20th commemoration of Rwanda genocide victims held in Ethiopia

It is now 20 years since Rwanda was totally destroyed by the internal genocide that saw Rwandese turning against each other on tribal grounds. More than one million people lost their lives and the country was plunged into economic, political and social chaos.
As African countries joined Rwanda to launch the 20th anniversary of the genocide in Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa, a moment of silence was observed to honor those who perished in the massacre. Later a flame of remembrance was lit. This flame was passed around to youth from different parts of the continent to symbolically signify that it was time for a new beginning. Rwanda’s commemoration has now been adopted as a continental reflection period. It has become a time when African countries deliberate more on why they are still involved in conflict and how they can save those who continue to be deeply engulfed in conflict. Although the current conflicts in countries like Central African Republic and South Sudan, Mali, and Egypt are not to the genocide scope their effects are equally detrimental. The 100-day Rwanda genocide was sparked by the death of the Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana, a Hutu, when his plane was shot down above Kigali airport on 6 April 1994. Rwanda says it wants to focus more not on the bitter past but on empowering its youth so that they can drive the country to an era that is devoid of bitterness and one that will only concentrate on development.