From Archbishop to Chelsea star, public figures mark Rwandan genocide anniversary

Religious leaders, football stars and actors back ‘Candles for Rwanda’ initiative as Rwanda prepares to mark end of the 1994 genocide

The Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams, Chelsea striker Didier Drogba and Hollywood star Danny Glover are among the latest public figures to light candles on camera as part of ‘Candles for Rwanda’ (www.candles4rwanda.org), a global initiative to mark the 15th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide and help destitute survivors who are still suffering from its consequences 15 years on.

“The tragedy of Rwanda is that for a while, people completely forgot the humanity of their neighbours. People who had lived side by side for generations, people familiar with each other who knew each other well as human beings, suddenly forgot that other people were human beings. And that is always what happens when genocide occurs,” says Dr Rowan Williams in lighting his candle at Lambeth Palace. “The people of Rwanda are rebuilding bravely and prayerfully and hopefully at the moment, and our prayers and our thoughts are with them. All of us join with those prayers, that we may never again, anywhere in the World, forget the humanity of our neighbours; that we may all be prepared to stand alongside our neighbours in love, in solidarity, and in compassion.”

Didier Drogba: “Even if this flame ceases to burn, we have to remember all of our brothers who are gone”

“I light this candle in honour and homage to the victims of the genocide, simply so we can remember,” says Didier Drogba. “Even if this flame ceases to burn, we have to remember all of our brothers who are gone, and the conditions in which they went. It's important not to forget our past; it's important to remember our past, to avoid committing again in the future the mistakes which were made. So all my support, and here, this flame, the symbol of my homage to the Rwandan people.”

“It's a courageous act to dispel all of your fears, your anger, and all the historic pain that has been a part of that experience for the people, to take on the task now of healing,” says Danny Glover. “That process of healing not only involves the Rwandan people but it also involves all of us as part of the human experience and the human family.”

Both Danny Glover and Didier Drogba lit their candles at the Kigali Memorial Centre in Rwanda, a site where over 250,000 victims of the genocide lie buried.

Over the course of 100 days from 7 April 1994, around a million children, women and men were slaughtered in Rwanda simply because they were Tutsi. Hutus opposed to the onslaught were also killed. The international community knew what was happening and the media reported on it, but nothing was done to intervene.

Today, despite the trauma of the past, Rwanda is rebuilding and its economy is growing. However, thousands of survivors whose homes, means of living, loved ones and communities were taken away from them are still suffering the material consequences of the genocide.

‘Candles for Rwanda’ is intended to help change all that. Coordinated by the Aegis Trust, the initiative encourages people everywhere to go online and donate £5.00 to help survivors rebuild their lives. And for every £5.00 donation, a candle will be lit on behalf of the donor at the Kigali Memorial Centre.

On Sunday, a national event will be held in Rwanda to mark the 15^th anniversary of the end of the 1994 genocide. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Didier Drogba and Danny Glover will appear in a film that will be screened at the event featuring a host of public figures and celebrities from around the World who over the past three months have lit candles for Rwanda.

PRIME MINISTERS' GENOCIDE ANNOUNCEMENT: Peers and NGOs say: "Very good news - but it doesn't go far enough"

The Aegis Trust, JUSTICE and REDRESS welcome the government's decision to apply the jurisdiction of UK courts to prosecute genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes retrospectively back to January 1^st 1991. This follows amendments tabled to the Coroners and Justice Bill by Lord Carlile QC, Baroness D’Souza, and Lord Falconer QC. When it comes to ending impunity for mass atrocities, this bold move by the government is as significant as the War Crimes Act 1991 and the International Criminal Court Act 2001. "Until now, it has only been possible to prosecute these crimes in the UK if they were committed after 2001," explains Sally Ireland of JUSTICE. "In practice, this means that four Rwandans resident in the UK and suspected of genocide in 1994, who recently won their High Court appeal against extradition to Rwanda, can now face trial in the United Kingdom. This is a real step forward."

But even after the reforms "there remain serious loopholes in our laws on atrocity crimes," warns Kevin Laue of REDRESS. "Unless the government gets tougher the UK will continue to be a safe haven for those suspected of the most heinous offences." The Aegis Trust, JUSTICE and REDRESS call on the government to replace the unclear residency requirement for prosecution of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity with a simple presence test. Suspects who have been 'present' in the UK since the 1990s but not 'resident' include Felicien Kabuga, the alleged financier of the Rwandan genocide and Chucky Taylor, former head of the anti-terrorist unit in Liberia, who was recently convicted in the United States for torture. Border Agency statistics indicate it is likely that there may be other suspects present in the United Kingdom who are being refused residency status but who, rightly, cannot be removed for human rights reasons. Under current law, and even with the Government's proposed changes announced today, these people would still be immune from prosecution in the United Kingdom.

A simple presence test for prosecution - as called for in the amendments tabled by Baroness D’Souza, Lord Carlile QC and Lord Falconer QC to the Coroners and Justice Bill - would bring us into line with other common law countries, including Canada, New Zealand and South Africa and the United States. It would also bring our laws on genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity into line with our laws on torture, hostage taking and grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions. For these latter three crimes, UK courts do not apply a residency test for prosecution. There is no practical or sensible reason for a jurisdictional difference between these crimes, all of which belong to the same bracket of serious violations of international criminal law. "Why should we be able to prosecute visiting torturers but not génocidaires?" asks Nick Donovan, Head of Campaigns at the Aegis Trust.

