Gas Station 10/8/2013

The people from Burundi are mainly from two tribes--the Hutu and Tutsi.  In 1993, the Hutu president was killed by the Tutsi.  This sparked a civil war in Burundi between the tribes, and contributed to the genocide in Rwanda.  An unbelievable amount of people were killed in both countries.

During my time here, I was able to talk to one of the Youth For Christ leaders in my town, Peter.  He shared the events his family went through during that time.

During the war, Peter's older sister was at a boarding school a few miles west of the town of Gitega, where we live.  Peter's sister was about 22 at the time, and was attending high school at a school named Kibimba.  The headmaster of the school was Hutu, while either the majority or all of the students were Tutsi.  Hutus, including the school's headmaster, marched the students and other local Tutsis to a gas station.  They forced the
m inside, and burned the gas station.  The rest of the students were rounded up and killed, but I don't remember how.  Peter's sister was among the students that were rounded up.

When the evening came, locals came to the gas station and searched for survivers.  Peter's sister was found unconcious and breathing beneath others that were killed.  She had survived with only an injury to her wrist or her arm.  The local people hid her, and she was able to notify her family that she survived a couple days after the massacre.


 
The massacre happened 20 years ago in October 1993.  A memorial has been built next to the gas station and I was finally able to see it this past weekend while traveling to the capital, Bujumbura.  The sign on the memorial says, "Never Again."  Indeed, I pray nothing like the genocide happens in Burundi again.

 

A couple of months ago, Peter's sister got married, and Peter attending her wedding.

Below are a couple of websites with better pictures.  Unfortunately, like many events during the war, it's not well documented.  One site doesn't mention the students killed outside the gas station.  The websites say between 70 and 100 people were killed.  Most sites don't say that local people were killed.  One says the memorial is in the town of Gitega, when the truth is that it's in the province of Gitega (not the town).  Another site says, "Gilbert Tuhabonye was the sole survivor of the school massacre. He managed to use the charred bone of a schoolmate to break a window and run to freedom." He might be the only survivor of the gas station, but not of the massacre.

I think I may ask Peter for some more information.  I would like to post this on the blog...but I will probably have to make changes to this post later.  :)

http://www.war-memorial.net/Memorial-to-the-Kibimba-School-Massacre-1.283
http://fortuneofafrica.com/burundi/index.php/2012-10-22-13-19-30/kibimba-memorial-site
http://unvisitedplaces.com/Burundi/07.jpg.html