{"id":31821,"date":"2022-12-19T10:31:58","date_gmt":"2022-12-19T10:31:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/survivors-of-rusesabagina-led-attacks-renew-call-for-compensation"},"modified":"2022-12-19T11:00:12","modified_gmt":"2022-12-19T11:00:12","slug":"survivors-of-rusesabagina-led-attacks-renew-call-for-compensation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/survivors-of-rusesabagina-led-attacks-renew-call-for-compensation","title":{"rendered":"Survivors of Rusesabagina-led attacks renew call for compensation"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Rwanda. <\/strong><\/span>On Saturday, December 15, 2018, Vainney Bwimba boarded a bus from Rusizi in south-western Rwanda to join his family in Kayonza for Christmas and New Year celebrations.<\/p>\n

His trip, however, didn\u2019t go as planned.<\/p>\n

About eight kilometres before they left the Nyungwe National Park, the bus, owned by Alpha Express, was attacked by the FLN, the military wing of Paul Rusesabagina\u2019s MRCD coalition, whose militants had set up roadblocks in the rainforest.<\/p>\n

The militants started shooting at the bus and Bwimba was shot in his right leg.<\/p>\n

\u201cI spent about two months and a half in hospital in Huye and throughout the festive season I was on the hospital bed,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

ALSO READ: Rusesabagina\u2019s 25-year jail term upheld, Nsabimana reduced to 15<\/p>\n

The FLN assailants also attacked another bus, owned by Omega Express that was bound for Rusizi from Kigali. The two buses were set on fire. Nine people were killed on the spot, one died of injuries later.<\/p>\n

The Nyungwe incident in Nyamagabe District was one of the attacks by the FLN, which also targeted Nyabimata in Gisagara District, Rusizi District.<\/p>\n

ALSO READ: Profiles of victims of MRCD-FLN attacks<\/p>\n

As narrated by Desire Ngirababyeyi, the driver of the Alpha bus who defied the orders of the FLN to stop, the terrorists had been shooting at the Omega bus using silencer guns.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I drove further down the road hoping to save myself and the passengers, they started to shoot rather loudly, aiming at the tires, which distabilised the bus,\u201d Ngirababyeyi says.<\/p>\n

Desire Ngirababyeyi, the driver who defied the FLN orders, hoping to save himself and the passengers.<\/p>\n

Ngirababyeyi\u2019s defiance and the subsequent explosion attracted the attention of the Rwandan army, which rushed to the scene and fought off the terrorists.<\/p>\n

Bwimba, an entertainer, was so traumatized by the FLN attack that he avoided using the road through Nyungwe. His first time to use the Nyungwe road since the attack was only on Friday \u2013 four years later \u2013 when he and other survivors gathered where the attack took place to remember those who were killed.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe came here to remember those who were killed and to reflect on the traumatizing moments we went through,\u201d says 30-year-old Bwimba.<\/p>\n

ALSO READ: 95 victims of MRCD-FLN terror attacks narrate ordeal<\/p>\n

He recognises the soldiers of the Rwanda Defence Force, who rushed to the scene to their rescue and took them to hospital. \u201cI have been able to witness that Nyungwe is safer than ever. I wish to see this commemoration become an annual event.\u201d<\/p>\n

Aboard the Omega bus was Azera Niyontegereje, who had left Kigali with her one-year-old daughter after visiting relatives in the capital. When the attackers started shooting at the bus, she bent forward to cover the toddler and a bullet hit her in the shoulder. She breaks into tears when she talks about the ordeal.<\/p>\n

\u201cI still feel the pain in the shoulder,\u201d Niyontegereje says, as she wipes the tears running down her cheeks.<\/p>\n

One of the mourners with a placard that read – “They were convicted, where is the compensation” during the commemoration event to pay tribute to the victims of FLN attacks in Nyaruguru and Rusizi Districts.<\/p>\n

At the commemoration ceremony on Friday, Niyontegereje paid tribute to her village-mate Jeanine Niyobuhungiro, who was killed by the FLN. Niyobuhungiro, then 23, was about to graduate from the Protestant Institute of Arts and Social Sciences (PIASS) in Huye.<\/p>\n

