Beata Umubyeyi Mairesse, Rwandan survivor and writer

The Geneva Press Club and Terre des hommes invite you to a meeting with :

Beata Umubyeyi Mairesse, writer

(Photo credit: Céline Nieszazawer)

With the participation of :

• César Murangira, President of Ibuka Switzerland
• Barbara Hintermann, Executive Director, Fondation Terre des hommes Lausanne
• Jean-Luc Imhof, Former Project Manager Access to Justice & Minors in Rwanda, Foundation Terre des hommes Lausanne

To participate, please register using the following links :

(Registration subject to availability and registration’s confirmation)

Immerse yourself in the moving story of Beata Umubyeyi Mairesse, Rwandan writer and survivor of the Tutsi genocide in Rwanda. On June 18, 1994, in the midst of the Tutsi genocide in Rwanda, she was saved by a convoy from the NGO Terre des hommes Lausanne. Thirty years later, she turns to her past and offers us a powerful testimony in her book “Le Convoi” (Flammarion, 2023). This poignant account retraces not only her own journey, but also that of many other children who went through the unimaginable. On October 3, Terre des hommes is offering a unique opportunity to exchange views with Beata Umubyeyi Mairesse on the theme of memory and the challenges of collective transmission of such a past. “Le Convoi”, the author’s fifth book, follows on from ‘Tous tes enfants dispersés’, her first novel, the story of a Franco-Rwandan family over three generations, which won the Prix des cinq continents de la francophonie 2020.

The evening is co-organized by Terre des hommes and the Ibuka association, an NGO responsible for perpetuating the memory of the victims of the genocide perpetrated against the Tutsis in Rwanda in 1994, and for prosecuting and bringing to justice those responsible for these crimes against humanity.

Meeting followed by an aperitif and signing session.