May 5, 1994, the 29th day of the 100-day Genocide against the Tutsi, was marked by intensified killings across Rwanda as the genocidal regime accelerated its campaign against Tutsi civilians.
As the RPF-Inkotanyi continued to gain ground and halt the genocide in areas under its control, government forces and allied militias stepped up efforts to fast-track mass killings elsewhere in the country.
On this day, Sister Gertrude Mukangango was implicated in the killing of Tutsi refugees who had sought shelter at the Sovu convent in present-day Huye District. The victims were among the last survivors of earlier massacres carried out on April 22 and 25, 1994.
From April 17, the convent had hosted more than 10,000 Tutsi fleeing violence, but many were later killed in successive attacks within the compound.
Mukangango was later prosecuted in Belgium in 2001 and sentenced to 15 years in prison for her role in the killings. After her release, she authored a book that drew criticism for distorting the history of the Genocide against the Tutsi and targeting survivors who testified against her, including fellow nuns.
Meanwhile, extremist broadcasts by RTLM intensified on May 5, openly calling for the rapid extermination of remaining Tutsi across the country.
The radio station urged political leaders, soldiers, gendarmes, and militia groups such as the Interahamwe and Impuzamugambi to escalate the violence. The incitement was reinforced by propaganda songs from Simon Bikindi, widely used at the time to mobilise perpetrators.
RTLM also aired messages from across the country celebrating killings of those labelled as “enemy accomplices,” a term used to refer to Tutsi civilians.
Similar rhetoric was echoed by Radio Rwanda through programmes led by hardline journalists, further amplifying the spread of genocidal propaganda.
In response, Human Rights Watch condemned the broadcasts, warning that they were directly fuelling and accelerating mass violence.
The events of May 5, 1994, highlight the deadly role of coordinated violence and hate media in advancing the genocide, leaving a lasting scar on Rwanda’s history.
