A Candle For Remembering
May this memorial candle lights up the historical past of our beloved Country: Rwanda, We love U so much. If Tears could build a stairway. And memories were a lane. I would walk right up to heaven. To bring you home again. No farewell words were spoken. No time to say goodbye. You were gone before I knew it And. Only Paul Kagame knows why. My heart still aches with sadness. And secret tears still flow. What It meant to lose you. No one will ever know.
Why did Kagame this to me?
Can't forget. He murdered my mother. What should be my reaction? FYI: the number of orphans in Rwanda has skyrocketed since the 1990's Kagame's invasion. Much higher numbers of orphans had and have no other option but joining FDLR fighters who are identified as children that have Lost their Parents in Kagame's Wars inside and outside of Rwanda.If someone killed your child/spouse/parent(s) would you seek justice or revenge? Deep insight: What would you do to the person who snuffed the life of someone I love beyond reason? Forgiving would bring me no solace. If you take what really matters to me, I will show you what really matters. NITUTIRWANAHO TUZASHIRA. IGIHE KIRAGEZE.If democracy is to sell one's motherland(Africa), for some zionits support, then I prefer the person who is ready to give all his live for his motherland. Viva President Putin!!!
RPF committed the unspeakable
The perverted RPF committed the UNSPEAKABLE.Two orphans, both against the Nazi world. Point is the fact that their parents' murder Kagame & his RPF held no shock in the Western world. Up to now, the Rwandan Hitler Kagame and his death squads still enjoy impunity inside and outside of Rwanda. What goes through someone's mind as they know RPF murdered their parents? A delayed punishment is actually an encouragement to crime, In Praise of the ongoing Bloodshed in Rwanda. “I always think I am a pro-peace person but if someone harmed someone near and dear to me, I don't think I could be so peaceful. I would like to believe that to seek justice could save millions of people living the African Great Lakes Region - I would devote myself to bringing the 'perp' along to a non-happy ending but would that be enough? You'd have to be in the situation I suppose before you could actually know how you would feel or what you would do”. Jean-Christophe Nizeyimana, Libre Penseur
Hutu Children & their Mums
Look at them ! How they are scared to death. Many Rwandan Hutu and Tutsi, Foreign human rights advocates, jounalists and and lawyers are now on Death Row Waiting to be murdered by Kagame and his RPF death squads. Be the last to know.
Almighty God :Justice for US
Hutu children's daily bread: Intimidation, Slavery, Sex abuses led by RPF criminals and Kagame, DMI: Every single day, there are more assassinations, imprisonment, brainwashing & disappearances. Do they have any chance to end this awful life?
Killing Hutus on daily basis
RPF targeted killings, very often in public areas. Killing Hutus on daily basis by Kagame's murderers and the RPF infamous death squads known as the "UNKNOWN WRONGDOERS"
RPF Trade Mark: Akandoya
Rape, torture and assassination and unslaving of hutu women. Genderside: Rape has always been used by kagame's RPF as a Weapon of War, the killings of Hutu women with the help of Local Defense Forces, DMI and the RPF military
The Torture in Rwanda flourishes
How torture flourishes across Rwanda despite extensive global monitoring
Fighting For Our Freedom?
We need Freedom, Liberation of our fatherland, Human rights respect, Mutual respect between the Hutu majority and the Tutsi minority
Thursday, March 28, 2013
The
candle burns not for us, but for all those whom we failed to
rescue from Kagame’s prisons and assassinations -
The sad truth is that most evil is done by people who never
make up their minds to be either good or evil.
-- Hannah Arendt
-- Hannah Arendt
Rwanda: Justice in jeopardy: The first instance trial of Victoire Ingabire
Rwanda
The arrest of opposition politician
Victoire Ingabire after her return to Rwanda to contest the 2010 elections
attracted widespread international attention. The criminal trial, one of the
longest in Rwandan history, is both politically and legally important, as a
test of the Rwandan judiciary’s capacity to deal with high-profile political
cases fairly and independently. Victoire Ingabire was convicted and sentenced
to eight years in prison; she has appealed to the Supreme Court. Amnesty
international is urging the Rwandan authorities to ensure that her appeal meets
standards under Rwandan and international law.
