Association des Veuves du Genocide (AVEGA Agahozo) or the Association of Widows of Genocide is a

Rwanda Rwanda, officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of East Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator, Rwanda is bordered by ...

n association formed to help

widow A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has Death, died and has usually not remarried. The male form, "widower", is first attested in the 14th century, by the 19th century supplanting "widow" with reference to men. The adjecti ...

orphan An orphan is a child whose parents have died, are unknown, or have permanently abandoned them. It can also refer to a child who has lost only one parent, as the Hebrew language, Hebrew translation, for example, is "fatherless". In some languages ...

s and others who lost family members in the 1994

Rwandan genocide The Rwandan genocide, also known as the genocide against the Tutsi, occurred from 7 April to 19 July 1994 during the Rwandan Civil War. Over a span of around 100 days, members of the Tutsi ethnic group, as well as some moderate Hutu and Gre ...

. AVEGA was founded in October 1995 by 50 women who had survived the killings but lost their husbands. One of the organization's founders has stated that she believes that "too much is expected of the victims" who, in her view, need first to be reconciled with themselves and their losses. Restitution and reparations are essential prerequisites before any consideration of reconciliation with the perpetrators. The organisation aims to do the following: * To protect and promote the widows of the genocide, who have been severely tested by the atrocities they have suffered * To undertake activities aiming to improve the living conditions of the widows and their children * To promote solidarity between the members of the association * To promote the

education Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...

of the orphans of the genocide * To defend the rights of the widows, be they

social Social organisms, including human(s), live collectively in interacting populations. This interaction is considered social whether they are aware of it or not, and whether the exchange is voluntary or not. Etymology The word "social" derives fro ...

economic An economy is an area of the Production (economics), production, Distribution (economics), distribution and trade, as well as Consumption (economics), consumption of Goods (economics), goods and Service (economics), services. In general, it is ...

political Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...

or of any other kind * To perpetuate the memory of the victims of the genocide and to fight for justice to be done * To take an active part in the process of national reconciliation and the rebuilding of the country * To collaborate with national and international associations that share the same objectives.

National Presidents

* Valerie Mukabayire (term 2014) * Chantal Kabasinga (terms 2008, 2012) * Bellancille Umukobwa (term 2006) *Chantal Kayitesi (term 1996)

References

External links

AVEGA English website
Peace organisations based in Rwanda 1995 establishments in Rwanda Organizations established in 1995 Widowhood {{rwanda-stub