News from Berlin

German Government Commemorates the Rwandan Genocide

April 07th, 2014
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News from Berlin. On Friday, April 4th, the German government has organized a commemoration in the Bundestag in Berlin in memory of the victims of the 1994 Rwandan Genocide. The commemoration was the occasion for German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier to draw attention on other conflicts in Africa, especially in the Central African Republic, Sudan and Congo where populations have to face civil war, instability and violence.

According to CSU deputy Dagmar Wöhrl “courage failed in 1994 to analyze and understand the situation properly and to intervene. Today the international community has to intervene to prevent mass murders but that does not necessarily mean a military involvement”. Indeed for German Foreign Minister Steinmeier the European Union has to work together with African governments in order to promote peace on the continent. This idea comes within the context of the announcement of the French-German cooperation on April 3rd in order to build an alliance between Europe and Africa.

During the commemoration the German government also encourage Rwanda to take further steps for the process of national reconciliation. On Monday, April 7th, the German human rights commissioner Christopher Strässer will go to Kigali (Rwanda) in order to represent the German government during the commemoration organized by Rwandan government for the victims of the genocide. News from Berlin – Berlin Global.