This document is also available in:
French:We can notask for Civil and political Rights Respect in Rwanda while there is no respectfor Human rights, the basis for achieving the MDGs
The Truth can be buried and stomped into the ground where none can see, yet eventually it will, like a seed, break through the surface once again far more potent than ever, and Nothing can stop it. Truth can be suppressed for a "time", yet It cannot be destroyed. ==> Wolverine
Monday, March 25, 2013
[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]
Rwanda: Opposition leader’s right to a fair trial in jeopardy
Rwandan opposition leader Victoire Ingabire must be allowed an appeal that meets international fair trial standards after being convicted and sentenced to eight years’ imprisonment in October 2012, said Amnesty International in a new report released today.
The appeal, due to open today, must rectify a number of problems which occurred in the trial, as documented in “Justice in Jeopardy: The first instance trial of Victoire Ingabire.”
“Victoire Ingabire’s initial trial was flawed and international standards were flouted,” said Sarah Jackson, Acting Deputy Director of the Africa Programme.
Ingabire, President of the United Democratic Forces - Inkingi (FDU-Inkingi) was convicted and sentenced to eight years in prison on 30 October 2012, on charges of conspiracy to harm the authorities using terrorism and minimizing the 1994 genocide.
From the start of investigations, President Paul Kagame made public statements in the media and through Twitter on Ingabire’s alleged culpability which were at odds with her right to the presumption of innocence.
The terrorism charges were based in large part on confessions that came after a period of military detention in Camp Kami where torture is alleged to be used and the court did not effectively investigate this.
“Amnesty International has documented allegations of torture and ill-treatment of individuals in Camp Kami. The fact that at least two men tried alongside Victoire Ingabire were detained there for months before incriminating her is cause for serious concern and needs to be looked into.”
Amnesty International observed most of the trial from September 2011 to April 2012 and recorded numerous instances where Ingabire was treated unfairly.
The judges appeared confrontational towards the defence and the defendant was regularly interrupted or reprimanded by the judges. Evidence put forward by the defence and the prosecution was treated differently: the defence's evidence was repeatedly called into question, whereas basic questions in relation to the prosecution's evidence were not asked.
The speech-related charges at the start of the trial were based on vague and imprecise laws punishing “genocide ideology” and “discrimination and sectarianism” and the defence would have found it difficult to decipher how her conduct was criminal.
These laws were introduced to restrict speech that could promote hatred in the years following the 1994 genocide. However, the vague wording of these laws has been misused to criminalize freedom of expression and dissent.
“Looking at the evidence in the trial, Amnesty International cannot see how Victoire Ingabire intended to incite ethnic hatred or violence,” said Jackson.
“The government has pledged to revise the “genocide ideology” law in line with Rwanda’s obligations under international law,” added Jackson. “Following through on this would be a positive move.”
The judicial authorities must now provide Ingabire with an appeal trial which complies with international fair trial standards.
“Critics of the Rwandan authorities have been harassed, intimidated and imprisoned. A fair appeal will show that political trials will be dealt with independently,” concluded Jackson.
Background
“Justice in Jeopardy: The first instance trial of Victoire Ingabire” focuses on the fairness of the proceedings and the court’s capacity to try the case in line with international standards. The organization has not taken a position on Ingabire’s culpability.
Ingabire, President of the United Democratic Forces (FDU-Inkingi), came to Rwanda in January 2010 to participate in the 2010 presidential elections.
Ingabire was brought to trial with Vital Uwumuremyi, Tharcisse Nditurende, Noel Habiyaremye and Jean Marie Vianney Karuta, all former members of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), an armed group operating in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The prosecution alleged that she conspired with them to form an armed group called the Coalition of Democratic Forces (CDF) whose objective was to destabilize Rwanda. All four co-accused pleaded guilty, made confessions and sought leniency from the court.
ENDS
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AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL COMMUNIQUÉ DE PRESSE
Victoire Ingabire, dirigeante de l’opposition rwandaise, doit pouvoir bénéficier d’une procédure d’appel conforme aux normes internationales en matière d'équité des procès, après avoir été déclarée coupable et condamnée à une peine de huit ans d’emprisonnement en octobre 2012, écrit Amnesty International dans un nouveau rapport rendu public lundi 25 mars.
Son procès en appel, qui doit s'ouvrir le 25 mars, doit remédier à un certain nombre de problèmes ayant émaillé la procédure initiale, ainsi que l’explique le rapport intitulé Rwanda. La justice mise à mal : le procès en première instance de Victoire Ingabire.