ALSO READ: Rusesabagina was credibly convicted of terrorism – US lawmaker<\/p>\n

Also at the ceremony was Phenias Karegesa, the father of Isaac Niwenshuti, a 17-year-old boy who was burnt in one of the buses. Karegesa wore a T-shirt with his son\u2019s picture printed on it, and held a placard that read \u201cRusesabagina is not a hero. He is a terrorist.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018Complete justice\u2019<\/b><\/p>\n

After a public trial, Rusesabagina, considered the mastermind of the FLN attacks, was found guilty of committing acts of terrorism and sentenced to 25 years in jail. Callixte Nsabimana, aka Sankara, and Herman Nsengimana, both former spokesmen for the FLN were sentenced to seven and 15 years, respectively.<\/p>\n

Although the court ruled in November 2021 that the convicts would pay Rwf412 million in compensation to the survivors and families of the victims.<\/p>\n

The victims have not received a penny.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe terrorists have been convicted but complete justice will be achieved when we have get the compensation,\u201d says Bwimba, who walks with a limp due to the gunshots.<\/p>\n

Yves Mugisha Gashumba, one of the victims of FLN attacks, still has bullet fragments in his right leg .Seen here at the commemoration of the victims on Friday , December 16.<\/p>\n

He adds that foreign countries and people who think the attacks did not happen should visit the victims to witness first-hand the terrorist activities of Rusesabagina\u2019s MRCD-FLN.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was the first person to get shot in the bus,\u201d says Yves Mugisha Gashumba, who was with Bwimba. \u201cI still have bullet fragments in the upper leg. I need an operation to remove the fragments. That is the justice I need.\u201d<\/p>\n

Niyontegereje says: \u201cWe are still waiting for the compensation because for us justice has not been served yet. Meanwhile, I thank the government for taking care of us since the attacks.\u201d<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Rwanda<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Rwanda. On Saturday, December 15, 2018, Vainney Bwimba boarded a bus from Rusizi in south-western Rwanda to join his family in Kayonza for Christmas and New Year celebrations. His trip, however, didn\u2019t go as planned. About eight kilometres before they left the Nyungwe National Park, the bus, owned by Alpha Express, was attacked […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":31820,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,30],"tags":[760,763,758],"class_list":["post-31821","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-community","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-rwanda","tag-rwanda"],"yoast_head":"\nSurvivors of Rusesabagina-led attacks renew call for compensation - Rwanda<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"On Saturday, December 15, 2018, Vainney Bwimba boarded a bus from Rusizi in south-western Rwanda to join his family in K ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/survivors-of-rusesabagina-led-attacks-renew-call-for-compensation\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Survivors of Rusesabagina-led attacks renew call for compensation\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"On Saturday, December 15, 2018, Vainney Bwimba boarded a bus from Rusizi in south-western Rwanda to join his family in K ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/survivors-of-rusesabagina-led-attacks-renew-call-for-compensation\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Rwanda\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-12-19T10:31:58+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-12-19T11:00:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sites\/23\/2022\/12\/postQueueImg_1671433329.28.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"750\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/survivors-of-rusesabagina-led-attacks-renew-call-for-compensation#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/survivors-of-rusesabagina-led-attacks-renew-call-for-compensation\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Survivors of Rusesabagina-led attacks renew call for compensation\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-12-19T10:31:58+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-12-19T11:00:12+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/survivors-of-rusesabagina-led-attacks-renew-call-for-compensation\"},\"wordCount\":884,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/survivors-of-rusesabagina-led-attacks-renew-call-for-compensation#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/sites\/23\/2022\/12\/postQueueImg_1671433329.28.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Africa Press\",\"Africa Press-Rwanda\",\"Rwanda\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"Community\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/survivors-of-rusesabagina-led-attacks-renew-call-for-compensation#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/survivors-of-rusesabagina-led-attacks-renew-call-for-compensation\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/rwanda\/all-news\/survivors-of-rusesabagina-led-attacks-renew-call-for-compensation\",\"name\":\"Survivors of Rusesabagina-led attacks renew call for compensation - 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