“Kwibuka Flame of Hope”, a permanent tribute to 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, was installed in the UN Headquarters on 11 September 2024.
“The Kwibuka Flame of Hope will burn forever as a visual reminder for the international community and all the visitors coming here to the United Nations, on the need to speak out and say no to hate,” said Melissa Fleming, the Under-Secretary-General of the Department of Global Communications.
The “Kwibuka Flame of Hope” symbolizes the resilience and courage of Rwandans since the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, when more than one million people, overwhelmingly Tutsi, but also Hutu and others who opposed the genocide, were systematically killed following years of misinformation, disinformation and hate speech exacerbating ethnic tensions.
The statue “Kwibuka Flame of Hope”, a gift from the Republic of Rwanda, was installed on 11 September 2024 in the north garden area at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.
The inscription reads: “The 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda Remember – Unite – Renew”.(End)