RWANDA : “THE ICTR IS CLOSED BUT PEOPLE INVOLVED IN THE GENOCIDE ARE STILL FREE “

Opened in 1995 , in Arusha , Tanzania, the ICTR (international criminal tribunal for Rwanda ) ,the first tribunal which rendered judgments against people suspected of joining in with the Tutsi genocide, rendered his last verdict December 14 , 2015. The MTPI  (a mechanism within UNO) is going to come after , in order to deal with the last fugitives accused of planning the April-June 1994 genocide in which  800.000 people died (mostly Tutsi) , to arrest and judge them .

When it worked , the ICTR indicted 93 people , 61 were convicted, 14 acquitted , 10 sent back to national courts , 3 are still on the run (sent back to the MTPI), 3 died before or during their trial and 2 others saw their indictment removed before the trial. Finally , Alain Gauthier , president of the CPCR thinks that people who took part in the genocide “are still living freely”

How do you summarize the ICTR ?

Alain GAUTHIER : This tribunal did exist and recognized the Tutsi genocide. But the assessment  is somewhat mixed. In 20 years  ,only 60 people were convicted , which is not much,; even if goods things were done , it is still below all that could have been done. You must bear in mind that in the ICTR , there were no civil plaintiffs ,and, as a consequence , the rights of victims were not taken into account . Some of them , mostly women who had been raped, were humiliated by the judges’ questions and commentaries , together with the defence councels .

READING (in french) : back to the arrest of Ladislas NTAGANZWA, suspected of joining in with the genocide .

In 2011 ,The ITCR cost  was evaluated to more than 2 billion dollars. A very high amount of money was spent on lawyers ,  for people who were suspected of genocide and crimes against humanity .You mustn’t forget that those people , who appeared in Arusha, were the planners  and architects of the genocide . They were charged with the worst facts : rapes , robberies ,killings . Hundreds of them  were judged by “Gacaca” , popular local courts where wise men were  used to settling disputes .

Were the ICPR convictions up to the job ?

There were 10 convictions in perpetuity , the highest one , which is not important given the seriousness of the facts . What is most shocking is that the heaviest convictions have often been lowered on appeal. The last trial ,in mid December , proved it , once again .Among the 6 persons convicted of crime against humanity at first instance, 3 had a reduction of sentence in appeal , 47 years imprisonment instead of life imprisonment  for Pauline NIYIRAMASUHOKO and her son Shalom .She was the only woman judged by the ICTR .Some convictions were reduced . Judges considering that “the right to an equitable trial in a reasonable period of time led to prejudice”. But whose fault is it if the trials were so long? We also hear that the ICTR cost a lot of money but who is responsible ?

Worth reading  (in french) : RWANDA : My neighbour took part in the genocide.

There were also judgments that were disappointing ,even surprising and scandalous . Just think of Protais ZIGIRANYIRAZO. Sentenced in 2008 to 20 years imprisonment for genocide and crime against humanity , he appealed and was acquitted . That man , nicknamed “Mr Z” was the brother in law of the dead Rwandan  president , Juvenial HABYARIMANA , whose death on April 6 , 1994 was the detonator of the genocide.

Some files have been sent to foreign courts by the ICTR  ,Wenceslas MUNYESHYAHA , a priest, who was heavily charged was recently acquitted in France . What’s your opinion ?

It is just impossible to understand .  Wenceslas MUNYESHYAKA’s indictment was brought to the French court by the ITCR . Indicted of genocide , rape , crime  and assassination , all these facts being a crime against humanity ,  Wenceslas MUNYESHYAKA , the priest , has been  working in NORMANDY since 1995 . In 2004 , the European court in charge of the rights of man condemned France for being so slow dealing with the case. There was a nonsuit  given by judges in the end . To me , it is a denial of justice !  It is defamatory and the ICTR probably regret handing this case to the French justice .

Do Rwandan people taking part in the genocide still free?

After the arrest of Ladislas NTAGANZWA in Congo , December 9 , accused to have taken part in the local process of extermination of the Tutsi , the ICTR is still searching for 8 people , such as Felicien  KABUGA , known as the genocide financier . Where is he hiding ? We suppose he is in Africa , protected by some government .

Another reading  (in french) : Jean Hatzfeld : In RWANDA , I understood a lot about lies.

8 people are still looked for but there are many others who live peacefully in France . They are not bother, because French justice is quite reluctant and prosecute them means much money and time for the civil plaintiffs. Nearly 30 complaints were filed , one trial , Pascal SIMBIKANGWA , sentenced to 25 years imprisonment in March 2014. He appealed and his next trial will take place at Bobigny criminal court of justice from October 25 to December 9 , 2016. There will be an other trial at Paris criminal court of justice from May 10 to July 1,2016 : Octavien NGENZI and Tito BARAHIRA , 2 former mayors.

The CPCR is at the beginning of the procedures and ask that justice costs should be financed by the international  community . Despite what politicians say ,
France seems to be a “haven of peace” for all the people suspected of taking part in the Tutsi genocide.