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KAGAME - GENOCIDAIRE
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Rwanda-rebranding
Ways To Get Rid of Kagame
- The people should overthrow the Rwandan dictator (often put in place by foreign agencies) and throw him, along with his henchmen and family, out of the country – e.g., the Shah of Iran, Marcos of Philippines.Compaore of Burkina Faso
- Rwandans organize a violent revolution and have the dictator killed – e.g., Ceaucescu in Romania.
- Foreign powers (till then maintaining the dictator) force the dictator to exile without armed intervention – e.g. Mátyás Rákosi of Hungary was exiled by the Soviets to Kirgizia in 1970 to “seek medical attention”.
- Foreign powers march in and remove the dictator (whom they either instated or helped earlier) – e.g. Saddam Hussein of Iraq or Manuel Noriega of Panama.
- The dictator kills himself in an act of desperation – e.g., Hitler in 1945.
- The dictator is assassinated by people near him – e.g., Julius Caesar of Rome in 44 AD was stabbed by 60-70 people (only one wound was fatal though).
- Organise strikes and unrest to paralyze the country and convince even the army not to support the dictaor – e.g., Jorge Ubico y Castañeda was ousted in Guatemala in 1944 and Guatemala became democratic, Recedntly in Burkina Faso with the dictator Blaise Compaoré.
Almighty God :Justice for US
Killing Hutus on daily basis
RPF Trade Mark: Akandoya
Fighting For Our Freedom?
KAGAME VS JUSTICE
Madame, Monsieur,
Je vous écris au nom d'African SurViVors International, une organisation
dédiée à la défense des droits et à la protection des survivants de guerres, de
génocides et de déplacements, en particulier dans la région des Grands Lacs d'Afrique.
Notre mission est de promouvoir les droits humains et de contribuer aux efforts
de reconstruction post-conflit pour les communautés affectées au Rwanda, au
Burundi et en République Démocratique du Congo.
Nous sollicitons d’urgence votre intervention en faveur de M. Muhima
Marcel, également connu sous le nom de Rasta, un réfugié rwandais actuellement
détenu en Ouganda. Nous craignons gravement que M. Marcel soit déporté au
Rwanda, où il fait face à une menace imminente pour sa vie sous le régime de
Kagame, connu pour son histoire bien documentée de violations des droits de
l'homme. Les actions du gouvernement rwandais, notamment les exécutions
extrajudiciaires, la torture et les arrestations arbitraires de ses
détracteurs, sont largement reconnues, et M. Marcel court un grand risque de
devenir la dernière victime de ce régime oppressif.
Outre le cas de M. Marcel, nous sommes également profondément préoccupés
par le procès à venir du Dr Charles Onana, prévu les 7, 8, 10 et 11 octobre. Le
Dr Onana est un journaliste d'investigation et auteur respecté, qui s’est
inlassablement efforcé de dévoiler les atrocités commises par le régime de
Kagame, y compris son rôle dans l'orchestration du génocide rwandais et le
massacre de plus de 15 millions de Rwandais et de Congolais. Il est faussement
accusé de négationnisme du génocide – une tactique souvent utilisée par le
gouvernement rwandais pour faire taire ceux qui osent remettre en question son
discours officiel. Le Dr Onana est la voix des sans-voix, et sa persécution
représente un effort plus large du FPR de Kagame et de ses alliés pour réprimer
la vérité et punir la dissidence.
Nous vous exhortons à enquêter sur la détention de M. Marcel et sur le procès inique du Dr Onana, afin d'assurer leur sécurité et de défendre leurs droits fondamentaux. La communauté internationale ne doit pas fermer les yeux sur la persécution continue des critiques et la répression brutale de la liberté d'expression au Rwanda. Les destins tragiques de personnalités telles que Paul Rusesabagina, Mr. Bwanakweli Charles Kizito, Mme Domitille Uwimana, Kizito Mihigo, Mme Idamange Ivonne, M. Deo Mushayidi, M. Théoneste, M. Hassan, M. Rashid, Ntamuhanga et bien d'autres sont des rappels poignants de la volonté du gouvernement rwandais d’éliminer ceux qu'il perçoit comme des menaces.
Nous en appelons également à Amnesty International, à Human Rights Watch,
aux Nations Unies et à d'autres organismes internationaux pour qu'ils fassent
pression en faveur d'enquêtes impartiales sur les abus commis par le
gouvernement rwandais, tant à l'intérieur qu'à l'extérieur du pays. La
communauté internationale doit tenir pour responsables ceux qui sont impliqués
dans la persécution, la disparition et la mort de Rwandais et de Congolais
innocents. Des mesures fermes, y compris des sanctions ciblées, doivent être
prises contre les hauts responsables du gouvernement et de l'armée rwandais
complices de ces crimes.
Nous appelons le Parlement européen et la communauté internationale au sens
large à agir rapidement pour protéger la vie de personnes vulnérables comme M.
Marcel et le Dr Onana, en veillant à ce que justice soit rendue et qu’ils ne
soient pas réduits au silence pour avoir dit la vérité.
Enfin, nous sommes profondément préoccupés par les conditions des détenus
dans les centres de détention secrets du FPR. Nous demandons des garanties du
Conseil des droits de l’homme des Nations Unies quant au traitement humain de
tous les détenus conformément au droit international, et exigeons la libération
immédiate de ceux qui sont injustement emprisonnés.
Nous vous prions de bien vouloir accorder une attention immédiate à cette
affaire. La vie de M. Muhima Marcel et du Dr Charles Onana est en danger, et le
temps presse. Les principes de démocratie, de justice et de droits de l'homme
exigent une intervention rapide pour empêcher de nouvelles atrocités.
Nous vous remercions de votre attention et de votre soutien aux peuples
rwandais et congolais dans leur quête de justice et de droits humains. Urgent Action Needed -
Imminent Threat to Mr. Muhima Marcel and Unjust Trial of Dr. Charles Onana
Sincèrement,
Dear Sir or Madam,
I am writing on behalf of African SurViVors International, an
organization dedicated to advocating for the protection and rights of survivors
of war, genocide, and displacement, particularly in the African Great Lakes
Region. Our mission is to promote human rights and contribute to post-war
reconstruction efforts for affected communities in Rwanda, Burundi, and the
Democratic Republic of Congo.
We urgently request your intervention on behalf of Mr. Muhima Marcel, also known as Rasta, a Rwandan refugee currently
detained in Uganda. There is grave concern that Mr. Marcel may be deported to
Rwanda, where he faces an imminent threat to his life under the Kagame regime,
which has a well-documented history of violating human rights. The Rwandan
government’s actions, including extrajudicial killings, torture, and arbitrary
arrests of its critics, are well known, and Mr. Marcel is at great risk of
becoming the latest victim of this oppressive regime.
In addition to Mr. Marcel’s case,
we are also deeply concerned about the upcoming trial of Dr. Charles Onana, scheduled for October 7th, 8th, 10th, and 11th.
Dr. Onana is a respected investigative journalist and author who has tirelessly
worked to expose the atrocities committed by the Kagame regime, including its
role in orchestrating the Rwandan genocide and the mass killing of more than 15
million Rwandan and Congolese people. He is being falsely accused of genocide
denial—a tactic often used by the Rwandan government to silence those who dare to
challenge its official narrative. Dr. Onana is a voice for the voiceless, and
his persecution represents a broader effort by Kagame's RPF and its allies to
suppress the truth and punish dissent.
We appeal to you to investigate both Mr. Marcel's detention and Dr. Onana's unjust trial, ensuring their
safety and calling for the protection of their fundamental human rights. The
international community must not turn a blind eye to the ongoing persecution of
critics and the brutal repression of free speech in Rwanda. The tragic fates of
figures like Paul Rusesabagina, Kizito Mihigo,Mrs. Idamange Ivonne, Mr. Deo
Mushayidi, Mr. Theoneste, Mr. Hassan, Mr. Rashid, Ntamuhanga and others are
stark reminders of the Rwandan government’s readiness to eliminate those it deems
a threat.
