More than three decades after the genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, Paris is receiving a permanent memorial for one of the gravest crimes against humanity of the late 20th century. On June 2nd, French President Emmanuel Macron and his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame jointly inaugurated the new monument “L’Archive” on the banks of the Seine. The ceremony represents not only the remembrance of the victims but also the progressing rapprochement between France and Rwanda after decades of diplomatic tensions.
A Monument Against Forgetting
The new monument was designed by the Portuguese-Angolan artist Grada Kilomba. Under the title “L’Archive,” the work serves as a place of remembrance, reflection, and historical transmission. The aim is to preserve and make accessible the voices, memories, and experiences of the victims and survivors of the genocide for future generations.
The memorial site is located in a prominent public space in the French capital. In multiple languages – French, English, Kinyarwanda, and Swahili – inscriptions recall the events of the year 1994. The monument is designed as a permanently accessible place and is meant to keep alive the memory of more than 800,000 people who were killed within about one hundred days. The vast majority of the victims belonged to the Tutsi ethnic group.
The 1994 Genocide
Between April and July 1994, Rwanda experienced one of the most ruthless genocides in modern history. After the plane carrying President Juvénal Habyarimana was shot down on April 6, 1994, a systematic campaign of destruction against the Tutsi and moderate Hutu began.
Militia members, soldiers, and state institutions participated in the massacres that were carried out at a disturbing speed. Within a few weeks, hundreds of thousands of people were killed, often by neighbors, local militias, or state security services. The international community intervened hardly at all. The United Nations and numerous Western countries were later sharply criticized for not recognizing the scale of the crimes in time or for not responding decisively enough.
The genocide only ended with the military victory of the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) led by Paul Kagame, who later became president of the country and still holds that office.
The difficult role of France
A particular burden on the relations between Paris and Kigali was the question of France’s role before and during the genocide. France politically and militarily supported the then Rwandan government in the years leading up to 1994. Critics have long accused Paris of having supported those responsible for the later genocide and having ignored warning signs.
For decades, mutual accusations were made against each other, which burdened the bilateral relations. Rwanda accused France of co-responsibility for the events, while French governments denied this characterization.
A turning point was the publication in 2021 of the so-called Duclert report. The commission of historians appointed by President Macron found that France bore a “heavy and oppressive responsibility” because political and military decision-makers had misjudged the developments in Rwanda and held on to their support for the then-regime for too long. At the same time, the report indicated that there was no evidence of direct French involvement in the genocide itself.
Macron’s course of acknowledgment
During a historic visit to Kigali in May 2021, Emmanuel Macron drew political conclusions from these findings. In a much-discussed speech at the genocide memorial in the Rwandan capital, he acknowledged France’s responsibility for the developments that had led to the genocide.
Although Macron avoided the term co-guilt, he spoke of serious political mistakes and neglect. His words were internationally seen as an important step in the historical reckoning.
Paul Kagame reacted remarkably positively at the time. He called the speech an important contribution to the truth and a foundation for a new phase in the relations between both countries. Since then, diplomatic contacts have been significantly intensified. France and Rwanda now cooperate more closely in numerous areas, including the economy, culture, education, and security policy.
Memory politics as part of diplomacy
The inauguration of “L’Archive” is therefore much more than a cultural event. It symbolizes the attempt by both states to connect the memory of the past with future-oriented cooperation.
In recent years, French memory culture has increasingly dealt with the crimes of the genocide. The decision to erect a national monument in the heart of Paris underscores this change. Already in 2023, the Élysée Palace announced giving the victims a permanently visible place in the public space of the French capital.
At the same time, combating historical falsification and genocide denial is becoming more important. Rwanda regularly points out that the memory of the events of 1994 is not just a national matter but part of a universal struggle against hate ideologies, ethnic violence, and the political instrumentalization of identities.
More than thirty years after the mass killings, the joint opening of the monument by Macron and Kagame shows how closely memory politics and international relations can be intertwined. The new monument on the Seine therefore stands not only for the commemoration of the victims but also for the attempt by two states to overcome a sensitive past through recognition, historical processing, and dialogue. At a time when questions about culture of remembrance are becoming increasingly politicized worldwide, the monument gains a significance that reaches far beyond the borders of France and Rwanda.
Author: P. Tiko