Science Fair Project Encyclopedia
Agathe Uwilingiyimana
Agathe Uwilingiyimana (1953 - 7 April, 1994) was a Rwandan political figure. She served as Prime Minister of Rwanda from 18 July 1993 to her death on April 7, 1994. Her term was ended after less than a year when she was assassinated during the opening stages of the Rwandan Genocide.
In his book Shake Hands with the Devil, UN commander Roméo Dallaire reports that Uwilingiyimana and her husband willingly surrendered themselves to the genocidaires in order to save their children, who stayed successfully hidden in their house.
Ten Belgian peacekeepers from the UN mission UNAMIR, who had been ordered to guard her house, were also killed.
Though short, her political career was precedent-setting as one of the few female political figures in Africa. She was contemporaneous of Sylvie Kinigi, Prime Minister of Burundi.
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