We further call upon Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, the
United Nations, and other international bodies to press for impartial
investigations into the abuses committed by the Rwandan government, both
domestically and abroad. The international community must hold accountable
those responsible for the persecution, disappearance, and deaths of innocent
Rwandans and Congolese. Strong measures, including targeted sanctions, must be
taken against high-ranking officials of the Rwandan government and military who
are complicit in these crimes.
We appeal to the European Parliament and the wider international
community to act swiftly to protect the lives of vulnerable individuals like
Mr. Marcel and Dr. Onana, ensuring that justice is served and that they are not
silenced for speaking the truth.
Finally, we are deeply concerned about the conditions of detainees held
in secret RPF detention centers. We ask for assurances from the UN Human Rights
Council that all detainees are treated humanely in accordance with
international law, and we demand the immediate release of those unjustly
imprisoned.
We respectfully request your immediate attention and action in this
matter. The lives of Mr. Muhima Marcel
and Dr. Charles Onana are in danger,
and time is of the essence. The principles of democracy, justice, and human
rights demand swift intervention to prevent further atrocities.
Thank you for your consideration and for standing with the people of
Rwanda and the Congo in their quest for justice and human rights.
[Since 1994, the world witnesses the horrifying Tutsi minority (14%) ethnic domination, the Tutsi minority ethnic rule with an iron hand, tyranny and corruption in Rwanda. The current government has been characterized by the total impunity of RPF criminals, the Tutsi economic monopoly, the Tutsi militaristic domination, and the brutal suppression of the rights of the majority of the Rwandan people (85% are Hutus)and mass arrests of Hutus by the RPF criminal organization =>AS International]
What do you
think about the RPF infiltrators across the country and how they killed the
domestic Tutsis with the slogan "you can't make an omelet without breaking
eggs"? meaning to kill Tutsis by
RPF was the only way to seize power in Rwanda and create the enemy, the
Interahamawe. The CIA knows that and has revealed that.
By THE WAY: On July 25, 2024, the legal team representing Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza, a prominent Rwandan opposition figure, released a statement condemning recent public comments made by President Paul Kagame of Rwanda. The remarks were made during his election campaign, leading up to the general elections on July 15, 2024. The lawyers express grave concern over what they describe as defamatory and dangerous rhetoric from the President, which they claim exacerbates the already hostile environment for political dissent in Rwanda.
The issue of infiltration and violence perpetrated by members of the RPF (Rwandan Patriotic Front) against Tutsis or other groups during the Rwandan genocide is a contentious and complex topic. While there have been allegations and reports of RPF involvement in killings and other human rights abuses during the conflict, the extent and motivations behind such actions remain subject to debate and interpretation.A successor told me the same thing over coffee in a Brussels hotel lobby many years later: “In Rwanda, lying is an art form. When you, as a white journalist, leave a meeting, they will be congratulating themselves: ‘We took her for a ride.’ Lying is the rule, rather than the exception.”
COMPENDIUM OF RPF CRIMES - OCTOBER
1990 TO PRESENT: THE CASE FOR OVERDUE PROSECUTION
PAUL RUSESABAGINA
BRUSSELS
NOVEMBER 2006
https://survivorsnetworks.blogspot.com/search?q=compendium
The most wanted criminals who masterminded and carried out the Rwanda Genocide👇👇👇
GENERAL PAUL KAGAME & GENERAL MUBARAKH MUGANGA
(Amnesty International -International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda- Trials and Tribulations, April 1998)
COMPENDIUM OF RPF CRIMES - OCTOBER
1990 TO PRESENT: THE CASE FOR
OVERDUE PROSECUTION
I. INTRODUCTION
II. RPF CRIMES FROM JANUARY 1, 1994 TO DECEMBER 31, 1994
III. RPF CRIMES FROM OCTOBER 1, 1990 TO DECEMBER 31, 1993
IV. RPF CRIMES FROM JANUARY 1, 1995 TO PRESENT (NOVEMBER 8, 2006)V. OTHER ALLEGED RPF CRIMES
VI. FINAL OBSERVATIONS
VII. GENERAL CONCLUSION
VIII. DEFINITIONS
IX. BIBLIOGRAPHIC AND OTHER RESOURCES
Compiled by:
Paul Rusesabagina
Brussels
November 2006
I. INTRODUCTION
1. On November 8, 1994, the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 955 which
established the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) “for the prosecution of
persons responsible for genocide and other serious violations of international humanitarian law
committed in the territory of Rwanda, between January 1, 1994 and December 31, 1994. It may
also deal with the prosecution of Rwandan citizens responsible for genocide and other such
violations of international law committed in the territory of neighboring States during the same
period”. [ICTR Statute as adopted by UN Security Council Resolution S/RES/955 (1994) of 8
November 1994]. Following the recommendations of the Experts Commission Report set up by
the UN Secretary General which concluded that “ Individuals from both sides of the armed
conflict perpetrated serious breaches of international humanitarian law and crimes against
humanity” (The United Nations and Rwanda, 1993-1996, p.64).
2. The creation of the ICTR brought hope and enthusiasm to the people of Rwanda, the Great Lakes
region and all peace loving people of the world who were hoping to finally put an end to impunity
and bring real justice to the perpetrators of those horrible crimes. Unfortunately, twelve years
later, we cannot help but realize that all those hopes have been dashed. In fact, whereas several
members of the former government suspected of war crimes, crimes of genocide, and crimes
against humanity have been arrested and indicted, not a single RPF suspect has been indicted.
Meanwhile, the operating budget of the ICTR has cost the international community a whopping
1.5 billion dollars.
3. This situation is all the more stunning as several sources indicate that the ICTR is in possession of
the mountains of evidence of horrible crimes committed by RPF that fall under its mandate.
Amnesty International for one has declared that “Evidence of crimes committed by RPF in 1994
have been transmitted to the prosecutor’s office either in private and confidential
communications, in publications of non-governmental organizations and other sources, or
through depositions of its own expert witnesses in Arusha”. (Amnesty International, International
Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda- Trials and Tribulations, April 1998, p.17).
4. Some have argued that the government of Rwanda should be allowed to prosecute members of the
RPF accused of war crimes, crimes of genocide and crimes against humanity. This is unacceptable
for several reasons. For one it would be against the basic fundamentals of the rule of law because
the RPF would be judge and jury. On the other hand, it would be unfair for the people of Rwanda
to be treated differently than other people who have been victims of similar crimes and have had
UN tribunals set up to prosecute alleged criminals. A good example is the International Criminal
Tribunal of Yugoslavia (ICTY) which has indicted and prosecuted Serbs, Croats, Muslims and
Albanians alike and did not allow any of these groups to prosecute alleged criminals in its own
ranks.
5. The fact that alleged RPF criminals have remained free of prosecution is laden with serious
consequences because, as the former ICTR prosecutor, Ms Louise Arbour put it at the 50th
Anniversary of the Human Rights Declaration conference in Montreal on December 7, 1998:
“Judicial impunity is particularly shocking in penal code because it makes justice irrelevant and
thus incites people to repeat the same crimes”. The people of Rwanda and the Great Lakes region
of Africa have already paid a heavy price through the impunity of crimes still being committed by
the RPF army.
6. This document highlights some of the RPF crimes that most international observers and human
rights organizations have acknowledged as war crimes, crimes of genocide, and crimes against
humanity. It presents RPF mass crimes in three parts: the first covers the crimes that fall under the
ICTR mandate, from January 1, 1994 to December 31, 1994. The second part covers crimes
committed during the war, from October 1, 1990 to December 31, 1993. And the final part covers
crimes committed after the war, from January 1, 1995 to date. The document also talks about other
serious crimes committed by the RPF like degrading and humiliating treatment of victims,
physical elimination of opponents both inside and outside the country, and other grave violations.
Finally, the document ends with final observations and a general conclusion which translate our
firm commitment to do everything possible so that justice for all victims of the Rwandan conflict
is achieved.
