In 2024, Rwanda hosted its 30th Kwibuka, a commemoration of the Genocide against the Tutsi. Taking place on 7 April, Kwibuka aimed at remembering the atrocities committed in 1994 and finding a path to heal and reconcile the Nation. But, has this really worked? As a Rwandan-sponsored event, Kwibuka today has almost become a political tool to pressure the international community to adhere to a particular understanding of the events that took place in 1994 – who is responsible, who are the victims, and what the path forward should be. As such, a process for peace becomes violent by silencing any story that does not fit within the Kwibuka’s framing, helping legitimize President Kagame’s portrayal of the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) as the country’s saviour and the Hutu as the sole perpetrators of violence. From a narrative of reconciliation, Kwibuka has taken on a more aggressive undertone and shaped how Rwandans, both within Rwanda and abroad, engage with their identities, stories, and government.

Using a critical discourse analysis of Kwibuka speeches and interviews gathered within the Rwandan Diaspora in Europe and the U.S., a new project from SIS Professor Claudine Kuradusenge-McLeod analyses how Rwandans understand their stories concerning Kwibuka, and most importantly, whether ethnicity and reconciliation are possible under its current government-sponsored iteration. Kwibuka, as a narrative of violence, crystallized a victim-perpetrator ethnic dichotomy, in an environment where ethnic affiliation is forbidden. As such, it has weaponized Tutsi’s victimhood to erase other stories. It also provided President Kagame with the power and control to decide what and who is to be called a revisionist or genocide denier. This has culminated in its current politicized/restrictive framing that keeps ethnicity alive, not just in April, and undermines the attempts toward reconciliation, both in Rwanda and abroad.

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