The United Nations on Monday commemorated the 31st International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Genocide Against the Tutsi in Rwanda, with solemn ceremonies at the General Assembly in New York and global calls for renewed commitment to genocide prevention. UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned that “no society is immune from hate and horror,” emphasizing the need for all nations to ratify the Genocide Convention and uphold their responsibility to protect populations from atrocities such as genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing, and crimes against humanity.
Rwanda’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Robert Kayinamura, stressed that the phrase “never again” must move beyond rhetoric. “It must guide our policies, actions, and serve as a test of our collective moral compass,” he said. The commemoration—known locally as Kwibuka, meaning “to remember” in Kinyarwanda—was particularly poignant this year, as regional instability casts a shadow over the solemn occasion. In eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), renewed violence involving the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group has intensified, with fighters seizing key towns including Goma and Bukavu in recent weeks, deepening fears of a widening conflict.
This year’s ceremony also reflected on the broader legacy of the 1994 genocide, in which an estimated 800,000 people—primarily Tutsi and moderate Hutu—were systematically murdered over 100 days. The violence was triggered on April 6, 1994, after the plane carrying Rwandan President Juvénal Habyarimana and Burundian President Cyprien Ntaryamira was shot down. The next day, Rwanda’s moderate Hutu Prime Minister Agathe Uwilingiyimana and her husband were killed by soldiers, marking the start of the mass killings orchestrated by Hutu extremists.
Though officially this marks the 31st year since the genocide, organizers noted it is also the 100th commemoration event held in Rwanda and abroad, reflecting ongoing efforts to honor victims, promote unity, and prevent future atrocities. In Kigali and other cities, survivors lit memorial flames, while global leaders reiterated calls for education, justice, and vigilance in the face of growing hate speech and extremist ideologies.
