Dr Naasson Munyandamutsa, 56 a famous Rwandan Psychiatrist and researcher has died at his home in Kigali this March 2, 2016, after succumbing to illness, family and relatives have disclosed.
The details of the disease that caused the death of Munyandamutsa has not been readily disclosed but Munyandamutsa will always be remembered in Rwanda for his influence in research and peace building, and his hard work as a medic.
In March 2013, Dr. Naasson Munyandamutsa was selected to receive the 2013 Barbara Chester Award. The award was formally presented to him on the 12th of October on the Hopi Indian reservation in northeastern Arizona.
Dr. Munyandamutsa (5th left) receiving the 2013 Barbara Chester Award
Who was Dr. Munyandamutsa?
Munyandamutsa was a medical doctor with specializations in Psychiatry and Psychotherapy. He has worked as a clinician and lecturer in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Geneva in Switzerland.
A frequent presenter at international conferences on psychological trauma, Dr. Munyandamutsa addresses the psychological consequences of extreme violence and the challenges of living together in war torn societies.
He also collaborated with the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda in the capacity building of stakeholders by providing psychological treatment for victims and witnesses.
Before his death, he was a lecturer in the Faculty of Medicine and the Department of Clinical Psychology at the National University of Rwanda, maintains a clinical practice, and worked for the promotion of dialogue as a mechanism for conflict management in war-torn countries in his role as Deputy Director of the Institute of Research and Dialogue for Peace (IRDP)
Dr. Munyandamutsa also is a member of the scientific support committee for Rwandan projects in the field of health funded projects by the government of Belgium. In 2011 he received the Geneva Prize Foundation for Human Rights in Psychiatry Award.
He was also one of the brains behind Never Again Rwanda- a human rights and peace building organization that was founded in response to the 1994 genocide perpetrated against Tutsis.