Twa appeal for recognition and involvement

The Twa of Rwanda have urged President Paul Kagame to involve them more in the country's development efforts. In an open letter to Kagame, the president of the Twa umbrella organisation CAURWA, Zephyrin Kalimba, appreciated the government's intention to include all three ethnic groups in the country's econstruction. "However, the contribution of the Twa in the development of our country remains negligible and consequently our community is heading towards extinction," Kalimba warned. He said that historically the Twa had been excluded from development projects, the education system, the government, the economy and national culture. Kalimba recalled that during the 1994 genocide, 10,000 Twa out of a community of 30,000, lost their lives. The forest-dwelling Twa, or pygmies, had been chased away from their natural environment without receiving compensation and were now dying of hunger and disease, he added. He appealed to the government to include the Twa in initiatives such as imidugudu or villagisation and to allow them access to administrative posts and education.