II. RPF CRIMES FROM JANUARY 1, 1994 TO DECEMBER 31, 1994
The following are scanty facts and testimonies from witnesses of the RPF crimes and atrocities from
January 1994 to December 1994. A thorough UN-mandated independent investigation is warranted in order
to document a fully exhaustive list of all RPF crimes and bring the criminals to account. The world
community has a moral obligation to investigate these crimes and many others that were committed during
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this period (and in the period prior to and after 1994), and prosecute them according to their qualification as
War Crimes, Crimes against Humanity, or Crimes of Genocide. Witnesses are still living inside and outside
Rwanda who are ready to testify to the authenticity of these crimes.
RPF War Crimes, Crimes against Humanity, and Crimes of Genocide (January 1, 1994 – December
31, 1994):
1. The political assassination of February 21, 1994 : A prominent political leader from the southern
province of Butare and also General Secretary of the PSD party, Felicien Gatabazi, was
ambushed, shot and killed as he returned home from an evening meeting with other political
leaders. This was a highly reckless criminal act with the potential to polarize the country and
ignite widespread violence among Gatabazi’s supporters and opponents at an extremely tense and
volatile moment in Rwandan politics. While drinking in Kigali bars in the festive days following
the capture of Kigali, RPF operatives were reported to have openly bragged about their criminal
acts of derring-do, including killing Gatabazi, as they terrorized the country in their fight against
the government. (Testimony provided by witnesses, still living; Abdul J. Ruzibiza, Rwanda,
L’Histoire Secrete, 2005)
2. T he political assassination of February 23, 1994: Another prominent political leader from the
southern province of Cyangugu and president of the CDR party, Martin Bucyana, was killed by a
mob of PSD party youths enraged by the death of Gatabazi. Factual and testimonial evidence
available today shows that these youths had been heavily infiltrated by death squad elements of
the RPF, who may have been responsible for this assassination. We need to know who did it.
(Abdul J. Ruzibiza, Rwanda, L’Histoire Secrete, 2005)
3. T he double assassination of Rwandan and Burundian Presidents on April 6, 1994: In the
evening of this fateful April day, the Rwandan presidential aircraft was shot down as it prepared to
land at Kigali airport. Everyone on board was killed. They were President Juvenal
Habyarimana of Rwanda, President Cyprien Ntaryamira of Burundi, Rwandan Army Chief of
Staff Major General Deogratias Nsabimana, Burundian Ministers Cyriaque Simbizi and
Bernard Ciza, President Habyarimana’s special adviser Colonel Elie Sagatwa, President
Habyarimana’s adviser Major Thaddee Bagaragaza, President Habyarimana’s personal Doctor
Emmanuel Akingeneye, President Habyarimana’s adviser Ambassador Juvenal Renzaho, and
three French crew members: Jean-Pierre Minaberry, Jacky Heraud, and Jean-Marie
Perrinne. This assassination represented a decapitation of the Rwandan government and army,
and of the Burundian government as well. Available evidence, including witness testimony,
clearly indicates that this terrorist crime was the act of the RPF rebel group. It defies logic why the
UN Security Council has never mandated an investigation of this airplane missile attack to
establish who was responsible, especially since everyone agrees it was the one incident that
touched off the mass killings commonly referred to as the “Rwandan genocide of 1994”.
When former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri was killed on February 14, 2005, the overall
peace and political stability of Lebanon appeared to be come under serious threat that the UN
Security Council ordered an immediate investigation into this assassination. Yet, this terrorist act
had nowhere near the impact of Presidents Habyarimana’s and Ntaryamira’s dual assassination –
which has gone uninvestigated so far – both in terms of human lives lost and far-reaching political
implications in the country and the region.
It is critical to point out that the presidential airplane missile attack was the most reckless criminal
act yet in the Rwandan conflict, since it targeted and killed the president himself. It also took the
life of the Burundian president, only 6 months after another Burundian president, Melchior
Ndadaye, was assassinated (October 21, 1993) by the Tutsi Burundian army. President Ndadaye
had been in office only 4 months after being democratically elected in June and sworn in on July
10, 1993. All of a sudden, in a short 6 months, the Hutu political leadership in both Rwanda and
Burundi, 2 twin countries with a similar ethnic makeup, was decimated with absolutely no adverse
4
consequences to the perpetrators. It is worth mentioning that the ethnic violence that engulfed
Burundi in the aftermath of President Ndadaye’s assassination claimed the lives of as many as
200,000 civilians in spite of Burundi being in a time of peace when Ndadaye was killed.
Therefore, is it possible that whoever killed the Rwandan president in a time of war knew exactly
what kind of catastrophe was going to follow? Is it possible that the death of their Hutu president
along with his Hutu entourage only 2 months after 2 other Hutu prominent political leaders
(Gatabazi and Bucyana in point 1 and 2 above) were also assassinated, may have pushed Rwandan
Hutus overboard and driven them into their killing frenzy against Tutsis? The answer to both
questions is probably yes. Then, it is unfathomable how so far no independent inquiry has been
conducted since it would provide all the key answers to so many unanswered questions in the
Rwandan tragedy, and its implications could be far-reaching:
“If it turns out the FPR shot down the airplane, the history of genocide must be rewritten.
Although that will not alter Hutu extremists’ responsibility for the death of hundreds of thousands
of people, it will cast the RPF under a completely different light, because so far the RPF has been
considered in the West both as the victims and saviors who stopped the genocide.” (Public
statement by Carla Del Ponte on April 17, 2000 as reported by Charles Onana in Silence sur un
attentat: Le scandale du genocide rwandais, 2003, p.77)
4. The mass murder of Byumba towards the end of April, 1994: In the sectors of Nyabisiga,
Birenga, Zoko, and Gitumba of the commune of Buyoga, and also, in the adjacent commune of
Giti in the province of Byumba and in the communes of Mugambazi and Rutongo in the province
of Kigali, the RPF reportedly killed 20,000 innocent civilians in all these areas in April. At
Shagasha primary school near Muyanza parish, there is a mass grave reportedly containing 500
innocent civilians killed and dumped in there by the RPF. Not too far away from there, below the
home of a certain Burasiyo, there is a flat, level ground area where the RPF summoned villagers
“for a meeting on security issues or to collect food supplies,” and then threw grenades into the
people and fired on them, killing all 80 who had shown up. They were also buried in a mass grave
right there, and those who dug the mass grave were also killed. (Testimony provided by witnesses,
still living)
5. T he Kigali selective killing of intellectuals on April 7, 1994: In the sector of Remera in Kigali
city, the RPF selectively killed 121 people, mostly intellectual Hutus and their entire families,
using an already drawn up list of targeted victims. They include former prefect of Kigali Claudien
Habarushaka, former prefect of Ruhengeri Sylvestre Bariyanga and his entire family, Émile
Nyungura and almost his entire family (his son, singer Corneille who currently lives in Canada,
was the only survivor), Emmanuel Bahigiki and his entire family, Iréné Kayibanda, the son of
former president Grégoire Kayibanda, Muhamud Rahamatar, Félicien Mbanzarugamba, former
cabinet minister Benoît Ntigurirwa, and many others. (Pierre Pean, Noires Fureurs, Blancs
Menteurs: Rwanda 1990-1994, 2005, p.249)
6. T he targeted massacre of youths at Kabuye in April 1994: At Kabuye near Kigali city, a team
of RPF killers is reported to have exterminated a total of more than 3,000 youths in the month of
April 1994 alone. The youths were recruited into the RPF army one team after another. After the
previous team was killed off, the next team would be recruited and told that the previous team had
already been promoted and assigned to combat duty on the battlefield, and so on until more than
3,000 of them were decimated. (Abdul J. Ruzibiza, Rwanda, L’Histoire Secrete, 2005, p. 261)
7. T he Kiziguro butchery of April 1994: At Kiziguro parish (province of Kibungo in eastern
Rwanda), the Interahamwe militias killed about 1000 Tutsis sheltered at the parish. Later, the
RPF Tutsi army arrived and killed about 10,000 Hutus sheltered in the parish facilities. (Pierre
Pean, Noires Fureurs, Blancs Menteurs: Rwanda 1990-1994, 2005, p.263)
8. T he floating corpses of May 1994: Many of the cadavers washing up into Lake Victoria were not
Tutsi victims of the Interahamwe, but Hutu victims of the RPF soldiers. The villagers unable to
5
cross over into Tanzania before the arrival of the RPF army, including refugees fleeing the
advancing rebels and terrified by the noise of gunfire and the nauseating smells of burning flesh,
were all rounded up and eliminated with machine guns, grenades, or by means of a used up hoe
(“agafuni” in Kinyarwanda). Then the bodies were either massively piled up and burned down or
tossed into the Akagera River. On May 22, the government of Uganda declared as “disaster areas”
all districts surrounding Lake Victoria for health reasons. (Pierre Pean, Noires Fureurs, Blancs
Menteurs: Rwanda 1990-1994, 2005, p. 265)
The international community must never loose sight of the fact that the RPF army had total control
of northeastern Rwanda from the beginning of the mass killings in April 1994, as FAR (the
Rwandan national army at the time) troops had abruptly left the area in disarray soon after
Habyarimana’s death. The Akagera River runs through eastern and northeastern Rwanda before
reaching Uganda. It has been repeatedly observed that the corpses washing up into Lake Victoria
looked “fresh”, meaning they had not been killed too long before, and many of them were tied up
in “Akandoya” style (a Ugandan word meaning tightly binding both arms in the victim’s back
with such pressure that the chest bones break), a trademark of the RPF. It must also be kept in
mind that the RPF monitored and controlled the movements of foreigners in the area under its
control. Journalists and representatives of humanitarian organizations rarely talked to Rwandan
citizens under RPF control without an RPF official present. Consequently, most of the information
given to international media as war raged was either incorrect or biased. What we all know is that
the RPF was very efficient in concealing its crimes and misleading the international media,
including the most known and respected, to its full advantage. An independent investigation can
help establish the role of each belligerent in this tragedy.
