Nyamata Genocide Memorial Centre
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Related on Lably
Through UNESCO
Location
The memorial is based around a former church which is about 30 km (19 mi) south of Kigali in Rwanda, which commemorates the 1994 Genocide against Tutsi in Rwanda. It is one of six national memorial sites in Rwanda that commemorate the genocide. The others are the Murambi Memorial Centre, Bisesero Genocide Memorial Centre, Ntarama Genocide Memorial Centre, Kigali Genocide Memorial, and Nyarubuye Memorial. There are over 250 registered memorial sites that commemorate genocide in Rwanda.
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1994 Rwandan genocide
The genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda began in April 1994. Many Tutsi people gathered in churches, which were considered safe places. About 10,000 people gathered there and locked themselves in. The attackers made holes in the walls of the church so that grenades could be thrown into the church, after which the rest were shot with guns or killed with machetes.
Most of the remains have been buried but clothing and identity cards are left. The identity cards were what identified people as either Tutsi or Hutu.
People in the surrounding area were also killed after the massacre at the church. The remains of 50,000 people are buried here.
Status
In 2023, the memorials at Nyamata and three other locations were officially made World Heritage Sites by UNESCO.