Today’s announcement is important and demonstrates significant progress in breaking down barriers to prosecution. When it comes to genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, however, the Government's position should be unequivocal. It should respond to every credible allegation of the presence in the United Kingdom of any individual who may have committed these crimes. If these suspects cannot be deported or extradited, they must be prosecuted here. Otherwise the impunity gap remains and the UK government is effectively condoning the presence on UK soil of suspected mass murderers without any prospect of arrest or trial.

Celebrities and Politicians turn out for Rwandan genocide survivors Mass candle lighting and practical help marks genocide, 15 years on

What do Kofi Annan, Natalie Portman, Clive Owen, David Cameron and Desmond Tutu have in common?

This week they are among the first public figures to light ‘Candles for Rwanda’ on camera – encouraging people everywhere to join a global initiative via the website, www.candles4rwanda.org, to commemorate the 15^th anniversary of the 1994 genocide and lift destitute survivors out of poverty.

“During a 100 days from 7 April 1994, a million children, women and men were slaughtered in Rwanda, simply because of who they were,” says Stephen Twigg, a Director of the Aegis Trust, which is helping to coordinate the initiative. “Today, despite the trauma of the past, Rwanda is rebuilding and full of hope for the future. However, it remains one of the poorest countries in the World, and thousands of those who survived – many of them widowed or orphaned by the genocide – remain destitute, unable to keep shelter over their heads or put food on the table. ‘Candles for Rwanda’ is intended to help change all of that.”

Lifting destitute survivors out of extreme poverty

For every donation you give – either through www.candles4rwanda.org, or by texting ‘CANDLES’ to 82010 to give £5.00 – a candle will be lit on your behalf and placed in remembrance at mass graves in the grounds of the Kigali Memorial Centre, where 250,000 victims of the genocide lie buried.

The first few pence pay for the candle. The rest of the donation goes directly to meet the needs of the most destitute among the survivors, lifting them out of extreme poverty and giving them a chance to start rebuilding their lives. The growing sea of candles at the Kigali Memorial Centre, and the very practical support that comes with it, will show survivors they are not forgotten; that people the World over do care about their suffering.

“I will never forget going to visit the genocide memorial centre in Kigali,” says David Cameron. “Someone once said that while one death is a tragedy, a million deaths is just a statistic. We must prove that wrong. We owe that to those who survived.”

“This candle, I want to light for you.”

The first candles lit in Rwanda as part of the initiative will be in the National Stadium, Kigali, during the official commemoration of the genocide on the night of 7^th April. As thousands of candles are lit across the pitch, a short film featuring high profile figures taking part in the initiative will be displayed on the stadium’s main screen.

In the face of genocide, words can seem futile. Some of the stars – Samuel L Jackson, Clive Owen and Adrien Brody among them – chose to light their candles in silence. Some reflected on what they themselves were doing in 1994 when the genocide happened, or talked about their own experience of Rwanda. Others simply offered a moving dedication of their candle-lighting to the victims and survivors.

“I want to light this candle for those people who were killed, and the parts of us that were killed, as people in humanity, to allow these things to happen,” said Forest Whitaker, who in 2007 won an Oscar for his screen portrayal of Ugandan dictator Idi Amin. “I want to light this candle in hope, with the hope that things like this will never happen again. With the hope that those souls who have passed, and those souls who have been scarred, move upward towards the light. I want to light this candle for love, because it represents the spark that we have inside of all of us. This candle, I want to light for you... I want to light for us.”

The politicians and stars...

Those taking part in the launch of ‘Candles for Rwanda’ include Kofi Annan, Desmond Tutu, Tony Blair, David Cameron, Nick Clegg, Clive Owen, Forest Whitaker, Adrien Brody, John Hurt, Claire-Hope Ashitey, Natalie Portman, Zero 7, Reverend and the Makers, Mattafix, Mia Farrow, Sidney Poitier, Samuel L Jackson, Hugh Dancy, Sandra Bullock, Switch foot, Lucy Liu and Madeleine Albright. They also include survivors: Holocaust survivor Martin Stern, Cambodian survivor Samol Loeng and Darfuri survivor Ibrahim Issa Korkor.

Film clips featuring these people lighting their ‘candles for Rwanda’ will be available to view online at www.candles4rwanda.org. They will also be available to view on multiple social networking sites, including YouTube and FaceBook.

See Samuel L Jackson's message:

Other celebrities, politicians and public figures from around the world will be announcing their support for the initiative during the course of the 100-day commemoration period, building to concluding announcements on 16 July.

Partners involved in the ‘Candles for Rwanda’ initiative include Rwanda15 (the official Rwandan commemoration), the Imbuto Foundation, Kigali City Council, Ibuka, the Aegis Trust, Three Generations, Eye Spy Films, The Infantry, The Harry Potter Alliance, PR4 and Instigate Debate.

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