18 November 2005

Every time I’m ready to give up on Rwanda, I meet someone who convinces me this is a country worth knowing.

I was walking to do an interview this morning and had a chat with a 16-year old named Ronald. He stopped to ask me the time, and I pulled out my mobile phone since my watch is still not working. Anyway, it turned out we were going in the same direction so we chatted along the way.

We started out with the basics and pleasantries. Then he asked what I thought of Rwanda, and I hedged. I said there were parts I liked and parts I was having trouble adjusting to. So then I asked Ronald what he thought of his country, explaining that that was far more important.

He said he loved it, because Rwanda is moving forward. The reconciliation process was working. I asked if he saw any problems. Were people just not talking about ethnic divisions.

“No,” he said. “For example, I’m friends with the man who killed my father.”

I mumbled something meaningless about that being hard. He said it was at first, but the man has become a Christian, and had returned to Ronald his father’s watch. Ronald did admit when his new friend, pulled the watch out of his back pocket, Ronald assumed a fighting stance. Ronald said he didn’t know if it was a rock or a knife, something to complete the job.

I asked if Ronald asked the murderer why. Ronald said he hadn’t, but his mother had after the Gacaca hearing. He killed because he was jealous. He wanted Ronald’s father’s house, car, watch and money. The genocide was as good a reason as any to get it.

I asked Ronald how he could be friends with his father’s killer. He said simply that one has to forgive, and this was the only way Rwanda can move forward. His voice never changed tone, and his face stayed impassive. It was like he was giving me directions.

We somehow managed to talk about other things. I gave Ronald my number, and hopefully I’ll hear from him soon. I’d like to talk to him some more, and to his mother. Most of all I want to talk to his new friend.