Escaping the horror of genocide for a new life in Norwich
29 October 2009
AMONG her husband's killers were those who had celebrated at their wedding just a few short weeks before.
It is hard to imagine what could turn former friends into such deadly enemies and even harder to see how a lone mother and her new born baby could survive for 100 days amid the slaughter of innocents of the Rwandian Genocide.
By some miracle Illuminee Nganemariya and her son Roger lived through the tragedy but what she saw and experienced during those three months changed her forever.
As part of Norfolk Black History Month, Illuminee, who now lives in Norwich, is giving a talk about her experiences and the book, Miracle In Kigali, she co-wrote with local man Paul Dickson.
“What happened in Rwanda was horrible and I feel it is good to talk about it as a way of making sure it doesn't happen again,” said Illuminee, who one day hopes to open a Rwandan cuisine restaurant in the city.
Within hours of the death of the Hutu Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana, whose plane was shot down above Kigali airport in 1994, violence spread.
Although the country has a turbulent history, the slaughter of an estimated 800,000 mainly Tutsis by Hutus, who were urged to hunt down their friends and neighbours during the genocide, is unthinkable.
In Kigali, where Illuminee, a Tutsi, lived with her new husband John, the presidential guard immediately initiated a campaign of retribution for their leader's death.
Encouraged by radio propaganda, an unofficial militia group called the Interahamwe (meaning those who attack together) was mobilised.
It was these men who murdered John but what made it worse was that he knew them all and counted many of them as friends.
“Some people who had celebrated at our wedding were involved,” added Illuminee, who eventually came to Norwich with Roger to work as her cousin's nanny but was granted citizenship after claiming asylum.
Left alone in Kigali with her baby, Illuminee woke everyday facing the prospect that it could well be her last.
Friends and family were murdered and as she moved from place to place, with Roger strapped to her back, Illuminee herself looked death in the face.
But being alive, even after the troubles were eventually brought to an end, was only half the battle.
After her arrival in Norwich, Illuminee was diagnosed with post traumatic stress and depression but once again, her strength and courage helped to see her through.
Illuminee will be telling more of her remarkable story during a free talk with Paul at The Cube, next to Pizza Express, in the Forum in Norwich tomorrow from 11am.