« Le procès en première instance de Victoire Ingabire a été entaché d’irrégularités, et les normes internationales ont été bafouées », a déclaré Sarah Jackson, directrice adjointe par intérim du programme Afrique d’Amnesty International.
Victoire Ingabire, présidente des Forces démocratiques unifiées-Inkingi (FDU-Inkingi), a été déclarée coupable de conspiration contre les autorités par le terrorisme et de minimisation du génocide de 1994, puis condamnée à huit ans d’emprisonnement le 30 octobre 2012.
Depuis le début de l’enquête, Paul Kagame, le président rwandais, a fait des déclarations dans les médias et sur Twitter sur la culpabilité présumée de Victoire Ingabire, qui étaient contraires au droit de celle-ci à la présomption d’innocence.
Les accusations de terrorisme s’appuyaient en grande partie sur des aveux obtenus à la suite d’une période de détention sous la responsabilité de l’armée, à Camp Kami, où la torture serait employée. Le tribunal n’a pas suffisamment enquêté cet aspect du procès.
« Amnesty International a recueilli des informations selon lesquelles des détenus ont été soumis à la torture et à d’autres formes de mauvais traitements à Camp Kami. Le fait qu’au moins deux hommes jugés en même temps que Victoire Ingabire y aient été incarcérés pendant des mois avant de l’incriminer nous inspire de graves inquiétudes et doit donner lieu à une enquête. »
Amnesty International a observé le procès dans sa quasi-totalité, de septembre 2011 à avril 2012, et a constaté que Victoire Ingabire a été traitée de manière injuste à de nombreuses reprises.
Les juges paraissaient chercher la confrontation avec la défense, et l’accusée était régulièrement interrompue ou réprimandée par les magistrats. Les éléments de preuve étaient traités différemment selon qu’ils étaient produits par la défense ou le parquet : ceux qui étaient présentés par la défense étaient remis en cause de façon répétée, tandis que des questions fondamentales en rapport avec les informations fournies par le parquet n'étaient pas posées.
D’autres faits reprochés à Victoire Ingabire au début du procès, ceux concernant ses propos, se fondaient sur des lois vagues et imprécises sanctionnant l'« idéologie du génocide » et la « discrimination et le sectarisme », et la défense aurait eu des difficultés à déterminer en quoi son comportement constituait une infraction.
Ces lois ont été adoptées afin de faire barrage aux discours incitant à la haine au cours des années qui ont suivi le génocide de 1994. La formulation vague de ces textes a cependant été utilisée à mauvais escient afin d’ériger en infraction la liberté d’opinion et l’opposition.
« Après avoir examiné les éléments de preuve produits lors du procès, Amnesty International ne voit pas ce qui prête à penser que Victoire Ingabire avait l'intention d’inciter à la violence ou à la haine à l'égard d'une ethnie », a ajouté Sarah Jackson.
« Le gouvernement s’est engagé à réviser la loi sur l'« idéologie du génocide» afin de la mettre en conformité avec les obligations du Rwanda aux termes du droit international », a-t-elle poursuivi. « Tenir cette promesse serait une initiative bienvenue. »
Les autorités judiciaires doivent désormais garantir que Victoire Ingabire bénéficie d’une procédure d’appel qui respecte les normes internationales en matière d'équité des procès.
« Des opposants aux autorités rwandaises ont fait l’objet de manœuvres de harcèlement et d'intimidation, ou ont été placés en détention. Une procédure d'appel équitable montrerait que les procès politiques sont traités de manière indépendante », a conclu Sarah Jackson.
Complément d'information
Intitulé Rwanda. La justice mise à mal : le procès en première instance de Victoire Ingabire, ce rapport porte sur l’équité de la procédure et sur la capacité du tribunal à juger l’affaire dans le respect des normes internationales. L’organisation ne prend pas position sur la culpabilité éventuelle de Victoire Ingabire.
Victoire Ingabire, présidente des Forces démocratiques unifiées-Inkingi (FDU-Inkingi), est arrivée au Rwanda en janvier 2010 pour participer à l'élection présidentielle de 2010.