9. The decapitation of the Catholic Church on June 5, 1994: At Kabgayi, in the locality of
Gakurazo, 3 Bishops (Archbishop Vincent Nsengiyumva of Kigali, Bishop Thaddee
Nsengiyumva of Kabgayi, and Bishop Joseph Ruzindana of Byumba), Monsignor Gasabwoya,
along with 9 priests, 1 Friar and 3 girls were gunned down by the RPF on direct orders from their
superior. In the days that followed, the RPF methodically killed off, one by one, anybody in the
adjacent neighborhoods who might have witnessed the killings of all these clergymen. After
decapitating the country’s government and army leadership on April 6, the RPF had now
successfully decapitated the Catholic Church in this assassination. (Venuste Linguyeneza,
Testimony on the 1994 Bishops’ killing)
A little more than a month earlier, on April 23, 1994 to be exact, the RPF had carried out a similar
collective massacre of clergymen assigned at the Junior Seminary of Rwesero, at the western
shores of Lake Muhazi, in Byumba. The killing took place at Karushya, near Rwesero, where the
priests had taken refuge. Among the victims were Father Joseph Hitimana, the rector of the
seminary, Fathers Christian Nkiriyehe, a former rector, Athanase Nkundabanyanga, Alexis
Havugimana, Faustin Mulindwa, Fidèle Mulinda, Célestin Muhayimana, Augustin Muhayimana,
and Gaspard Mudashimwa, Sisters Annonciata and Carolla, professors Elie Hatungimana and his
entire family, and Augustin Hakizimana, and many others. In all, the lives of 50 innocent people
were brutally taken in this massacre. (Leonard Nduwayo, Giti et le genocide rwandais, 2002,
p.172-177)
10. The selective massacre of an entire Hutu family in Nyanza in June 1994: Former businessman
Josias Mwongereza and his entire family of 48 people were killed in June 1994. They were part of
a larger group rounded up by the RPF at Buhanda in Gitarama and driven off to Nyanza. Then the
RPF separated the Hutus from the Tutsis, and proceeded to kill the Hutus with used up hoes. The
victims included Josias Mwongereza, his sons Emile Mwongereza, and Dr. Eliab, and another
brother who was an his Engineer. Also killed were Josine Mukamanzi, the wife of Dr. Eliab and 4
months pregnant, Josias Mwongereza’s father named Mukwikwi, and brother Jonathan
Mukwikwi. Josias Mwongereza’s daughters, Francine Uwimbabazi and 16 year-old Angelique
Umulisa, were also killed. The wife of Jonathan Mukwikwi, Ms. Gloria, a Hutu woman with a
physical appearance of a Tutsi, was spared and kept as a future concubine of an RPF officer, but
6
was never happy because of the death of her husband. Eventually she was killed along with her 5-
year old son. The Tutsis who were separated from this group of Hutus are still living.
1. The infamous Byumba city selective killing of Hutu evacuees in May, June, and July 1994:
As the RPF fought a war of attrition with the government forces around Kigali city, many of its
teams supposedly were busy “evacuating trapped and displaced civilians towards safe areas under
RPF control”. People were even encouraged to flee in the direction of RPF-controlled areas to
escape death at the hands of the Interahamwe militias. That’s how many of the civilians amassed
at the Amahoro soccer stadium in Kigali and at Kabuga business center were misled into believing
they were being trucked away to “safety” in Byumba city. After arrival, Hutus and all unwanted
subjects were separated from Tutsis and killed. Jean Sibomana, an employee of Mille Collines
Hotel, fled to Kabuga and was even recruited into the RPF army, before being executed a few
weeks later. The lady known as “Jeanne of Nyamirambo” was also among the crowd that left
Mille Collines Hotel and headed to Kabuga. She was killed by the RPF. Leonard Rudasingwa, a
senior official of BRALIRWA, fled towards the so-called “safe haven” zone under RPF control,
but was killed upon arrival. Some of the other victims of this criminal operation included
Sebulikoko, a renowned Tutsi real estate developer who was killed because he belonged to the
ruling MRND political party and was a close friend of President Habyarimana. Also killed were
lawyer Grégoire Kayinamura and his daughter Oda, and former soccer player nicknamed Pilote of
Kiyovu Football Club, who was forced to testify on the airwaves of RPF Radio Muhabura that he
was rescued from the Interahamwe militias, before being executed by the same RPF. In all, more
than 2,500 Hutu civilians perished in Byumba city during the 3 months of selective killings.
(Testimony provided by witnesses, still living)
2. T he massacre of my family members at the beginning of Jully 1994 in Murama in the
Province of Gitarama: My youngest brother Emmanuel Gasana, along with my oldest sister
Nyirakabwa, my 2 paternal cousins Ngezenubwo with wife Martha and Simon Ngfayabarambirwa
and his son Karambizi, were all burned inside the house of our neighbor Salathiel Binenwa where
they had sought refuge, including him and all his family members. Several people perished in this
criminal blaze. During the same period, my brother-in-law Benjamin Nkurikiyinka, who resided in
Nyanza but had fled the fighting to come to our region, was also assassinated by RPF soldiers.
Still in the same period, another brother-in-law named Eliel Rwagasana, was killed by the RPF at
his residence in Rusatira, along with his father Mahalaliel Nsozerumpa and his younger brother
Gerard. All these RPF horrible crimes must be fully investigated and their perpetrators punished.
