You will find: 185 churches have been closed

185 churches closed in Musanze district

These churches belong to different religions and churches and include mosques and Santarali-level Catholic churches.

In the Gakaka area on the outskirts of Musanze City, all 23 temples were closed, the highest number of temple closures among the 15 areas in Musanze District.

According to a report by the Gacaca departmental administration, some of the reasons for the closure of these churches, especially that they were built in a way that did not prevent the sound from escaping (soundproofing), have been made clear to all 23 churches.

Among other things, they found these temples unsuitable, including lack of electricity, parking, unorganized paved grounds (if they call them green grounds), buildings constructed in a way that does not allow breathing, working in incomplete buildings, lack of water, lack of toilets, and so on.

Some churches do not have various certificates, including those from the National Governing Board (RGB), certificates for cooperation with the district, and it is often found that the elders of the church do not have academic degrees.

Some leaders of these churches have found that their demands include warnings

Some leaders of the closed temples told Kigali Today that although there were some defects in the temples that needed to be quickly fixed which should not have caused them to be closed, they disagreed with other demands which they believed were not necessary in the areas where they were located.

Among the facilities they criticized for the temple’s closure were sound proofing equipment, which they said was too expensive for them to afford.

One of them said: “They came on Monday and told us we have no soundproofing, not even paving stones at the site. They told us if that is not available there is nothing we can do. “Now Christians are living in the air, what can I do? “The government said I asked them to give me two weeks to meet with Christians and see how we can raise funds to carry out these activities.

He added: “I feel it is a mistake because we have been cleaning the temple for days. It is a temple that complies with the requirements of the region. As of now, the soundproofing is 60 lakh. We removed it. This is not necessary in rural areas because we do not approach people to clean them.”

“I also found out that the temple I lead has been closed and they have asked us to fill in some things that are beyond our capabilities, including soundproofing. We are still following up on this and talking to Christians to see what can be done,” his friend said. “I don’t know if it will be resolved by Sunday.”

The Musanze District Governor, Nsenjimana Claudian, confirmed that the churches have been closed and said that inspections are still ongoing and that he has informed all religions and churches in order to protect the lives of the worshippers in these churches in accordance with the RGB’s regulations.

Mayor Nsengimana also asked believers to discern the teachings they accept, strive to pray in places that will not endanger their lives, and take special care of those who pray in mountains and caves.

Of the 317 churches in Musanze district, 185 have been closed for violations, and the number of closures is likely to increase as inspections continue.