Elle a été déférée à la justice aux côtés de Vital Uwumuremyi, Tharcisse Nditurende, Noel Habiyaremye et Jean-Marie Vianney Karuta, tous anciens membres des Forces démocratiques de libération du Rwanda (FDLR), un groupe armé actif dans l’est de la République démocratique du Congo. Le parquet a affirmé qu’elle avait conspiré avec ces hommes dans le but de former un groupe armé, la Coalition des forces démocratiques (CDF), dont la mission consistait à déstabiliser le Rwanda. Les quatre coaccusés ont tous plaidé coupable, fait des aveux et sollicité la clémence du tribunal.
FIN
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Working to protect human rights worldwide
The Truth can be buried and stomped into the ground where none can see, yet eventually it will, like a seed, break through the surface once again far more potent than ever, and Nothing can stop it. Truth can be suppressed for a "time", yet It cannot be destroyed. ==> Wolverine
Saturday, March 23, 2013
Denying the obvious never works
THE PROBLEM IS NOT JUST GENERAL NTAGANDA , MORE IMPORTANTLY IT’S HIS SPONSORS INSIDE RWANDA
1. General Ntaganda must not become the tree that hides the forest. Yes, he is a suspect in the mass crimes committed in eastern DRC and appears ready to testify at the ICC, but his Rwandan bankrollers, who are heavily implicated in the DRC tragedy, cannot be allowed to enjoy continued impunity. The fact that Ntaganda chose to “flee” to Rwanda when he could as easily have gone to Burundi, Uganda, Tanzania, or surrendered to the MONUSCO or DRC authorities, removes any doubt thatRwanda is indeed his real sponsor, despite a gazillion denials from Kigali. However, something must’ve gone terribly wrong inside Rwandan borders to force Ntaganda to check himself in at the US Embassy - and we may never know exactly what happened. Nonetheless, Rwanda’s assertion that his whereabouts were unknown from the time he left his base in eastern DRC, and the suggestion that a General with an army can slip into Rwanda without being detected by “Special Forces” and ubiquitous security forces is hard to believe.The reported dramatic surrender in the morning of Monday March 18, 2013 at the US Embassy in Kigali of ICC wanted General Bosco Ntaganda was greeted with a general “sense of relief” worldwide. For us, however, there is a sense of heightened and perplexed apprehension as to what’s coming next in this unending saga involving Rwandan warlords and their linchpins in the criminal devastation of eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Indeed, it’s hard to decide whether to smile or cry, because as welcome as it is, the surrender does not remove the fact that General Bosco Ntaganda “The Terminator” and his Rwandan sponsors have killed so many millions of innocent people in Rwanda and DRC and have not been prosecuted. In view of this sudden development, the PDR-Ihumure would like to bring the following observations to the attention of the international community:
Bosco Ntaganda was born in 1973 in Kinigi, Rwanda
Encouraging children to have been or being involved in military operations in DRC, General Kagame argues that the ICC is biased against African leaders, and that it jeopardizes national sovereignty through falsely claiming to be apolitical.2. Despite Ntaganda’s sudden surrender, one fundamental question remains: what’s the Rwandan regime going to do next? It still has control over Ntaganda’s army that crossed into Rwanda with him, it is sheltering some of the M23 army top brass and political leadership that crossed into Rwanda and have been taken to “safe locations” or “under treatment in a hospital”, and it still harbors General Laurent Nkunda and Colonel Jules Mutebutsi of a few years ago. None of these individuals have surrendered along with Ntaganda at the US Embassy, nor have any of them been handed over to the DRC authorities. What is the RPF regime going to do with them? The likely scenario seems to be that they will be sent back into DRC as a re-branded new rebel group to continue the killing and raping of innocent villagers and pillaging of mineral resources.3. In the meantime, Ntaganda’s surrender is making the RPF regime behave like it has something to hide, and in the process exposing its propensity for arrogance. The regime’s apparent refusal to cooperate in facilitating Ntaganda’s transfer to the ICC and Rwandan Foreign Minister’s firm stance that such a transfer “is a matter for the United States who are holding the suspect, the DR Congo -- the country whose nationality the suspect holds -- and the ICC, by whom the suspect is wanted” is stunning, coming from a country that is supposed to be a close US ally. Equally stunning is Rwanda’s thinly veiled threat that it cannot guarantee the security of Ntaganda’s transfer from the US Embassy to the Airport in Kigali. The biggest favor the US government can do Rwandans, Congolese, and the entire international community is to put Rwanda squarely in front of its responsibilities. At the same time, while clearly engaged in helping to bring out the truth and putting an end to the tragedy in eastern DRC, the US government can choose to continue to work with a badly damaged RPF regime that is ready to resort to blackmail and brinkmanship, or work with new, clean and capable leaders in Rwanda who can build a powerful and lasting partnership based on mutual respect and comprehensive political and economic interests of both countries.