3. T he cold-blooded massacre of the Mbazi wedding, July 1, 1994: the family of Mussa Kabwana
of the sector of Mwulire and the cell of Murambi, in the commune of Mbazi in the Province of
Butare, was hosting a wedding réception on the afternoon of July 1, 1994. Between 3:00PM and
4:00PM, an advance team of RPF soldiers led by a native of the area (who is currently a highranking
RPF government official) arrived on the scene. Even the sight of such jubilant hosts and
guests was not enough to overcome the soldiers’ hate and urge to kill: they opened fire onto the
crowd, killing more than 20 innocent people, before retreating back to their unit. This massacre
marked the beginning of a long wave of severe repression and revenge killings throughout Mbazi
and the entire province of Butare. (André Guichaoua, Rwanda 1994: Les politiques du génocide à
Butare, 2005, p. 306)
4. T he savage burning of sub-prefect Placide Koloni’s home and family in Ruhango towards
the end of 1994: One night in the waning weeks of 1994, the RPF army surrounded the home of
Placide Koloni while his family slept, poured gasoline on the entire compound, torched it and
stood guard so no one would escape, until everybody, including all domestic animals, had
succumbed in the blaze. No one has been punished for this horrible crime. (Testimony provided by
witnesses, still living)
5. Many other crimes, including (1)killing prisoners of war, (2)detaining people in containers
and abandoned homes, (3)burying people in mass graves and running incineration centers,
7
(4)throwing live people in deep pit latrines, (5)firing on unarmed civilians during meetings,
weddings or at market places, and (6)using civilians as human shields were reported in many
areas where the RPF army was present. They all need to be thoroughly investigated and
prosecuted.
III. RPF CRIMES FROM OCTOBER 1, 1990 TO DECEMBER 31, 1993
RPF War Crimes, Crimes against Humanity, and Crimes of Genocide (October 1, 1990 – December
31, 1993):
1. The Ruhengeri city attack of January 23, 1991: The RPF staged a night attack on the city of
Ruhengeri, resulting in heavy civilian casualties and heavy property damage. The RPF opened the
gates of Ruhengeri prison, freeing many prisoners and enrolling them as fighters. The RPF also
engaged in heavy looting activity in the city, and a reported 400 people were forced out of their
homes to help carry the loot. These 400 civilians were all killed afterwards, along with another
100 civilians around the city as the RPF retreated back into the volcano forest. (Abdul J. Ruzibiza,
Rwanda, L’Histoire Secrete, 2005, p. 132)
2. T he Butaro massacre of May 1992: At Rusasa in the commune of Butaro, in the province of
Ruhengeri, the RPF attacked displaced people on a small island in the swamps of Rugezi,
destroying their shelters and killing their goats and sheep. 150 people were reportedly killed in
this attack. (Testimony provided by witnesses, still living)
3. T he notorious Ruhengeri and Byumba massacre of February 8, 1993: The RPF staged a major
attack in several communes of the Provinces of Ruhengeri and Byumba, killing many people and
inflicting heavy damage on state and privately-owned property. During this attack, the RPF killed
a total of 2 4,400 people in Ruhengeri , and of 15,800 in Byumba. (James K. Gasana, Rwanda: du
parti-Etat a l’Etat garnison, 2002, p. 185)
4. T he political assassination of May 18, 1993: The RPF is reported to have killed Emmanuel
Gapyisi, a prominent political leader from the south and vice president of the MDR party. He was
one of the most clear-minded and respected leaders of the MDR party. His killing removed a
powerful RPF opponent because Gapyisi was very critical of RPF violent methods and practices.
But this also was an extremely reckless crime capable of plunging the country into widespread
violence between southerners and northerners especially if the former came to believe the latter
had killed their man. Gapyisi’s killing was among the first in a wave of assassinations nationwide
targeting Hutu political leaders, including businessmen, mayors, parliamentarians, and leading up
to the assassination of Gatabazi, Bucyana, and finally President Habyarimana. An investigation is
needed to clear the mystery of these assassinations once and for all.
5. O ther crimes and terrorist acts: Throughout the year of 1993, Rwanda experienced a major
spike in acts of armed banditry, grenade attacks and mini-bus taxi explosions in several
parts of the country. According to several credible witnesses, among them former RPF officer
Lieutenant Abdul Rizibiza now in exile in Norway, the acts were the work of infiltrated RPF
hit squad members and spy operatives all belonging to the “RPF Network”, who were
assigned to spreading violence and insecurity, thus rendering the country ungovernable in a bid to
overthrow the government and seize power by force. (Abdul J. Ruzibiza, Testimony of Abdul
Ruzibiza, March 14, 2004)
IV. RPF CRIMES FROM JANUARY 1, 1995 TO PRESENT (NOVEMBER 8, 2006)
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RPF War Crimes, Crimes against Humanity, and Crimes of Genocide (January 1,1995 – Present:
November 8, 2006):
1. The gruesome Kibeho massacre of April 17-23, 1995: an estimated 4000 internally displaced
people were reported killed on the orders of Major General Paul Kagame when army units
collectively fired on the Kibeho camp that was estimated to shelter about 100,000 people,
indiscriminately killing unarmed men, women, children, and many elderly. Paul Kagame, then
vice president and minister of defense, reportedly had established his local operations headquarters
in nearby Butare to closely supervise the siege and dismantling of the Kibeho camp. It took one
full night of non-stop body disposal by truck towards the Nyungwe forest for mass
incineration (many areas of the site were cordoned off for supposed “security and military
reasons”) before the RPF allowed journalists, independent observers and UN monitors, to access
the site. (Paul Jordan, Witness to Genocide – A Personal Account of the 1995 Kibeho Massacre,
1998; Abdul J. Ruzibiza, Rwanda, L’Histoire Secrete, 2005)
This was a well-publicized massacre brazenly carried out by the RPF government, in the presence
of the UN military contingent from Zambia and officials from NGO’s assisting these refugees, and
many pictures of which were taken and made public. The simple question, then, is why hasn’t
there been any independent inquiry so that the perpetrators can be officially identified and
punished?
2. T he deadliest year of 1996: the year of the infamous mass murder of refugees in Zaïre
(currently the Democratic Republic of the Congo) and forced deportation of refugees: The
RPA army carried out perhaps the most brutal and genocidal campaign in modern history by
attacking the sprawling refugee camps in Goma and Bukavu in Zaïre, home to an estimated 1 to 2
million Rwandan refugees. There is little doubt that among these refugees were those who had
participated in the mass killings inside Rwanda 2 years before. But the RPA army put the guilty
and the innocent in the same bag, and indiscriminately fired on the camps and crowds of unarmed
fleeing refugees, especially women, children and the elderly who were the weakest and unable to
run fast, hunting down many of them like beasts deep into the tropical Zairian forest all the way to
Tingi Tingi and Mbandaka. By all accounts, it is estimated this whole operation claimed the
lives of 400,000 Rwandan refugees. While this operation was underway, the RPA army
undertook one of the biggest deportation campaigns ever, by forcibly (i.e. against their will)
airlifting an estimated 700,000 refugees back to their respective original communes in Rwanda.
Then the RPF started a long-running criminal process of killing these returnees, as a result of
which about 50% of the returnees are not living today. These horrific crimes, both in Zaïre and in
Rwanda, were executed with orders received from their leaders. (Testimony provided by
witnesses, still living; Marie Beatrice Umutesi, Fuir ou Mourir au Zaire: Le vécu d’une réfugiée
Rwandaise, 2000)
The International Center for Human Rights and Democratic Development (CIDPDD), in teaming
with the African Association for the Defense of Human Rights in DRC (ASADHO), concluded
that “It appears pertinently that the Rwandan government can be held accountable for war
crimes, crimes against humanity, and acts of genocide” in their document entitled “Report of
inquiry by the international non-government commission on human rights violations in DRC
(former Zaire) 1996-1998”, 1998, p.78.
