NYAMATA

Nyamata is situated in Bugesera region approximately 35km from the Kigali City in Rwanda. Nymataa and its surrounding region suffered some of the most extensive devastation, horrifying violence that took place in 1994against the Tutsi and moderate Hutus. The genocide memorial at Nyamata Church gives a deeply saddening and moving look into the reality of the Rwandan Genocide.

One of Rwanda’s six National Genocide Memorial Sites, the Nyamata Genocide Memorial was desacralized by the Roman Catholic Church on 11th April 1997 and transformed into a memorial to the victims of the genocide. One person is buried inside the church, which also houses victims’ clothes and their belongings. Mass graves are situated behind the church, containing 45,308 genocide victims. The 11th of April every year is dedicated to the commemoration of the victims killed at this site. According to Leon Muberuka, a guide at Nyamata, the number of victims includes those who were killed inside the church, as well as others who were exhumed from surrounding areas. The memorial is located in what was originally the Nyamata Parish.