4. The PDR-Ihumure has always maintained that the undeniable immediate cause of conflict and tragedy in Rwanda and the Great Lakes Region of Africa is none other than Rwandan President Kagame and his ruthless RPF regime in Kigali. As long as the RPF regime is in power in Rwanda, there will never be peace in the region, and there will never be democracy in Rwanda. We call upon the international community to withhold aid assistance to Rwanda as a way to end crime and impunity in the Great Lakes region of Africa, and to set in motion instruments of international justice for the overdue prosecution of all people suspected of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide in the Great Lakes Region of Africa as documented in the UN Mapping Report of 201o and the UN Expert Report on M23 of June 2012. We also urge our brothers and sisters in the Rwandan political opposition to join forces with us for democratic change in Rwanda and a final and peaceful end to the tragedy in the Great Lakes Region of Africa.For the PDR-IhumurePio NgilikExecutive SecretaryWashington, DC
Thursday, March 21, 2013
[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]
The Tulikunkiko tell a sad story of their life and broken dreams -- how they became Russian farmers and why they cannot return to their homeland Rwanda.
François Turikunkiko became a farmer in the countryside of Russia. He cannot go back to his country of origine, Rwanda, because, those who mass-slaughtered his family and relatives still are on power: General Paul Kagame and RPF. When he graduated in Medicine faculty, he had no choice but stay in Russia. As he kn ew what happened to his parents: they got assassinated on orders of Kagame during his visit to the region. François and his wife remember their fast friends, fraternity brothers, and ultimately University roommates who were savagely assassinated by RPF soldiers. Torture and extrajudicial or summary executions are "monnaie courante" in Rwanda, but nobody fears to talk about it. That remember him the dark period of Stalin in the Soviet Union.
The Truth can be buried and stomped into the ground where none can see, yet eventually it will, like a seed, break through the surface once again far more potent than ever, and Nothing can stop it. Truth can be suppressed for a "time", yet It cannot be destroyed. ==> Wolverine
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
[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]
ICC officials en route to collect DR Congo warlord: US
International Criminal Court officials are travelling to Rwanda to collect Congolese warlord Bosco Ntaganda, who is holed up in the US embassy there, a top American diplomat said Wednesday.
Ntaganda surprised US embassy staff in Kigali on Monday when he walked in off the street and asked for help in reaching the ICC in The Hague, where he is wanted on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
"Officials from the ICC are, as we speak, en route to Kigali," the top US diplomat forAfrica, Johnnie Carson, told reporters on Wednesday.
"The timeline is uncertain but the need for rapid and quick action is clear," Carson added, speaking on a conference call from Washington.
"The next 48 hours or so will be critical in all this," he added.
Carson, Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, said that Ntaganda "voluntarily walked in" to the embassy, but had no clear answer as to why he chose a United States diplomatic mission for his surrender.
"I suspect that he may have come because he knows that we are a symbol of fairness and justice and integrity in this kind of process... but I don't know and can't read his mind," he added.
Carson also appealed to Rwanda to allow Ntaganda free passage to the airport in Kigali on his way to trial "without interference".
Carson said there had been "very open and good contact" with Rwandan officials, who have given assurances they will allow Ntaganda to go to The Hague. But he also said the "realities in practical terms" of how Ntaganda would travel to the airport were still to be ironed out.
Ntaganda was allegedly involved in the brutal murder of at least 800 people in villages in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, using child soldiers in his rebel army and keeping women as sex slaves between September 2002 and September 2003.
Carson said bringing Ntaganda to The Hague would send a "clear signal" to other rebel leaders and be a step towards improving the situation in DR Congo's volatile east.
"It will take off the battlefield one of the most notorious rebel leaders, a man dubbed by the media 'The Terminator'," Carson said.
