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  Simbananiye, Cécile

  Cécile Simbananiye

  In 1972, Cecile Simbananiye lost her husband, his father-in-law and his brother-in -law. Working as a salesman in Bujumbura, her husband supported his family with everything they needed. Cécile was a farmer at Gikiranya village. In 1972, people came from Bujumbura and told Cécile that her husband was killed. She didn’t see him again and all of his belongings were looted. She saw him the last time before he departed to work in Bujumbura.When the tragedy began Cécile already had five births. Cécile didn’t know what was behind the death of her husband. Still questioning about that, she saw people arresting Hutus in her neighborhood. They came and took them away one by one saying ‘’go you will come back after’’ and they ( people) waited for them to come back in vain. They also took away his father-in-law and her brother-in -law who were at Bujumbura. They arrested only the Hutus but she didn’t realize why. After the tragedy, Cécile sent her two children to school. They passed the national test of sixth grade but their results were given to Tutsis who didn’t pass, so they were forced to drop out of school. One of her children said: “and now they again wronged me, the grades I had were given to someone else so I didn't go back there”. Cécile didn’t mourn the death of her husband. In that period, nobody was allowed even to cry.

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  Sinagaye, Simoni

  Simoni Sinagaye

  On April 30th, the second day of the 1972 tragedy, Simoni Sinagaye was at Kivumu elementary School. He saw students who fled from Mugara, Rumonge commune, being arrested and herded to the zone at Manyoni. Anyone who went there did not return. They afterwards started to arrest the local population. They targeted any Hutu who has income-generating activities, students, intellectuals, or any Hutu man who owns valuable things. His father, who was a merchant, was arrested in similar circumstances and did not come back. His job was to sell clothes, cows and fish. Simoni escaped thanks to a Tutsi neighbor who was a friend of his family. He warned him to run away. His elder brother was also killed in that tragedy, he was also a businessman. To arrest a big number, they mobilized all men to attend the vigils. They rounded up one by one, took them to the zone and nobody came back. Discrimination against Hutus continued even after 1972. Hutu students were not allowed to enter 7th grade. After passing the national test, the headmasters together with authorities took the grades of Hutu students and attributed them to Tutsis who failed. Hence, Hutu students dropped out of school by the time Tutsis moved to the 7th grade. The perpetrators looted afterward the victims’ belongings, especially stores, houses, lands, and any valuable equipment. The widows as well as the orphans stayed in misery.

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  Sindabizera, François Xavier

  François Xavier Sindabizera

  Sindabizera comes from a village named Murore. He had three siblings and two parents who passed away in 1970. His only brother was a teacher at his school and was captured during 72, due to the accusation of engaging in political affairs. He was arrested for 6 months. Older students would mock Sindabizera about his brother being captured and claimed he was taken to Vumbi to be tortured. This caused him and his family to lose hope that their brother was still alive. Sindabizera's neighborhood consisted of Rwandan Tutsi families, where a rumor spread that claimed they were the ones who were the capturers of Sindabizera’s brother. Some of his neighbors were chiefs, who worked at the municipality, who were said to be responsible for taking his brother.

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  Yohani, Ndirikunze

  Ndirikunze Yohani

  Ndirikunze Yohani describes the events of 1972, remembering how tensions escalated as Hutus gained education and started to hold positions in civil service and the military. This progress alarmed the Tutsi administration, leading to targeted roundups beginning with military personnel, then students and teachers. Even Hutu policemen were arrested. The process of the killings involved administrators summoning people and then handing them over to the military. Those who were sympathetic to the Hutus would give them a warning in advance, allowing some to escape. Many fled to neighboring countries like Uganda to escape the risks of being killed for their ethnic background. Those detained were loaded into trucks and transported to their deaths The interviewee's brother, Segasago Piyo, a teacher, was among those arrested from Kabanga and later killed, despite initial release from custody. Yohani was not living with his brother but learned about his death when their mother attempted to deliver food to him in detention. The tragedy's repercussions brought to a lot of personal developments. One brother dropped out of school out of fear, affecting the interviewee's remaining family members.

  When Bagaza came to power, there was a change for the better, leading to discriminatory practices coming to an end and educational reforms were put in place.