On the wall of Pascasie Mukamuligo’s home in Rusatira, Huye District, hang photos of two men. These, Pascasie explains, are her brothers. They, along with more than thirteen other family members, died in Rwanda’s 1994 genocide. They were hunted and killed, most likely by their neighbors. But Pascasie is determined to be a different kind of neighbour. Tall and dignified, she chooses to stand for peace.  To pray for peace.  To work for peace.

Pascasie is the president of the Peace Basket weaving cooperative. Under her leadership, community members from opposite sides of the genocidal conflict have joined to support one another in their art and their lives. The group meets together once per week to weave baskets and discuss issues like family, health, and reconciliation. And Pascasie has not stopped at that. Several years ago, she accepted an invitation by the government to go into the local prison to teach offenders – some of them thieves, vandals, and murderers of 1994 – to weave for peace and to support their families. Some of those men  joined the Peace Basket Cooperative after their release.

In 2016, the Reconciliation Year, Pascasie was selected by the Rwandan government as a hero in unity and promoter of reconciliation.

And what is Pascasie’s vision for her group and community? We must continue to work for wholeness. We must continue to pray for peace.