3. T he slaughter of the Nyarutovu wedding, January 18-19, 1997: In the night of January 18-19,
1997, the RPF attacked and killed each and every one of the guests, including the bride and groom
and their parents, at a civil wedding in the home of Major Laurent Bizabarimana in Nyarutovu in
the northern province of Ruhengeri. 50 people were collectively slaughtered that night. Major
Laurent Bizabarimana and his family had recently returned from Zaire during the massive forced
deportation by the RPF, and became victims of a brutal RPF nationwide campaign inside Rwanda
to eliminate “genocidaire elements” from among these returnees. (Testimony provided by
witnesses, still living)
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4. The horrors of the Nyakinama Cave, October 23-28, 1997: RPA soldiers are reported to have
pursued and killed 8,000 unarmed civilians, especially women, children and the elderly who
were too weak to run who had sought refuge in the cave of Nyakinama, in the commune of
Kanama, to escape indiscriminate shootings and bombings by the RPA in the area. RPA soldiers
reacted by lobbing grenades and other explosives into the cave, then went on to seal off the
entrance of the cave with rocks and gravel so no one would be able to come out. ( Amnesty
International, The dead can no longer be counted, report, December 1997)
5. T he Hutu Christmas massacre of Kayonza, December 23-25, 1998: In the evening hours of
December 23, 1998, a passenger on a mini-bus taxi from Kigali got off near Nyagatare, and
suddenly fired a gun into the air before running off into the hills of near-by Ngarama. The next
day, people woke up to road blocks at Kayonza and Musha, and to military security sweep
operations in the surrounding communes of Ngarama, Muvumba, Murambi, Kayonza, and
Bicumbi. All taxis to and from Kigali were stopped and carefully screened for Hutus, who were
ordered out before the taxis were allowed to resume their journey. These Hutus were then all
executed using guns or used up hoes, then loaded up onto trucks and shipped to humming
incineration centers in the Mutara region, with the ashes later dispersed into the Akagara National
Park. An estimated 5,000 innocent civilians, including the cousin of one witness, perished in
this macabre 2-day operation. (Testimony provided by witnesses, still living)
6. T he brutal reprisal campaigns against Abacengezi (1997-2000) and the ethnic cleansing of
the Mutara region (1995 and after): From 1997 to around 2000, the RPF faced an increased
number of cross-border raids from Zaire into Rwanda carried out by remnants of the previous
army who called themselves “Abacengezi” (or inroad specialists). Each time they attacked, the
RPA army responded by unleashing a brutal reprisal campaign targeting the civilian population,
especially in the northwestern provinces of Ruhengeri and Gisenyi, in order to break the will of
the insurgents, many of whom originated from these provinces. More than 50,000 people were
killed in many communes of these 2 provinces from 1997 to 2000. In the meantime, the RPF
returned to the Mutara region in the northeast and started where it had left off in cleansing the area
of all ethnic Hutus. The RPF decimated native Hutus, as well as other Hutus who had immigrated
into this once under-populated area from other parts of the country in search of land and new jobs
during the 1960’s, 1970’s, and 1980’s. The Mutara region is now the new all-Tutsi land of
Rwanda, complete with farms and cattle ranches for the Tutsi herders. There have been reports
that these ranching activities, in search of grazing pasture, have led to severe encroachments into
the adjacent Akagera National Park, destroying the ecosystem of the area and the natural habitat of
many wild animals. (Testimony provided by witnesses, still living)
V. OTHER ALLEGED RPF CRIMES
1. T he crime of denying people their right to seek medical treatment overseas: Since taking
power in July 1994, the RPF has put in place a criminal policy of systematic non-issuance of
medical treatment exit visas for people it wants to punish for multiple reasons. These are mostly
people who have voiced their criticism of the government or the army, or are perceived to be in
the political opposition, etc. One of the most glaring cases is that of Father Andre Sibomana,
former Editor of the independent newspaper “Kinyamateka”, and a former interim Bishop of the
Diocese of Kabgayi after the assassination of Bishop Thaddee Nsengiyumva in June 1994. He was
a staunch social justice advocate and human rights activist known for his editorials denouncing the
excesses of the RPF regime. He was never allowed to seek expert medical treatment overseas, and
succumbed to his illness in Kabgayi at the young age of 43 on March 7, 1998. Dr. Jean
Bagiramenshi, a veterinarian who worked for the government and later consulted for the World
Bank, was another victim of this policy. He suffered from multiple ailments, including kidney
malfunction and gout, and may have had liver problems as well. He was prevented several times
from seeking medical treatment out of Rwanda on his own money, and by the time he was allowed
10
to leave, it was too late. He died in Belgium in 2005. Investigations must be carried out to
determine how many people have fallen victim to this criminal policy . (Testimony provided by
witnesses, still living)
2. R PF death squads on the trail of opponents inside and outside Rwanda: On May 16, 1998,
former Interior Minister Seth Sendashonga was assassinated in Nairobi, Kenya; on October 6,
1996, Colonel Theoneste Lizinde and businessman Augustin Bugirimfura were assassinated
in Nairobi, Kenya; in the night of February 14-15, 1999, former CEO of Rwanda African
Continental Bank (BACAR) Pasteur Musabe was assassinated in Yaounde, Cameroon. Inside
Rwanda, former Council of State president Vincent Nsanzabaganwa was assassinated on
February 14, 1997; former presidential advisor Assiel Kabera was gunned down on March 5,
2000; on April 7, 2003, parliamentarian Leonard Hitimana was assassinated, and no inquiry has
been conducted. Two weeks later on April 23, 2003, Colonel Augustin Cyiza was abducted and
killed. Edouard Mutsinzi, former editor of “Le Messager” newspaper in Kigali, was abducted
and beaten up, with his ribs broken, his eyes taken out, and his brain damaged so bad that he lives
in a vegetative state in Belgium. All the victims were either critics of the government or potential
compromising witnesses in possession of top state secrets. These crimes and many others were
reported to have been committed by RPF death squad members assigned to do the dirty work
against RPF opponents in different world capitals. They must be investigated, and their
perpetrators brought to justice.
3. T he cruel and inhumane use of prisoners in de-mining operations: The RPF has been reported
sending hundreds to Hutu prisoners to their immediate death by forcing them to run in areas where
landmines are suspected of having been planted by the ousted army, especially in the Bugesera
region. These allegations must be fully investigated and prosecuted. (Testimony provided by
witnesses, still living)
4. T he cruel and inhumane treatment and exploitation of Rwandan prisoners in the Congo war
for the profit of President Paul Kagame: During the Congo war and the occupation of Eastern
DRC by the RPA, reports abounded about Rwandan prisoners being sent to die at the forefront of
a brutal war of occupation and exploitation of the DRC. There were also numerous reports that
hundreds, maybe thousands, of Rwandan prisoners were sent to RPA-occupied areas of the Congo
to work as forced labor in the digging of minerals, especially Coltan, gold and diamonds, for the
top brass members of the RPA army, starting with President Paul Kagame himself. This was a
flagrant violation of international laws governing prisoners and a despicable trampling of human
dignity. A full investigation and prosecution of these crimes is warranted. (Testimony provided by
witnesses, still living)
VI. FINAL OBSERVATIONS
1. When this RPF crime compendium is released, I expect the RPF government to hit back with
blanket accusations, without any proof, that I am a “revisionist and a negationist of the Rwandan
genocide”, and that “I harbor an ideology of genocide and divisionism”. The international
community must take a very close and careful look at such character assassination, and in many
cases outright persecution, of all real and perceived contrary opinion holders and political
opponents, social justice advocates and human rights critics in Rwanda by the RPF government,
and find a proper way to address it.
2. The present compendium was conceived as an effort to document most reported and underreported
crimes by the RPF organization as a predominantly Tutsi rebel group and government
with a view to bring to light its apparent share of responsibility in the whole Rwandan tragedy.
Even though it places a premium on seemingly forgotten Hutu casualties, this document did not
and does not intend to belittle Tutsi and Twa casualties of the Rwandan genocide. All sons and
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daughters of Rwanda, as well as foreigners who perished in this tragedy were a terrible loss to
humanity and must be equally mourned and remembered, regardless of their ethnicity. We need to
know with certainty who massacred the Bagogwe Tutsi sub-clan of Gisenyi in 1991 and 1992. We
need to know with certainty who butchered the Banyamulenge Tutsis and Bagobwe Tutis
sheltered at Mudende camps in August, November, and December 1997. We need to know with
certainty who killed the American, British, Australian and New Zealand tourists at Bwindi
National Park in Uganda in 1999. Who killed the Spanish volunteers in Rwanda in 1997 and in
Congo in the following years? Who abducted, mutilated and killed former Rwandan cabinet
minister Juvenal Uwiringiyimana before dumping his body in a Brussels canal in December 2005?
