Twenty-three years after the atrocities of the Rwandan genocide, the country is still suffering from the scars of its past. Many Rwandans have fled to Europe to settle down in a peaceful environment. Portrayed namelessly here by Finnish photographer Miia Autio, some of them hesitated to disclose their new home, and others even preferred not to show their face.

The genocide went on for a period of 100 days only in 1994, but the horrors that preceded it did not stop afterwards either. "Almost all my family was killed in 1997, years after the end of the war," revealed the man portrayed above. "I fought against the government, first as a citizen and later as a politician. But they were chasing and torturing me, and I had to leave my country," he added.

"Only bad news come from Rwanda," lamented this woman, who arrived in Norway in 2005. She survived the massacres of 1994, but was later blackmailed when she decided to testify for her neighbor who had been unjustly accused of taking part in the genocide. "That's why I fled the country; I thought I would lose my life. Today, I am a Norwegian citizen, but it doesn't help me. I am Rwandan."

"My mother died in prison, and my father was incarcerated, although he hadn't been in the country during the war," said this woman. She ran from Rwanda to Kenya, and later to Cameroon with her two little sisters. Eventually, she came to Belgium. "I was accepted here. I found my place in Belgium and even started a family here. But I miss Rwanda, and I still feel more Rwandan," she added.

The reasons why people continue to flee from Rwanda are evident, but it doesn't make them easy to talk about. "It is too hard for me," admitted this man, who wants to return to Rwanda one day. "I wish freedom, justice, and real democracy for my home country. I wish the people there were able to express their opinions freely. I wish we all felt safe and in peace in our nation."

Rwandans used to describe their country as a "paradise," and for the woman pictured above, it was tough to leave it. In addition to her experience, she now has to face degrading prejudices. "Once, during a job interview, they asked me to turn on the computer to make sure I knew how to do it!" she said. "I wish Rwanda some day becomes the paradise it used to be, and I'll be able to go home."

The genocide led by the Hutu population against the Tutsi people resonates strongly in the Rwandan society. The man in this picture claimed the government discriminated against Hutus after the war. "My life here in Europe is a new start. It is often challenging, but I like that the government here supports everyone, including foreigners. Here I have hope for life and the future," he added.

"I don't only feel foreign in Germany, I am foreign, but I feel at home here," said this man, who lives and studies in Hannover. Despite many frustrations in his new environment and racist experiences, he doesn't want to return to Rwanda: "I am a person who wants to express his point of view. If I criticized the government, it would be bad for me. I have settled down in Germany, and I feel free."

At around 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, March 31, the search-and-rescue vessel Aquarius, along with the Libyan coast guard, was alerted by the Italian Rescue Maritime Coordination Center (IMRCC) that a rubber boat was in distress in international waters. Aquarius is manned by rescue workers from SOS Mediteranee, medics from Doctors Without Borders (MSF) and a nautical and technical crew.

Aquarius made first contact with the rubber boat in international waters at around 11:00 a.m. Soon after, the SOS head coordinator was informed by IMRCC that the Libyan coastguard would take charge of the rescue operation. As people in the overcrowded rubber boat, visibly in distress, waved frantically, Aquarius was instructed to standby and wait for further instructions.

Two hours later, and with no Libyan coastguard in sight, the Aquarius was able to convince the IMRCC and the Libyans to allow them to rescue children, women and families. They evacuated 39 vulnerable people. They had to leave the remaining 80-90 men on the rubber boat to the Libyan coastguard. The Aquarius has the capacity to carry 500 rescued people.

MSF nurse Sylvie was on board the Aquarius' fast-speed rescue boat, whose personnel identified medical and vulnerable cases later evacuated to the NGO ship. Over the course of three missions, the staff saved 292 people from more than 20 countries, the majority from sub-Saharan Africa. Besides showing signs of dehydration, exhaustion and weakness, some also displayed signs of physical abuse.

As parents rested on the ship's deck, MSF logistician Francois took a moment to interact with the newly arrived children. Those rescued got a chance to bond with the ship's crew as well as to express themselves in safe and secure surroundings.

Dr. Dan from California gave each new arrival a check-up to see whether anyone was in need of urgent medical care. Once on land, those rescued are examined by local medical staff in Italy.

As the vessel pitched and rolled in strong winds, SOS Mediteranee team member Theo cuddled a child rescued the day before. "As a seaman it's your duty to save anybody in distress," he said. "We all shed tears yesterday. I had a baby and children in my arms. We helped some women. What's the most important is to get all these out people out of the water, to save them and for them to survive."

As the Aquarius approached the Sicilian city of Messina, the designated Italian port of safety, many of the rescued women began singing French and English gospel songs praising the Lord and thanking him for safe passage across the Mediterranean Sea.

Francois personally helped all 292 men, women and children disembark. "Emotionally it was really hard, because once the last guy stepped out on shore, it was over. I could just call everyone and say disembarkation successfully finished, and then I felt empty."

These lucky people made it to Europe. According to international NGOs figures, between 750,000 and 900,000 immigrants and asylum-seekers remain trapped in Libya, whose migrant detention centers the UN has called inhumane. Many see merely one way out: to attempt to cross one of the world's most deadly seas in rubber dinghies that can only be considered floating death traps.