André Sibomana (1954–1998) was a

Rwanda Rwanda (; rw, u Rwanda ), officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of Central Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator ...

n priest and journalist and an exemplary figure in the

Rwandan genocide The Rwandan genocide occurred between 7 April and 15 July 1994 during the Rwandan Civil War. During this period of around 100 days, members of the Tutsi minority ethnic group, as well as some moderate Hutu and Twa, were killed by armed Hutu ...

. He was also a human rights activist and a founder of the Rwandan Association for the Defense of the Rights of the Person and of Public Liberties, which is there to record information on all human rights violations occurring in Rwanda and publish them in a report. From 1988 André Sibomana was editor of the

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

newspaper ''Kinyamateka'', owned by the

Episcopal Conference An episcopal conference, sometimes called a conference of bishops, is an official assembly of the bishops of the Catholic Church in a given territory. Episcopal conferences have long existed as informal entities. The first assembly of bishops to ...

, which was the only private newspaper in Rwanda and circulated widely in the Rwandan parishes. Sibomana was committed to true investigative journalism, but he lived in a State that didn't guarantee

freedom of information Freedom of information is freedom of a person or people to publish and consume information. Access to information is the ability for an individual to seek, receive and impart information effectively. This sometimes includes "scientific, indigen ...

. Since he published independent reports that proved extremely embarrassing for the authorities, he was tried several times in 1990, but in vain as he had the proofs of what he published. Thus Sibomana was one of the few independent voices in

in the period leading up to the genocide. When the latter broke out, he realised he'd soon become a target of the extremists. He escaped from the capital

Kigali Kigali () is the capital and largest city of Rwanda. It is near the nation's geographic centre in a region of rolling hills, with a series of valleys and ridges joined by steep slopes. As a primate city, Kigali has been Rwanda's economic, cult ...

and he used his position to save the lives of many others. "For many people in Rwanda, refraining from murder was, in itself, an act of resistance. Several peasant farmers were killed because they refused to strike the corpses of their Tutsi neighbours. There are courageous and upright men who were not able or did not dare to come to the aid of their fellows and now live with remorse for having failed to do so. There is no merit in my having rescued a few people, because it was in my power to do so. My position gave me a better chance than others," Sibomana explains on page 86 of the interview he gave t
Laure Guibert and Hervé Deguine
in 1996 in Israel, which was published later. After the war, André Sibomana returned to his job as editor of ''Kinyamateka'' and he supported reconciliation until he died in 1998. He adopted seven orphans. In 2000, Sibomana was named as one of the

International Press Institute International Press Institute (IPI) is a global organisation dedicated to the promotion and protection of press freedom and the improvement of journalism practices. The institution was founded by 34 editors from 15 countries at Columbia University ...

's 50

World Press Freedom Heroes International Press Institute World Press Freedom Heroes are individuals who have been recognized by the Vienna-based International Press Institute for "significant contributions to the maintenance of press freedom and freedom of expression" and "i ...

of the past 50 years.

References

André Sibomana, J’accuse per il Rwanda, published by Gruppo Abele, Turin, 1998 See also Italy for Rwanda, 1994–2004, published by Teatri 90, Milan, 2004

External links

Sibomana on Gardens of the Righteous Worldwide Committee - Gariwo
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sibomana, Andre 1954 births 1998 deaths Rwandan activists Rwandan journalists 20th-century Rwandan Roman Catholic priests 20th-century journalists Roman Catholic bishops of Kabgayi