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It is in 1990, in Gitongati. It all begun with disobeying to an order: “Cut the banana trees” we will go to burry Rwigema at the commune office. I never knew that my absence was noted, a month later I was given a prestigious role at school (at least in my view);
It is in 1990, in Gitongati. It all begun with disobeying to an order: “Cut the banana trees” we will go to burry Rwigema at the commune office. I never knew that my absence was noted, a month later I was given a prestigious role at school (at least in my view);
I didn’t know that it was a punishment. I was a brilliant kid at school and was appointed to raise the flag each morning and keep it at the office of the school responsible each evening, to repeat the same task each morning and evening.
My home was 6km away from school, I had to reach school at 7:30 to prepare for the 8:00am Flag ceremony. It is after few weeks that I noted that this was a punishment from a teacher who was not even of my class because I disobeyed to the order of the famous banana trees burial.
The punishment was not the raise the flag and keep it, nor the early morning pressure to get to school before others after a 6km journey. But keeping the flagpole so that it doesn’t get damaged by rain.
Each morning and evening, I had to mount and demount a wooden mechanism of a 15kg 6m long flagpole and carry it to a protected room. I did this until my parents decided to send me to another school in Kabgayi where I met new friends @ClaverIrakoze
Arrived in Kabgayi,…I joined Kabgayi B Mu guhungu; The story has to involve some fun of our lives, I was not allowed to wear shoes at my previous school; now I had to wear shoes at school, it was a super challenging exercise for few weeks.
I used to be the first of the class from P1 and here I met brilliant pupils who challenged me. The first term I was the 5th of the class and the Director Gahima mentioned in a student gathering at the school flagpole (the place that terribly scared me) the day of the term end,
that I was a special kid joining the school and I was awarded of 20 notebooks. Kabgayi was not much different from other schools, I met Jean Paul, Muhire, Claver, Bahizi, Anselme (I will talk about him and his family later, the first one I met, end June 1994) and dominique.
we formed a non-separable group and we were together all the time. Twakinanye Billes biratinda. A certain Didier, a son of a sous- Prefet was always angry against me not only because I was a challenger in class but also racial and class reasons.
Discrimination was clear in Gitarama and we felt unsafe and had few Clashes within us pupils as we knew each other from our teachers asking us to stand up according to our ethnicities. (something I appreciate at Kabgayi as it was not frequent).
Jean Paul’s Dad - Louis (RIP) used to give us a ride in his WV Golf 2 as to protect us on the way home.
One year, two years, three years: it was now 1994, I had always believed in myself to succeed the National exam, however my parents pushed me to register for Ecole d’art
One year, two years, three years: it was now 1994, I had always believed in myself to succeed the National exam, however my parents pushed me to register for Ecole d’art
as a second option as I was good in drawing. did I pass the national exam? Easter holidays, 3 months before the national exam, Thursday April 7th at 6:00am my uncle Claver (RIP) woke us and said: TURASHIZE IKINANI CYAPFUYE (we are all going to perish, the President has died)…
