BBC Africa analyst<\/span><\/span><\/p>\nA Rwandan opposition party has accused the government of forcing people to exhume the bodies of relatives killed during the 1994 genocide.<\/p>\n
The authorities say the remains should be brought together at memorial sites so people never forget the killings.<\/p>\n
Some 800,000 ethnic Tutsi and moderate Hutus died in the 100-day genocide.<\/p>\n
Despite repeated requests by the BBC neither the information minister nor Rwanda’s Commission Against Genocide Ideology have responded to the claims.<\/p>\n
‘No choice’<\/strong><\/p>\nA representative of the newly-formed opposition Rwandan National Congress, Jonathan Musonera, said that he had personally been affected by the government’s order.<\/p>\n
“The authorities issued instructions for us to dig up the remains of our relatives and take them to the genocide memorial sites,” he said.<\/p>\n
“My family refused, but the government said if we didn’t do it, they would send prisoners to exhume the remains.<\/p>\n
“We had no choice. My relatives dug up the bodies and gave them to the authorities who took them to the memorial sites.”<\/p>\n
Mr Musonera said exhuming the remains of his family has haunted him and that he believes they deserve to be buried with dignity at a place where they can be visited by those who survived.<\/p>\n
But the Rwandan Genocide Survivors Association, which is close to the government, supports the policy of exhuming the remains.<\/p>\n
“All the remains should be kept at memorial sites so that we can keep showing that the genocide happened,” said Jean-Pierre Dusingizemungu, the head of the association.<\/p>\n
He added that the bodies should be preserved properly so that they can be displayed in this way for a long time.<\/p>\n
There are several genocide memorial sites in Rwanda. The biggest, in the capital Kigali, displays the skulls and other remains of some 200,000 people.<\/p>\n
The authorities want the remains of every victim to be shown in public to emphasise the scale and horror of the genocide.<\/p>\n
But many of those being asked to dig up the remains of those they lost 17 years ago, would prefer for them to rest in peace.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/p>\n
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