Ntarama: I.D. Card
I.D. cards were first issued during the colonial period. The post-independence regimes led by Gregoire Kayibanda and Juvenal Habyarimana continued this practice. Those possessing a Tutsi I.D. met both personal and institutional discrimination. During the genocide Tutsi I.D. cards directed perpetrators on who to kill. Countless Tutsi died at roadblocks after being identified. Additionally, many Hutu who did not have an I.D. card to prove their identity met the same fate. At Ntarama several I.D. cards are displayed.
Jordan Broutman
Ntarama: Shelves of Bones
Shelves of skulls and other bones rest inside the Ntarama church. The inflicted skull damage often illustrates just how the victims died. Many skulls are cut in a manner that indicates a machete blow. Other contain projectile wounds from artillery fire, spears, or weaponized hoes. Remnants from the weapons are sometimes displayed alongside the skulls.
Jordan Broutman
Jordan Broutman
January 8, 2013
Property of Jordan Broutman
Ntarama: Remnants of Christianity
Many Christian symbols and artifacts are preserved at Ntarama. Rosaries, crosses, and other Christian totems belonging to victims hang on display. Murals of the Crucifixion are still visible on the walls. Bibles and Sunday School books are also preserved and displayed to visitors.
Jordan Broutman
Jordan Broutman
January 8, 2013
Property of Jordan Broutman
Ntarama: Church Altar
The empty church altar sits amongst coffins of identified victims.
Jordan Broutman
Jordan Broutman
January 8, 2013
Property of Jordan Broutman
Ntarama: Clothing Preservation
Many Rwandan memorials preserve the clothing of Tutsi victims. At Ntarama the clothing drapes alongside the inner wall of the church.
Jordan Broutman
Jordan Broutman
January 8, 2013
Property of Jordan Broutman
Ntarama: Site Damage
Rwandan genocide memorials preserve the damage inflicted by perpetrators during the attacks. At Ntarama, Hutu militiamen first attacked Tutsi hidden in the church with grenades and artillery before entering the church. Visitors can see the damage from the attacks in the damaged walls, windows, and ceiling.
Jordan Broutman
Jordan Broutman
January 8, 2013
Property of Jordan Broutman
Ntarama: Bone Display
Approximately 5,000 people died at Ntarama in mid-April 1994. The memorial displays exhumed bones on shelves placed at the back of the church.
Jordan Broutman
Jordan Broutman
January 8, 2013
Property of Jordan Broutman
Ntarama: Memorial Exterior
Ntarama
The roof over the Ntarama church protects the church from further decay from weather. A memorial wall was constructed nearby, although most of the memorial name squares are empty. Identification is a difficult process at Rwandan massacre sites, a process that forensic anthropologist Clea Koff writes in detail on in her memoir "The Bone Women." Finally, flowers mark a dug up mass grave that rests near the Sunday school.
Jordan Broutman
Jordan Broutman
January 8, 2013
Property of Jordan Broutman