Nyamata is situated in the Bugesera region, approximately 35 kilometers from the capital city of Kigali. Nyamata and the surrounding region suffered some of the most extensive devastation in 1994, a result of targeted attacks during the Genocide against the Tutsi.

This site is symbolic of the barbaric treatment of women during the genocide and around 2,500 people were killed at this church. Graphic and audio-visual displays that focus particularly on the mass rape, brutalization of women and the use of HIV as a deliberate weapon of genocide are exhibited in the church at Nyamata.

Many residents of the region gathered in Nyamata and sought protection at the local Catholic Church when the Genocide began in April of 1994. The frightened masses flocked to the church compound tended to by priests and nuns for safe haven, hoping to escape death. The church was thought of as a place of refuge and of sanctuary where the militia would not dare to attack.

Unfortunately, this was not the case. On April 10, 1994 approximately 10,000 civilians were killed in and around the Catholic Church compound, according to testimonies given by survivors and evidence gathered. People gathered in the church and padlocked the iron door that safeguarded the entrance, as the raiding killers approached. Members of the ‘Interahamwe’, the Hutu militia, and the Rwandese Government Forces forced the door open using sledge hammers to break open holes in the wall, through which grenades were thrown into the church, causing many deaths and stunning those trapped inside.

The killers eventually forced their way into the church and proceeded to murder the surviving men, women and children, using machetes, clubs, and local farming tools. People in the surrounding area and those hiding inside the church were massacred.

The ceiling is riddled with bullet holes and is still stained with blood. Two mass graves are located behind the church where the remains have been removed from inside the church and been placed. However, the clothing of the victims remain inside the church placed in piles that line the pews of the church, as well as the floor in the certain places. The alter cloth still covers the alter although stained in blood and much as the remains have been removed, bones still peek out of the clothing.

The Rwandese government, in collaboration with the Genocide survivors from the Nyamata area, decided to preserve the church in memory of the people who lost their lives in Nyamata Church and its surrounding area. Today, this site is visited by tourists, students, survivors and activists who want to learn about the Genocide and those who wish to honor the victims and the survivors of this horrible atrocity.