Nyamasheke is a district (''akarere'') in

Western Province Western Province or West Province may refer to: * Western Province, Cameroon *Western Province, Rwanda *Western Province (Kenya) *Western Province (Papua New Guinea) *Western Province (Solomon Islands) *Western Province, Sri Lanka *Western Provin ...

, Rwanda. Its capital is Nyamasheke town (Kagano).

Sectors

Nyamasheke district is divided into 15

sectors Sector may refer to: Places * Sector, West Virginia, U.S. Geometry * Circular sector, the portion of a disc enclosed by two radii and a circular arc * Hyperbolic sector, a region enclosed by two radii and a hyperbolic arc * Spherical sector, a p ...

(''imirenge''): Ruharambuga, Bushekeri, Bushenge, Cyato, Gihombo, Kagano, Kanjongo, Karambi, Karengera, Kirimbi, Macuba, Nyabitekeri, Mahembe, Rangiro, Shangi.

History

Nyamasheke was originally part of the colony of German East Africa, which included what are now Burundi, Rwanda and Tanganyika. Nyamasheke's Lake Kivu is the site of the first German colonial military post, founded in 1898 by Kapitan Berthe, a German Army officer. Shangi sector was chosen by the Germans for its strategic position on Lake Kivu border with the Congo. The site is also known for having served for the first Rwandan religious mass in 1899. The District saw considerable bloodshed during 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 H ...

. In 2006, Nyamasheke became home to the Rwanda National Genocide Memorial.

Recent events

In 2009, the prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) announced that it was in possession of evidence implicating former businessman Yussuf Munyakazi in the

genocidal massacre The term ''genocidal massacre'' was introduced by Leo Kuper (1908–1994) to describe incidents which have a genocidal component but are committed on a smaller scale when they are compared to genocides such as the Rwandan genocide. Others such as ...

s that occurred in 1994 in Nyamasheke.Muramira, Gashegu,
Rwanda: ICTR Pins Munyakazi On Nyamasheke Massacres
', AllAfrica.com, 22 April 2009, retrieved 26 February 2012 Munyakazi, a former wealthy rice farmer in the Western Province, was charged with counts of genocide, or complicity in the alternative and extermination as a

crime against humanity Crimes against humanity are widespread or systemic acts committed by or on behalf of a ''de facto'' authority, usually a state, that grossly violate human rights. Unlike war crimes, crimes against humanity do not have to take place within the ...

. On 30 June 2010, the ICTR found Yussuf Munyakazi guilty of genocide and extermination as a crime against humanity, and sentenced him to 25 years’ imprisonment.Yussuf Munyakazi Sentenced To 25 Years
', The Hague Justice Portal, retrieved 26 February 2012 The ICTR specifically found that Munyakazi was a leader in massacres in Shangi sector on 29 April 1994 and Mibilizi sector on 30 April 1994 that resulted in the deaths of over 5,000 Tutsi. After reports of harassment of genocide survivors in the district, several genocide survivors were recently been murdered in Nyamasheke.Bishumba, Nasra,

', News From Africa, 15 January 2004, retrieved 26 February 2012Mugisha, Stevenson and Kagire, Edmund, ''Genocide Survivor Murdered in Nyamasheke'', Rwanda New Times, 15 April 2009 In April 2009, Séraphine Uwankwera, a resident of Kagatamu cell, was killed between 7:45-8 pm on April 12 and dumped on the roadside in the Bushenge sector of Nyamasheke District. The deceased was murdered as she was coming from Gashirabwoba Genocide memorial site also in Bushenge sector where she had gone to attend a Genocide commemoration ceremony where some of her family members who were killed are buried. Uwankwera was found lying in a pool of blood April 13. A relative of Uwankwera stated that the murderers are Genocide suspects who wanted to prevent testimony conceal evidence attesting to their role in the 1994 genocide.

Cooperatives and education

The district is home to the COPMONYA (Coopérative de Potérie et des Matériaux Ornementaux de Nyamasheke) a cooperative that produces ornamental pottery. Coffee beans are produced at several collectives, including the Rwanda Impala Collective near Shanga. Nyamasheke also hosts the 137-member Abizarana coffee cooperative centered on the Shangi washing station. The district features an active

TVET TVET (technical and vocational education and training) refers to all forms and levels of education and training which provide knowledge and skills related to occupations in various sectors of economic and social life through formal, non-formal a ...

program designed to improve the quality of the work force.

References

*
Inzego.doc
— Province, District and Sector information from ''MINALOC'', the Rwanda ministry of local government. {{coord, 2, 22, S, 29, 09, E, display=title, region:RW_type:adm2nd_source:GNS-enwiki Western Province, Rwanda Districts of Rwanda