The church, made from mud bricks and sticks, has been a place of forgiveness and reconciliation for people torn apart by the genocide in Rwanda.

But now a demolition order is looming over it, and the poverty-stricken townsfolk face an impossible task of raising £30,000 for a new building.

Parishioners in the east of Moray have been helping the campaign, and have also been fund-raising for other projects in and around Kubungo.

Their donation of £8,000 was delivered by Rev Graham Austin, Church of Scotland minister for the linked charges of Findochty, Portknockie and Rathven.

Mr Austin has just returned from a two-week trip to Africa, where he saw at first hand how their generosity will transform the lives of Rwandans.

He said: "What was amazing was that I never once came across any animosity. People are so laidback; they get on with one another, and are really tactile.

"You look at this scene and you wonder how they could possibly have got to the place where they did all those horrible things to each other.

"They are now trying to make their way forward, and I think they could teach us lessons about forgiveness, putting differences aside and reconciliation.

"There is no segregation in society – the schools and churches are all mixed. They have endured hardships since 1994, and while they will not forget it, they have moved on.

"I spoke to one man at the church who showed me the scars on his head where he had been attacked with a machete, but he bore no malice. I think it's amazing that someone could get to a place where they could forgive something so horrific.

"They do not want to be known now by their different tribes – they just want to be Rwandan."

Most of those murdered and tortured were Tutsis, and those who perpetrated the violence were Hutus – tribes which had once lived together in harmony.

But they were split into distinct entities in the early 1900s by Belgian colonists, and tensions escalated over the decades, with each side vying for power.

It reached a peak in 1994, when Tutsis were blamed for the assassination of the Hutu president, Juvenal Habyarimana, and a campaign of retribution was launched.

Encouraged by the presidential guard and radio propaganda, the Hutus formed their own militia – at one point 30,000-strong – to murder entire Tutsi families.

Mr Austin was invited to Rwanda by former Buckie minister Rev Eric Foggit – now based in Dunbar – who has been involved in aid work there for several years.

Rev Graham Austin receives another boost for the Rwanda Project, this time £525 from the pupils of Portessie Primary School, who held a coffee afternoon and sales tables. NS

Mr Foggit was introduced to the projects by a couple who came to live in Scotland after fleeing the genocide, which left 800,000 dead in just 100 days.

Mr Austin only intended to take the proceeds of a retiring collection from his churches, but the whole community took the cause to its heart.

Within a matter of weeks, the campaign had escalated and everyone from church members to local schoolchildren had organised their own events.

Mr Austin has been stunned by the generosity of people along the coast, but realised how badly the money was needed when he arrived in Rwanda.

The church in Kubungo could be demolished any time now, as local authorities want to tear down all mud buildings on health and safety grounds.

"There is a move to discourage building with mud bricks, but to date it has not been a great success. The average person earns just 80p a day, so they cannot afford bricks and concrete and have to use what they can.

"They have the foundations laid, but to put up a new church building is going to cost £30,000. There is 70% unemployment in Rwanda, so it's a colossal task.

"The church, like other churches in Rwanda, is a place where people can go to meet each other. People see them as an important social aspect of community life, not just religious life," said Mr Austin.

Some of the £8,000 raised also helped to pay for training for carers who work with disabled people, and another donation was made to a local school to help teachers learn English.

The national language of Rwanda is French, but there is a real desire to learn English because it is seen as the international language of commerce.

The donation allowed the school to buy textbooks and MP3 players fitted with linguistic software, and send teachers on an intensive one-day course.

Mr Austin added: "I am going to be doing a presentation some time in the new year, and anyone who is interested in learning more about it is more than welcome to come along.

"Everyone did a fantastic job with the fund-raising, and I have been overwhelmed with the response."

l.carter@northern-scot.co.uk

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