On Wednesday (April 13) I visited a Practical Reconciliation Village in the east of the country at Kageho, established by Prison Fellowship Rwanda where Batwa (Pygmies), Bahutu and Batutsi live together in the aftermath of the genocide.
It was another aspect of the amazing work that PFR is doing and one of the 4 Villages established around the country. Former perpetrators live with survivors and what makes this unique is that the Batwa who were previously shunned by the other ethnic groups and never even ate with them also participated in the genocide against the Tutsis. They have been totally integrated now and are working together in this community, living in peace and unity. There are very few men in the village which is really in the middle of nowhere, so there are 
no jobs and they leave to go and look for work to support the ones who cannot work – the widows, orphans and elderly. They are in desperate need of a source of income. We discussed it with the women and a few elders and they told us they tried selling woven baskets but there is no market as everyone else is also doing it (which is true).
I asked if they couldn’t start a sewing cooperative and the men some woodworking projects, or pig farming or something. They said they needed training and some manual sewing machines and woodworking implements. Some organization donated an electric sewing machine (or two), which are obviously of no use as there is no electricity…These people are hard working and plant their own food, etc. as they need to feed themselves. They have no livestock or any other means of survival. They are dirt poor and need help. I realized that we can go there, take photos and use them as examples of the incredible reconciliation God has wrought in the country, but unless they get help in the form of skills training and help to get the materials and means to produce something, they have no hope of survival. The needs are quite overwhelming. I believe it can be turned around as I have been involved in this kind of program in SA where people were taken out of abject poverty, given skills and and some means to do their craft who ended up with their own business, employing others.
The people in the photos tell a story of real people with challenges bigger than they can handle by themselves. Let’s start about thinking of ten sewing machines at about $150 each, money to pay some trainers and get thinks going to give them some hope.
Please pray for them and us as we plan and devise a proposal to get help to them.
