One of the most moving and compelling books I ever read is Philip Gourevitch’s account of the Rwandan Genocide, We Wish to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed With Our Families. Even without any connection to Rwanda it is obligatory reading - eye-opening, piercing, and staggeringly real.
A friend just pointed me to new a New Yorker podcast with him reflecting on the country that Rwanda has now become. He is again fascinating and poignant. It accompanies an article in the May New Yorker:
On the fifteenth anniversary of the genocide, Rwanda is one of the safest and most orderly countries in Africa. The great majority of prisoners accused or convicted of genocide have been released. And Rwanda is the only nation where hundreds of thousands of people who took part in mass murder live intermingled at every level of society with the families of their victims. “So far, so good,” Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame tells the writer.
A short 12 minutes that will give you a tremendous insight into this small, unique country.