Was he or not a victim of the RPF death squad in Europe as widely suspected? The overall goal
of this document is to lift the cloud of mystery and secrecy hanging over the Rwandan
tragedy. It is to fight impunity and help bring equitable justice to Rwanda: whoever killed a
Tutsi must pay, whoever killed a Hutu must pay, whoever killed a Twa must pay, and
whoever killed a foreigner must pay.
3. Rwandan President Paul Kagame is now widely believed to be behind the shooting down of the
aircraft carrying President Juvenal Habyarimana on that fateful night of April 6, 1994. In that
capacity, he is the suspected triggerman of the Rwandan genocide of 1994 and the architect of the
genocide after 1994. Kagame outright denies these allegations. But a better way to refute the
charges and clear his name once and for all is to allow an independent investigation to look into
these crimes. Of course Kagame will never request such an independent investigation, because he
knows he is guilty. That’s why we ask the UN to mandate the ITCR to investigate these tragedies
not covered by the current mandate.
4. The provinces of Byumba and Ruhengeri did not experience the wave of genocidal killings that
engulfed the rest of the country in April 1994, because they were already under RPF control. Yet,
the vast majority of families currently living in these regions (about 80% of all inhabitants of these
areas) are made up of widows and orphans, who tell stories of their husbands and fathers having
been killed by the RPF. International non-government organizations (NGO’s) have been
prohibited by the RPF government to go into these areas and assist these widow-run families to
move ahead, and to mend the traditional family nucleus and the social fabric which have been
completely shattered. Families in these areas with a member in the previous government army
have been especially targeted and hit the hardest by the RPF. The simple question is this: why has
the international community remained blind in the face of such blatant brutalization of human life?
From 1990 to 1994, a reported 400,000 people have died in these areas. Who killed them?
5. Reports have circulated that many extremist RPF members in Kigali and other cities had large
caches of weapons in their residences, and had dug up very deep pits in their backyards a few
months before the genocide. What was the purpose of these weapons and pits? There have been
reports that in the ceasefire months leading up to April 1994, many RPF youths received extensive
fire arms training in the CND parliament building housing the RPF battalion, and at the RPF
headquarters in Mulindi. Also, it is no secret that while the ruling MRND party had the
Interahamwe militia, the MDR party had the JDR (Democratic Republican Youth) militia, and the
PSD party had the Abakombozi militia, the RPF had a youth militia of its own that inflicted as
much damage as the other militias. An independent inquiry of these facts is needed, and witnesses
are available to testify openly.
6. The killings in Rwanda in 1994 were called genocide. Today, the killings in Darfur are being
denounced as genocide. The killings in Zaire from 1996 to 2001, which took the lives of more
than 4 million innocent lives, were called just that: killings. Where is the logic? Some of the
perpetrators of the Rwandan genocide have been punished, and from all indications the
perpetrators of the Darfur genocide will be punished, since the setting up of an International
Criminal Tribunal for Darfur is already in the works. That’s all good. But when are we going to
have the International Criminal Tribunal for Congo? When will the perpetrators of the Zairian
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killings be punished? Never mind calling the Zairian killings genocide, can their perpetrators at
least be punished? There are countries which do not have a total of 4 million inhabitants. That’s a
lot of people to kill and live freely ever after. We all know beyond a doubt that the RPF committed
these killings. You, the international community, can you tell us who you hold responsible for
these wholesale massacres? For the same crimes, there must be the same punishments.
7. More than 50% of current inmates in Rwanda have no official criminal charges against them, but
continue to be kept in jail and out of active life. The government keeps the inmates on meager
meals that must be supplemented with additional food rations from their families, or they will die
from hunger – when they do not succumb to torture so rampant under different forms inside
official prisons throughout the country and inside hidden unofficial torture centers. In most
cases, women, including those educated, cannot keep a paying job because they need 2 to 3 hours
per day to go feed their husbands in jail. No employer will agree to so much time off every day.
This means that for the 100,000 married men in prison, there are 100,000 women not
working, or a total of 200,000 people not actively contributing to the economy. With an
average of 4 children per Rwandan household, that’s a total of 400,000 children nationwide
that lack parental guidance and money to attend school. And all of a sudden, the grim
picture of the legacy of the RPF regime comes into full focus: the pauperization and
illiterate-ization of an entire generation of Rwandans. If this is not slow genocide, then
genocide does not exist. Truthfully, there are 5 main factors of genocide: bad leadership, bad
media, impunity, poverty, and lack of education. Today, all these 5 genocide factors are in
place in Rwanda. The height of injustice in Rwanda can be summed up this way: many innocent
Hutu civilians are in jail, while all criminal RPF elements are free. Where is the UN while all of
this is happening? There cannot be any possible reconciliation in any nation where one part of the
population is having a field day at the expense of the other part of the population on its knees.
8. Joseph Matata, a Rwandan human rights advocate who heads the Brussels-based “Center against
Impunity and Injustice in Rwanda”, has reported that about 100 ex-FAR military officers are jailed
at the Kibungo military prison since April 1999. An additional 37 or so ex-FAR military officers
remain unaccounted for, while many other former comrades have been summarily executed
[Report of April 14, 1999]. The “official” political parties in Rwanda today function under the
umbrella of the so-called “Forum of Parties” where the RPF is sole master. In view of all this, the
question is this: Does the Arusha Peace Agreement of August 1993, painfully reached between the
then-RPF rebels and the then-government, and which called for a merger of the 2 fighting armies
and free political activity in Rwanda, have any relevance left?
9. Contrary to RPF claims, there is no peace in Rwanda. That explains why far too many Rwandans
continue to flee overseas and are easily granted asylee or refugee status. How long is the RPF
going to use genocide as a pretext to stifle democracy and entrench one of the most predatory
dictatorships ever? Political opposition is completely muzzled. How long will the people of
Rwanda continue to die a slow death? Former President Pasteur Bizimungu and his collaborators,
such as Charles Ntakirutinka, are rotting in jail for having started a political party. In fact, in
Rwanda there is no shortage of political prisoners, prisoners of opinion, prisoners of hate,
prisoners of race, etc., and Colonel Stanislas Biseruka, reporter Dominique Makeri, and Colonel
Patrick Karegeya are only a handful in a long list. You, the ICTR, whose original mandate was to
reconcile the Rwandan people among other things, what is going to be your legacy for Rwanda
when your time expires?
10. The recent brutal killing of many businessmen among them Fulgence Nsengiyumva of Gitarama,
aged 49, by the RPF government army on August 6, 2006 must be condemned vehemently. His
wife is being persecuted for reclaiming the confiscated truck that belonged to him, and their 5
innocent children will be traumatized for the rest of their lives. The recent arrest, search and strip
of old women in an open market place by RPF police in broad day light as a way to humiliate and
force all old and barefoot women to never set foot in a market place again, is abhorrent and must
be condemned vehemently. The on-going campaign to ban bicycles and motorcycles from cities,
especially Kigali, as well as the on-going campaign to raze all banana plantations, is an act of
economic depredation on the Rwandan population by its RPF government and will result in the
starvation of the masses. It must be condemned vehemently. The on-going campaign to expel
from Kigali city all the poor, all AIDS orphans, all war widows and war invalids, is criminal.
It all started with a seemingly simple desire to take the poor away from the city, then the
campaign targeted the bare-foot crowd, then those wearing sandals and slippers, then the
pedestrians, then the bicyclists, and finally the motorcyclists. Who is it going to be next?
There is clearly a pattern of criminal exclusion that must be condemned. In reality, this
whole campaign is an empty attempt by RPF rulers to project to visitors and donors the
deceptive impression that Kigali in particular, and Rwanda in general, are well-managed to
deserve more financial aid. Chasing all these poor people away from the city without
addressing the root cause of their misery is a window dressing, whitened-sepulcher, or
sweep-under-the-rug type of approach to development, and it obviously can’t help any poor
Rwandan. It can’t fool any foreign donor country either. So the simple question to the United
Nations is this: why are the people of Rwanda being so toyed with, persecuted and killed by their
own government in this fashion and nothing is being done about it?
