Niyonzima Chouky is a Burundi National who is admitted in CARAES (Hoptal Neuro Psychiatrique) Ndera for 4 years but the hospital is unable to discharge him because he has nowhere to go after leaving the Rwandan referral hospital which is specialized in treating people with mental problems!
Niyonzima’s case is so complicated and to get good picture of it one may firstly say something about his mother.
Ntakiyica Immaculate is a mother of 11 children including Niyonzima who was born with mental problems.
According to Ntakiyica Immaculete her place of birth is Kinanira area, Bujumbura the capital city of Burundi. Due to frequent insecurities in Burundi, in 2003 she fred the country to seek refuge in Rwanda. She freed with her 11 children.
While in Rwanda one of her children, Niyonzima Chouky who had mental problems, escaped her mother at a time they were about to leave Rwanda for Uganda. While in Uganda, Ntakiyica tried to trace for Niyonzima, who was born in 1989, but could not find him and concluded that Chouky must be dead.
While in Uganda UN High Commission for Refugees (HCR) negotiated for Ntakiyica and her 10 children asylum in Holland (Netherlands) where they now live with nationality of that European Country.
But while in Holland Ntakiyica did not completely lost hope that Chouky is dead. Through Read Cross of Holland, she got information from Read Cross of Rwanda that her son is still alive and was in CARAES Ndera hospital, which treats people with mental problems and is located in Kigali city.
Rushyashya newspaper visited Chouky at CARAES Ndera and talked to the hospital authority, especially those in social affairs department who confirmed to us that the hospital is in negotiations with Ntakiyica Immaculate, the mother of Chouky but those negotiations are complicated with two things.
One complication is based on hospital charges. Beatrice Umurangwa of social affairs department who brought Chouky to meet us says the hospital has no problem of releasing Chouky but hospital charges must be paid first.
We asked Beatrice the total amount of money to be paid so as to discharge Chouky and finance department brought to us a bill totaling 1.4 million Rwanda francs. But Beatrice says the amount would have been even ten times only that some associations here in Rwanda kept paying for his ‘mutual’ which helps a lot to lower charges.
Chouky’s mother says she is ready to pay the bill, but the question comes. Where will his son go after leaving the hospital? She has no person in Rwanda who can accept to take him and situation in Burundi is so hostile to the extent that more and more people in that country flees in daily basis.
Moreover she has no close relatives still in Burundi. Ntakiyica’s concern is very much understandable. But the question is, will his son remain in that hospital until when?
When Rushyashya Newspaper visited Chouky found him in physically good condition, clean, well dressed and can respond to questions. But you can still note that he is a person with mental problems who needs closer care from closer persons upon leaving the hospital, otherwise he can go back where he was in 2012!
Niyonzima Chooky has spent 4 years at CARAES Hopital Neuro Psychiatrique in Rwanda
Talking to Chouky tells you he wants to join his young brothers and sisters wherever they are, otherwise he can choose to remain in CARAES Ndera for the whole life! Specifically he can tell you her elder sister called Nice!
Kayumba Casmiry
