In his message delivered on April 7, 2026, Guterres emphasized that the day is not only for remembrance but also a moment of global responsibility. “On the International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Genocide Against the Tutsi in Rwanda, we mourn the victims and pay tribute to the survivors,” he said.

He stressed that remembrance must go beyond history and serve as a lesson for the present and future. “We must learn from past failures and protect the living by rejecting hatred, inflammatory rhetoric and incitement to violence,” he added.

Guterres warned that the same dangerous patterns that led to the genocide hate speech, division, and dehumanization continue to threaten societies today if left unchallenged. He urged nations and individuals alike to stand firm against these forces and actively promote peace, unity, and reconciliation.

His message reinforces the shared global responsibility to ensure that such crimes never happen again, highlighting that “Never Again” must be upheld through concrete actions, not just words.

Every year on April 7, the world joins Rwanda in commemorating more than one million lives lost during the genocide, reaffirming a collective commitment to remembrance, truth, and the prevention of genocide worldwide.