of the 15,000 refugees who had sought refuge in the supposedly safe area around the pilgrimage church and in the church itself. At Marie Mercie boarding school , 82 students were slaughtered in the school dining room. It took two days for everyone to be hacked to death, shot, or some of them burned alive. Witnesses accuse teachers, priests and nuns of assisting the murders. School principal Emmanuel Uwayezu and Bishop Augustin Misago had to answer in court. Both were acquitted in 2000. Trial observers also saw the acquittals as a sign that the Kagame government did not want to put any further strain on the relationship with the Catholic Church.
Massacre in the refugee camp
In Kibeho there was a refugee camp for Rwandans repatriated from the Congo who had fled after the genocide, including many génocidaires . On April 18, 1995, the camp was cordoned off by the Rwandan army. On April 22, 1995, the Génocidaires attempted to break out violently. Numerous camp inmates were killed. Officially, the number of deaths was given as 400 people, unofficially 4,050 deaths were counted. Many of the dead were not killed with firearms like those used by the Rwandan army, but with machetes , the typical weapon of the Génocidaires. In addition, many people were trampled to death or crushed. The present UNO soldiers of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda only played the role of observers condemned to idleness in the violent clashes over the Kibeho camp.
The government of Paul Kagame justified the brutal actions of the government troops by saying that the perpetrators of the genocide (Génocidaires) had hidden among the refugees, entrenched behind women and children.
Sons and daughters
- Thaddée Ntihinyurwa (* 1942), emeritus Roman Catholic Archbishop of Kigali
- Kizito Mihigo (1981–2020), gospel singer, songwriter, organist and composer of sacred music
bibliography
- Hans Christoph book : Apocalypse Africa or shipwreck with spectators . Eichborn Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 2011. ISBN 978-3-821-86236-1 .
- Helmut Strizek: Clinton on Lake Kivu. The story of an African catastrophe . Peter Lang, Frankfurt aMu a. 2011, ISBN 978-3-631-60563-9 .
- Immaculée Ilibagiza / Steve Erwin, The Apparitions of Kibeho. Maria speaks to the world from the heart of Africa , Media-Maria: Illertissen 2017, ISBN 9783945401330 .
Web links
- Kibeho Sanctuary - Official website (French / English)
- Official website of the pilgrimage site (French / English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Eva-Maria Werner: “O, Maria, help!” In Kibeho, Our Lady is said to have predicted a massacre of the genocide of 1994. Today there is a place of pilgrimage there - the only one in Africa recognized by the Vatican. In: Continents , Vol. 52 (2017), Issue 3 (May / June), pp. 20–23, here p. 22.
- ↑ Immaculée Ilibagiza / Steve Erwin, The Apparitions of Kibeho. Maria speaks to the world from the heart of Africa , Media-Maria: Illertissen 2017, p. 18, ISBN 9783945401330 .
- ↑ Clergyman linked to Rwandan genocide seized in Italy , CNN, October 25, 2009.
- ↑ Michael Bitala: So far the highest Catholic dignitary for genocide in court: acquittal for bishop in the genocide trial in Rwanda , Süddeutsche Zeitung of June 16, 2000, accessed via AG Friedensforschung on December 29, 2014.
- ↑ Hans Christoph Buch: 20 years after the genocide in Rwanda. The orphans from the morning , Süddeutsche Zeitung from April 6, 2014.