Visions of Rwanda
"These poignant accounts and many others like them depict a country on a path toward reconciliation. The resounding voices of survivors touch us in ways that no other words could."Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
message on the commemoration of the 15th anniversary of the genocide in Rwanda, 7 April 2009
Visions of Rwanda Photo Project
Genocide survivors and perpetrators in Rwanda came together in November 2007 to document their day-to-day life, hopes, dreams and memories as part of the "Visions of Rwanda" photography project. Their photos show a vision of Rwanda today through the eyes of Rwandans - recalling the past while expressing hope for the future.
The twelve participants included orphans, widows, rape and assault survivors, young students and a gacaca judge as well as perpetrators, some of whom were responsible for the deaths of family members of other participants.
The participants, many of whom had never used a camera before, were trained by a UN facilitator and given general photography tips, and were then free to document whatever topics they deemed important to them. Examples of subjects portrayed in the photographs include survivors, prisoners, memorial sites, children, weddings and burials.
The equipment used in the programme was donated to an orphanage and university in Rwanda.
An exhibit of the photos was shown at the United Nations Headquarters in New York in April-May 2009 as part of the 15th commemoration of the Rwanda genocide.