11. Finally, what is Presidential Immunity? It seems to mean that someone can kill all the people he
or she wants, and not worry about any consequences as long as he or she is president of a given
country! We are in the 21st century, and humanity sure can come up with better laws.
VII. GENERAL CONCLUSION:
The above list of RPF crimes is by no means exhaustive. There are reports of countless RPF crimes
before 1994, in 1994, and after 1994 that could not be compiled in this document. For example, in the small eastern town of Muhura as the RPF marched onto Kigali in the Spring of 1994, General Paul Kagame himself is reported not only having given direct orders to fire on crowds of wandering displaced people, but also having personally sprayed bullets into these crowds with his own machine gun. An investigation of this massacre is needed, and witnesses are available to tell the story.
Currently, there is a general, state-sponsored crime being perpetrated by the RPF government against an
entire segment of the Rwandan population, specifically Hutus, through the infamous Gacaca Courts. The RPF government is attempting to incriminate the biggest number of Rwandans possible by officially labeling them “killers” or “genocidaires”, thus ostracizing them from public life and creating a caste of second class citizens or “untouchables”. Gacaca trials are an age-old, small-courts-type Rwandan tradition designed to settle only misdemeanors, such as stealing a cow, a goat, or chickens, and minor land disputes between neighbors. By its nature, a Gacaca trial does not require judges and jurors to have law school training and degrees, only common sense. Conversely, the crime of genocide is so grave by nature that it cannot be tried in a Gacaca court, with semi-literate judges and jurors, and with no legal defense, without being diminished and debased.
The justice system in place wants detainees to admit to the crime of killing if they want to be freed. Then, they head to a local Gacaca court where they not only must confess (and explain) their crimes but also reveal and denounce other killers. Anything short of this is a half-confession and not acceptable, and the suspect must go back to jail. In other cases, witnesses are produced from the woodwork to incriminate suspects for crimes they never committed. Very clearly, there is an attempt here on the part of the RPF government to humiliate and exterminate an entire people. I, Paul Rusesabagina, personally know of specific cases where this has happened. The international community must condemn this abhorrent system and demand its immediate abolition.
In summary, here is the sad reality of Rwanda : The genocide and other crimes committed from October
1, 1990 to April 5, 1994, the genocide and other crimes committed from April 6, 1994 to July 4, 1994, and the genocide and other crimes committed from July 5, 1994 to present, were and are the result of a fierce confrontation between on one hand Hutu Extremist militias who hated minority Tutsis and wanted to eliminate them using machetes, spears, and clubs, grenades and machine guns, and on the other hand the RPF army which hated and still hates Hutus, and wanted and wants to kill them massively using machine guns, grenades, used up hoes, mass burial, incineration pyres, and organized disappearances. While the ringleaders of the first group have been arrested and prosecuted by the ICTR, the masterminds of the second group remain free and enjoy utmost impunity.
That is the core of the sad reality of the Rwandan tragedy, and until there is equitable justice to settle this fundamental issue, peace and reconciliation among Rwandans will remain elusive for many years to come.
Equitable justice is a necessary pre-condition to reconciliation. All peoples of the world, including
Rwandans, have an inalienable right to life, democracy and freedom. Any effort to reconcile the Rwandan population without a frank, honest, and sincere dialogue will produce the same result: inter-ethnic confrontations.
In the final analysis, the United Nations, the ICTR, and all of humanity, all of us have written our name
down in the history book of the Rwandan tragedy. Before colonization, Rwanda was divided between slave and master. After colonization, Rwanda became divided even more. From 1990 to present, divisions among Rwandans have reached unprecedented heights. Where is Rwanda headed as a society? Are we sure we have exhausted all our possibilities in bringing true peace and reconciliation to Rwanda, so that when all is said and done history will be kind to us?
VIII. DEFINITIONS
i) War Crimes
In the context of war, a war crime is a punishable offense under International Law, for violations of the
laws of war by any person or persons, military or civilian. Every violation of the law of war in an inter-state conflict is a war crime, while violations in internal conflicts are typically limited to the local jurisdiction. In essence, the term "war crime" represents the concept of an international jurisdiction as applicable to the
most severe crimes, in areas where government is dysfunctional and society is in a state of turmoil.
(Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
ii) Crimes against humanity
A crime against humanity is a term in international law that refers to acts of m urderous p ersecution or
any large scale atrocities against a body of people, as being the criminal offense above all others. Crimes
against humanity are considered similar to war crimes and share some similar characteristics, but they
differ in that crimes against humanity are usually targeted towards a particular group and need not occur in
a war context. (Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
iii) Crimes of Genocide
Genocide is defined by the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide
(CPPCG) Article 2 as "any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a
national, ethnic, racial or religious group, as such: Killing members of the group; Causing serious bodily or
mental harm to members of the group; Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to
bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; Imposing measures intended to prevent births
within the group; and forcibly transferring children of the group to another group." (Wikipedia, the free
encyclopedia)
IX. BIBLIOGRAPHIC AND OTHER RESOURCES
1. Amnesty International, Report, all years from 1990
2. Amnesty International, International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda- Trials and Tribulations, April
1998
3. Bugingo, Francois, La mission au Rwanda : Entretiens avec le general Guy
Toussignant, Liber, 1997
4. Gasana, K. James, Rwanda : Du parti-État à l’État-garnison, L’Harmattan, 2002
5. Guichaoua, André, Rwanda 1994 : Les politiques du génocide à Butare, Khartala, 2005
6. Honoré Ngbanda Nzambo, Crimes organisés en Afrique Centrale, Révélations
sur les réseaux rwandais et occidentaux, Duboiris, 2004
7. Le Centre International des Droits de la Personne et du Développement Démocratique (CIDPDD)
et l’Association Africaine pour la Défense des Droits de l’homme en RDC (ASADHO), Rapport
d’enquête de la commission internationale non-gouvernementale sur les violations des droits
humains en RDC (ex-Zaïre) 1996-1997, juin 1998
8. Linguyeneza, Venuste, Testimony on the 1994 Bishops’ Killing
9. Matata, Joseph, Report on ex-FAR officers in Rwanda, April 1999
10. Mbonimpa, Melchior, La « Pax Americana » en Afrique des Grands Lacs, Vents d’Ouest inc.,
2000
11. Morrill, Constance, Show Business and “Lawfare” in Rwanda: Twelve Years After the Genocide,
Summer 2006
12. Nduwayo, Leonard, Giti et le genocide rwandais, L’Harmattan, 2002
13. Ntibazonkiza, Raphael, Biographie du Président Melchior Ndadaye, Sofia, Bulgarian Helsinki
Committee, 1996
14. Onana, Charles et Mushayidi, Déo, Les secrets du génocide rwandais, Duboiris, 2002
15. Onana, Charles, Les secrets de la justice internationale : Enquêtes truquées sur le génocide
rwandais, Duboiris, 2005
16. Onana, Charles, Silence sur un attentat, Le scandale du génocide rwandais, Duboiris, 2003
17. Péan, Pierre, Noires fureurs, blancs menteurs : Rwanda 1990-1994, Mille et une nuits, 2005
18. Philpot, Robin, Ça ne s’est pas passé comme ça à Kigali (Rwanda: Colonialism Dies Hard), Les
intouchables, 2003
19. Reyntjens, Filip and Desouter, Serge, Rwanda, les violations des droits
de l’homme par le FPR/APR. Plaidoyer pour une enquête approfondie, Working
Paper, 1995
20. Ruzibiza, J. Abdul , Rwanda, l’histoire secrète, éditions Panama, 2005
21. Ruzibiza, J. Abdul, Testimony of Abdul Ruzibiza, March 14, 2004
22. Thierry Cruvellier, Le tribunal des vaincus, Un Nuremberg pour le Rwanda?, Calmann-Lévy,
2006
23. Umutesi, Marie Béatrice, Fuir ou Mourir au Zaire : Le vécu d’une réfugiée Rwandaise,
L’Harmattan, 2000
24. United Nations, The United Nations and Rwanda, 1993-1996
25. http://r94.org
The end---
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