Friends
of Rwanda Fundraiser
Remarks
by the Hon. David Kilgour, P.C., M.P.
Cité
francophone
Edmonton
June
8 2002
Version
française
It
is a great pleasure to be with you all this
evening. Gatherings like this provide us with an
opportunity to look beyond the traditional scope
of politics and to focus on principles that bind
us together as human beings.
To
a degree, we
are all victims of the catastrophic events of
eight years ago.
At least 800,000 innocent lives now rest on
our collective conscience.
It is the duty of everyone on this planet
to ensure that a similar event does not happen
ever again anywhere on earth.
As
you know Canada strongly condemned the genocide
and has worked with the United Nations and other
countries to see justice done.
Along
with yourselves and other Rwandans, it
was the Canadian General Romeo Dallaire and some
brave peacekeepers from Canada and some other
nations who faced the horror together.
At incredible personal danger General Dallaire
and his command chose not to remove themselves
from the scene, but to do everything they could to
save and protect many Rwandans from certain death.
Their selfless behavior stands as a beacon of how
the actions and courage of a handful of good men
and women can save many lives.
Much
has been achieved, but more remains to be
accomplished to ensure that the world that the
world sees that those guilty of war crimes and
crimes against humanity do not go unpunished. At
the same time as they pursue justice, Rwanda and
its people have continued their healing process.
All Canadians support Rwandans in their effort to
rebuild their beautiful country.
Desmond
Tutu visited Kigagli not long after the events of
April –June 1994.
In speaking to a large audience at an
outdoor stadium shortly after he arrived, the
great man called for forgiveness.
Thereafter, he visited some of the sites of
the killings, many of which, as you know, were
churches.
According
to one witness who was there, Tutu was so appalled
at what he observed that he changed his view:
justice for at least some of the perpetrators, and
then forgiveness. In one of his books, No
Future Without Forgiveness,
Tutu deals with the past and does not forget, but
allows individuals and communities to achieve
reconciliation through forgiveness.
In
1998, I had the opportunity to visit Rwanda; while
there I had the chance to visit a project
partially funded by Canada’s International
Development Agency.
Under this project, women left widowed by
the genocide worked to build doors, windows, and
other housing materials. At first glance, I was
struck only by the tragedy that left these women
widowed. After meeting women on the project,
however, something else struck me, and gave cause
for hope. They came from all backgrounds - Hutu,
Tutsi and Batwa.
Despite the inter-ethnic violence of the
past, these women were working together to build a
new sense of community that cut across ethnic
lines.
I
tell you this because if they are doing that in
Rwanda now, just imagine what we can do here. We
live in a country of abundant opportunity and
resources.
By working together so much can be
accomplished by the Rwandan community in Edmonton.
The
tireless efforts and commitment of the Rwandan
Women’s Association must be applauded. The work
they have started here shows what a community can
do to make a difference. This association is
working with the community to let others know
about Rwanda and its history, while bringing the
Rwandan community of Edmonton together. This
association is showing the community that it is
not a matter of just forgiving and forgetting what
happened in 1994; instead The Rwandan Women’s
Association wants the community to forgive each
other and work together to help the children and
people of Rwanda rebuild their lives, and always
remember that there is “no future without
forgiveness.”
Indeed,
tonight is undoubtedly the start of something
wonderful. All of you are here supporting the
Rwandan Women’s Association and indirectly the
people of Rwanda generally. Congratulations.
Thank
you for your generosity, and I will end by
invoking a Swahili proverb, which says:
“Giving
is a matter of the heart, not a matter of
wealth.”
Merci/Thank
you.
|