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
Amnesty International
The US State Department confirmed that Bosco Ntaganda – who heads a faction of the M23 armed group - arrived at the US Embassy in the Rwandan capital, Kigali, on 18 March 2013 and requested to be transferred to The Hague. The US pledged to facilitate this request.
Amnesty International is calling on the US and Rwandan authorities to ensure that Bosco Ntaganda’s rights are protected pending his transfer to the ICC, where he can face a fair trial with full respect for his rights. “Surrendering Bosco Ntaganda to the ICC should act as a strong deterrent to others and help break persistent cycles of impunity that wrack eastern DRC,” said Sarah Jackson, Amnesty International’s Deputy Africa Director.
“Bosco Ntaganda is accused by the ICC of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity in Ituri, eastern DRC in 2002 and 2003. Crimes that caused untold suffering to the people of eastern DRC.”
Despite the ICC arrest warrant issued in 2006, Bosco Ntaganda was never arrested by the DRC or UN authorities. On the contrary, he was made a general in the Congolese army in January 2009, as part of a peace agreement integrating armed groups.
“For the last six years, victims have been waiting for his arrest and surrender to the ICC. It is important that this finally happens,” said Jackson.
Amnesty International is also calling on the Congolese authorities to apprehend Sylvestre Mudacumura, the military commander of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, so that he too is surrendered to the ICC.
“It is the obligation of every state to deny a safe haven to anyone suspected of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.” The ICC first issued an arrest warrant for Bosco Ntaganda in 2006 on allegations of recruiting children under 15 as soldiers into the Forces patriotiques pour la libération du Congo (FPLC) in Ituri between 2002 and 2003.
In July 2012, the ICC issued a second arrest warrant on allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including for murder, rape and sexual slavery, also alleged to have taken place in 2002 and 2003.
Bosco Ntaganda later led the Congrès National pour la Défense du Peuple (CNDP), whose members committed serious human rights abuses, including a massacre at Kiwanja, North Kivu, where more than 150 civilians were killed in November 2008.
Amnesty International is calling on the US and Rwandan authorities to ensure that Bosco Ntaganda’s rights are protected pending his transfer to the ICC, where he can face a fair trial with full respect for his rights. “Surrendering Bosco Ntaganda to the ICC should act as a strong deterrent to others and help break persistent cycles of impunity that wrack eastern DRC,” said Sarah Jackson, Amnesty International’s Deputy Africa Director.
“Bosco Ntaganda is accused by the ICC of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity in Ituri, eastern DRC in 2002 and 2003. Crimes that caused untold suffering to the people of eastern DRC.”
Despite the ICC arrest warrant issued in 2006, Bosco Ntaganda was never arrested by the DRC or UN authorities. On the contrary, he was made a general in the Congolese army in January 2009, as part of a peace agreement integrating armed groups.
“For the last six years, victims have been waiting for his arrest and surrender to the ICC. It is important that this finally happens,” said Jackson.
Amnesty International is also calling on the Congolese authorities to apprehend Sylvestre Mudacumura, the military commander of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, so that he too is surrendered to the ICC.
“It is the obligation of every state to deny a safe haven to anyone suspected of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.” The ICC first issued an arrest warrant for Bosco Ntaganda in 2006 on allegations of recruiting children under 15 as soldiers into the Forces patriotiques pour la libération du Congo (FPLC) in Ituri between 2002 and 2003.
In July 2012, the ICC issued a second arrest warrant on allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including for murder, rape and sexual slavery, also alleged to have taken place in 2002 and 2003.
Bosco Ntaganda later led the Congrès National pour la Défense du Peuple (CNDP), whose members committed serious human rights abuses, including a massacre at Kiwanja, North Kivu, where more than 150 civilians were killed in November 2008.
In April 2012, Bosco Ntaganda led a mutiny creating the M23 armed group whose fighters have committed numerous human rights abuses, including unlawful killings, forced recruitment of children and rape.
…………………………………………………………………………………………..
RDC. Bosco Ntaganda doit être livré à la CPI
Les États-Unis et le gouvernement rwandais doivent agir rapidement pour que Bosco Ntaganda soit livré en toute sécurité à la Cour pénale internationale (CPI), a déclaré Amnesty International.
