Survivors of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi continue to share powerful testimonies featuring the phrase “Ni uko Inkotanyi ziraza,” a Kinyarwanda expression meaning “that’s how the Inkotanyi arrived”, which has come to symbolize the moment of rescue, survival, and renewed hope when Rwanda Patriotic Army (RPA) forces intervened to stop the genocide.
The phrase is widely used in survivor accounts to describe the emotional turning point when people under attack realized that help had finally arrived, as RPA forces halted the genocide in which more than one million Tutsi were killed in just 100 days.
Speaking during a televised discussion on RBA, Brig Gen Dr. Jean Paul Bitega, who served as a military doctor during the liberation struggle, and Col (Rtd) Vincent Mugisha reflected on both the battlefield realities and the emotional weight of survivor testimonies.
Brig Gen Dr. Bitega said the phrase continues to deeply resonate with veterans of the liberation struggle, noting that it reflects the sacrifice and determination that defined the mission to stop the genocide.
He added that many fighters were personally affected, as some of their own relatives were among those being targeted at the time.
“We had to sacrifice everything because beyond the national mission, some of us had families who were being killed. There was no room for hesitation,” he said.
He noted that hearing survivors say “Ni uko Inkotanyi ziraza” remains emotionally powerful, as it reflects the impact and meaning of their intervention in saving lives.
Col (Rtd) Vincent Mugisha recalled harrowing scenes he witnessed in Musha, Rwamagana, describing mass killings that remain deeply engraved in his memory decades later.
“What I saw will never leave me. In a church, we found more than 500 bodies. People had been misled by perpetrators who told them they were being taken somewhere safe,” he said.
He added that the brutality he witnessed continues to haunt him to this day.
The Rwanda Patriotic Army (RPA) launched its liberation struggle on October 1, 1990, a four-year campaign that culminated in the end of the genocide and the capture of Kigali in July 1994, leading to the establishment of a government of national unity.
