‘Northern Ireland is not Rwanda – but forgiving the penitent is valued in both’

A group of Troubles victims has embarked on a journey to Rwanda to contrast their experiences with those of victims of sectarian slaughter there.

The trip is being organised under the auspices of the South East Fermanagh Foundation, and its spokesman Kenny Donaldson said it will be a learning experience for them and for those who they meet along the way.

He said that past experience had shown that despite the huge gulf in the scale of the violence compared with Northern Ireland, survivors of both bloodbaths felt an “alignment in our core values, around the sanctity of human life and of the power and gift of forgiveness”.

Those accompanying Mr Donaldson on the 12-day expedition are Canon Alan Irwin of Lack in Fermanagh, Paul Toombs of Mountnorris, mid-Armagh, Sammy Heenan and daughter Katie of Rathfriland, and Yvonne Black of Cookstown.

> Rev Irwin’s uncle Fred (a council waste worker and part-time UDR soldier) was killed by the IRA in 1979, and then his father Thomas (a sewage plant worker and also a part-time UDR volunteer) was killed in 1986 by the group.

> Paul Toombs’ father Ivan was killed in 1981; IRA man Eamon Collins (later murdered by the Provos after turning his back on them) recounted in his book ‘Killing Rage’ how he gathered information about UDR major Toombs, who worked alongside him in a customs station, allowing his comrades to shoot him dead.

Collins later went to his funeral to pick out more targets.

> Sammy Heenan’s father William was a civilian digger driver and was shot dead in 1985 in Co Down by the IRA.

> And Yvonne Black’s husband, David, was a soon-to-retire prison warden from Cookstown who was shot dead while driving to work near Lurgan in 2012 by dissidents.

Their Rwandan trip began today, and Mr Donaldson explained it as follows: “Over the years, many have looked to South Africa and other places in seeking to compare and contrast Northern Ireland’s issues, as we emerge from 30-plus years of intense violence and continued sporadic violence.

“The truth is that no two nations nor their historical context are identical.

“However, we have felt within SEFF that one nation which is seldom examined or understood is Rwanda.”

Four years ago he met Christophe Mbonyingabo, founder of Christian Action for Reconciliation and Social Assistance, and said that “we found that there was alignment in our core values”.

Specifically these involved “the sanctity of human life, and of the power and gift of forgiveness made possible through grace when a perpetrator has expressed remorse for their actions, genuinely repented of their wrongdoing, and is committed to a path of restitution”.

Mr Donaldson added: “Within Rwandan society there is a significant section of perpetrators who are on this journey; they latterly understand and have embraced a Christian path, a path of humanity...

“Our representatives will spend 12 days travelling the beautiful country and will engage with victims/survivors of the genocide, some perpetrators who have repented of their crimes, church and state representatives and we will hear perspectives from Hutus and Tutsis ...

“We want to do what we can to encourage the Rwandan people to develop and build for the future and whilst it may be the case they will learn from us; we anticipate learning much from them.”

In Rwanda in 1994, the population was about 7.3m; by the time the genocide was over, death and displacement meant the population stood at about 5.8m.

Most of the killing was of Tutsis (a minority ethnic group) by Hutus, and was done manually, with cudgels and machetes.

Many victims were well-known to their murderers as neighbours or fellow workers.

No-one knows for sure how many people were killed over the 100-day spree, with estimates ranging from half a million to over one million.