Thaddée Nsengiyumva (17 March 1949 - 8 June 1994) was the

Bishop of Kabgayi The Roman Catholic Diocese of Kabgayi ( la, Kabgayen(sis)) is a diocese located in the city of Kabgayi in the Ecclesiastical province of Kigali in Rwanda. History * April 25, 1922: The Apostolic Vicariate of Ruanda was established from the nor ...

in Rwanda. He was killed at

Kabgayi Kabgayi is just south of Gitarama in Muhanga District, Southern Province, Rwanda, southwest of Kigali. It was established as a Catholic Church mission in 1905. It became the center for the Roman Catholic Church in Rwanda and is the site of the ...

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 Hutu ...

. Thaddée Nsengiyumva was born at Bungwe on 17 March 1949. He was ordained a priest on 20 July 1975. On 18 November 1987 he was appointed Coadjutor Bishop of Kabgayi, and he was ordained in this post on 31 January 1988. He became Bishop of Kabgayi on 8 October 1989, succeeding

André Perraudin Archbishop André Perraudin, M. Afr. (7 October 1914 - 25 April 2003) was a Swiss Catholic clergyman who lived in Rwanda for nearly fifty years. He was Archbishop of Kabgayi from 1959 to 1989. Career André Perraudin was born on 7 October 1914 in ...

. In December 1991 Nsengiyumva issued a pastoral letter "Convertissons-nous pour vivre ensemble dans la paix. Kabgayi, december 1991, 40pp" in which he said that no serious efforts were being made to resolve the struggle between the Hutu and Tutsi people, and saying that political "assassination is now commonplace". His document was self-critical, saying the church had not done enough to help the people, and had become complicit in the regime's system. After the genocide began in 1994, Nsengiyumva, who was president of the bishops conference of Rwanda, made repeated appeals to stop the killing. Together with the International Committee of the Red Cross, ICRC he tried to assist a lot of war displaced around and into the bishopric. However, on 16 April he issued a letter that was generally thought to support the

Hutu The Hutu (), also known as the Abahutu, are a Bantu ethnic or social group which is native to the African Great Lakes region. They mainly live in Rwanda, Burundi and the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, where they form one of the prin ...

government against the

Tutsi The Tutsi (), or Abatutsi (), are an ethnic group of the African Great Lakes region. They are a Bantu-speaking ethnic group and the second largest of three main ethnic groups in Rwanda and Burundi (the other two being the largest Bantu ethnic grou ...

rebellion. On 5 June 1994 Thaddée Nsengiyumva was murdered at Gakurazo by soldiers of the

Rwandan Patriotic Army french: Forces rwandaises de défense sw, Nguvu ya Ulinzi ya Watu wa Rwanda , image = Rwanda Defense Force emblem.png , alt = , caption = , image2 = , alt2 = , caption2 ...

. The Archbishop of Kigali,

Vincent Nsengiyumva Vincent Nsengiyumva (February 10, 1936 – June 7, 1994) was a Rwandan prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as Archbishop of Kigali from 1976 until his death. Born in Rwaza, he was ordained to the priesthood on June 18, 1966. ...

and bishop

Joseph Ruzindana Joseph Ruzindana (3 June 1943 – 5 June 1994) was a Catholic Bishop of Byumba in Rwanda. Joseph Ruzindana was born on 3 June 1943 in Rambura. On 23 July 1972 he was ordained priest of Byumba. He was appointed Bishop of Byumba on 5 November 198 ...

died with him. Ten priests were also killed. It has been said that Thaddée Nsengiyumva was killed by accident, and the real target was his namesake Vincent Nsengiyumva. This is not plausible, since the two men were killed together.

References

Citations Sources * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Nsengiyumva, Thaddee 1949 births 1994 deaths People from Burera District 20th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Rwanda People of the Rwandan genocide Rwandan murder victims Rwandan Roman Catholic bishops Roman Catholic bishops of Kabgayi