Paul Kagame, the President of Rwanda, has stressed that what Rwanda experienced in the past 31 years is evidence that Rwandans should not allow their existence to be dictated by others and instead be prepared to fight for rights rather than wait to be killed.

“Don’t owe your life to anybody else, and please have the courage to deal with a situation and moment like this. Don’t offend anybody but always fight for what is yours, don’t allow anybody else to dictate to you how you should live your life because the moment you accept it that is the day you have lost your life,” said Kagame.

He mentioned this during the event to mark the beginning of the 31st commemoration of the 1994 Genocide Against the Tutsi, which took place at the Kigali Genocide Memorial in Gisozi, as well as to start the commemoration week.

President Kagame and the First Lady, Jeannette Kagame, placed a wreath and ignited the flame of remembrance, which will burn for the next 100 days to honour the 100 days in 1994 during which over a million people perished.

The Head of State pointed out that in today’s world falsehood often takes centre stage while truth is cast aside.

He reflected on Rwanda’s journey of surviving the Genocide against the Tutsi, describing it as a profound challenge, one that involved reconciling the darkness of the past with the cruel realities of the present.

Kagame emphasized that the hope expressed by genocide survivors is not built on the goodwill of those who once sought to kill them but rather on the firm conviction that such atrocities will never be allowed to happen again

"There is a risk you may die when you stand up to fight, but if you don’t it’s a sure thing you are going to die. So, why don’t you try to stand up and fight with the chance that you might survive and live your life as you wanted, instead of giving up and letting people treat you as if for you to live it’s a favour?”

On the issue of dignity, Kagame stated that the real concern is not those who undermine the value of Africans but rather those who accept it.

The Head of State also dismissed warnings from the so-called UN experts and powerful countries that threatened Rwanda with sanctions.

“In the midst of all of that, we have to live our lives, we have to fight for that, we have to live the way we want and I tell everybody to his face to go to hell if they come around and think they can threaten me with sanctions."

"You have your own issues to deal with, go and deal with them and leave me to mine. This is the spirit that I think Rwandans must have in their daily lives."

President Kagame and the First Lady

Photo: President Paul Kagame and Jeannette Kagame ignite the flame of remembrance, which will burn for the next 100 days.

While addressing the issue in the eastern DR Congo, Kagame expressed disappointment that powerful countries have chosen to turn away from the truth, abandoning the real problem and instead reducing it to a matter of mineral resources.

“Hate speech, killings of people for their identity, uprooting them from their homes and most of them are refugees here in this country, but ask yourselves: How did these people end up being across the border of Rwanda? Was it really done by Kagame? Was it done by Rwanda?"

He added: "The whole thing about Genocide, this ideology that has killed millions of people has been turned into a problem of minerals. Let’s imagine it’s a problem of minerals now, was it a problem of minerals in 1994? Which minerals were we fighting for here?”

The 31st commemoration of the Genocide against the Tutsi coincides with the ongoing dissemination of the genocide ideology across Rwanda's region.

Moreover, it takes place during a time when powerful nations continue to back the government of DR Congo, which persists in blaming Rwanda for its internal political crisis, with some of these countries even inflicting sanctions on Rwanda.

President Kagame and the First Lady

Photo: President Paul Kagame and Jeannette Kagame honour the over million innocent lives lost in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi by laying a wreath.

Officials at the ceremony of marking the start of the 31st commemoration

Photo: President Kagame, Jeannette Kagame, and other officials at the ceremony of to mark the start of the 31st commemoration of the 1994 Genocide Against the Tutsi.