where the Perpetrators and Survivors of the Rwandan Genocide Coexist

He talks of one of the most horrific incidents of the 20th century when the Hutu majority that dominated Rwanda Perpetrators at the time launched a campaign of mass murder against the Tutsis, Laurence’s husband’s minority ethnic group.

Over 800,000 people—a million, according to some estimates—perished at the hands of machete-wielding Hutus in 100 days. The UN reports that over 250,000 women were the victims of sexual assault.

Laurence and Thacien now share a neighborhood in Mbyo, a village that has transformed from a place of murder to one that values harmony and resiliency. It is one of six Rwandan reconciliation villages where those responsible for the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi coexist and try to attempt to reconcile their past.

Even though their reconciliation narrative appears to be successful, Rwandans are still dealing with the effects of the genocide, despite accusations that it was staged. Finding out the truth about how their loved ones were killed and hearing the killers apologize have brought comfort to many survivors. Others, however, have not had the same sense of closure since fresh mass graves and the identity of the killers remain public knowledge.