Le Département d'État américain a confirmé que Bosco Ntaganda – le chef d'une faction du groupe armé M23 – était arrivé à l'ambassade américaine de Kigali, la capitale du Rwanda, le 18 mars 2013, et a demandé à être transféré à La Haye. Les États-Unis se sont engagés à faciliter cette demande.
Amnesty International appelle les autorités américaines et rwandaises à veiller à ce que les droits de Bosco Ntaganda soient protégés en attendant son transfert à la CPI, où il pourra bénéficier d'un procès équitable.
« Transférer Bosco Ntaganda à la CPI devrait agir comme un puissant moyen de dissuasion pour d'autres responsables d'atteintes aux droits humains, et aider à briser le cercle vicieux de l'impunité qui mine l'est de la RDC », a affirmé Sarah Jackson, vice-directrice d'Amnesty International pour l'Afrique.
« La CPI accuse Bosco Ntaganda d'avoir commis des crimes de guerre et des crimes contre l'humanité en Ituri, dans l'est de la RDC, en 2002 et 2003. Ces crimes ont causé des souffrances indicibles à la population ».
Malgré le mandat d'arrêt émis par la CPI en 2006, Bosco Ntaganda n'a jamais été appréhendé par les autorités de la RDC ou de l'ONU. Il a au contraire été nommé général dans l'armée congolaise en janvier 2009, dans le cadre d'un accord de paix auquel participaient des groupes armés.
« Depuis ces six dernières années, les victimes attendaient le jour de son arrestation et sa remise à la CPI. Il est important que ce jour arrive enfin », a ajouté Sarah Jackson.
Amnesty International appelle également les autorités congolaises à arrêter Sylvestre Mudacumura, le commandant des Forces démocratiques de libération du Rwanda, afin qu'il soit livré à la CPI.
« Tout État a pour devoir de refuser l'asile aux personnes soupçonnées de génocide, de crimes contre l'humanité et de crimes de guerre. »
La CPI a émis un premier mandat d'arrêt contre Bosco Ntaganda en 2006, sur la base d'allégations de recrutement d'enfants de moins de 15 ans comme soldats dans les Forces patriotiques pour la libération du Congo (FPLC), en Ituri, entre 2002 et 2003.
En juillet 2012, la CPI a délivré un second mandat d'arrêt lié à des allégations de crimes de guerre et de crimes contre l'humanité, notamment des meurtres, des viols et de l'esclavage sexuel, également survenus en 2002 et 2003, selon les sources.
Plus tard, Bosco Ntaganda a dirigé le Congrès national pour la défense du peuple (CNDP), dont les membres ont commis de graves violations des droits humains, notamment un massacre à Kiwanja (Nord-Kivu), où plus de 150 civils ont été tués en novembre 2008.
En avril 2012, Bosco Ntaganda a organisé une rébellion et créé le groupe armé M23, dont les combattants sont responsables de nombreux crimes, notamment des homicides illégaux, des recrutements forcés d'enfants et des viols.
end./
AI Index: PRE01/135/2013
http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/drc-bosco-ntaganda-must-be-surrendered-icc-2013-03-19
http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/drc-bosco-ntaganda-must-be-surrendered-icc-2013-03-19
Tom Gibson
Acting Researcher, Rwanda and Burundi
Acting Researcher, Rwanda and Burundi
International Secretariat, Amnesty International
1 Easton Street, London WC1X 0DW
Tel: +44 207 413 5615
E-mail: tgibson@amnesty.org
1 Easton Street, London WC1X 0DW
Tel: +44 207 413 5615
E-mail: tgibson@amnesty.org
The Truth can be buried and stomped into the ground where none can see, yet eventually it will, like a seed, break through the surface once again far more potent than ever, and Nothing can stop it. Truth can be suppressed for a "time", yet It cannot be destroyed. ==> Wolverine
Bosco Ntaganda has never been Congolese
- Ntaganda's surrender: Let's not forget a few things.
- Congolese warlord Bosco Ntaganda hands himself in in Rwanda
- Fugitive M23 leader Ntaganda surrenders
For years, the war-crimes fugitive known as “The Terminator” was so supremely confident that he played tennis at a luxury hotel near the Congo-Rwanda border, flaunting his freedom while United Nations peacekeepers drove past.
So it was perhaps in keeping with his
style that the fugitive, Bosco Ntaganda, chose the moment of his
surrender. Rather than suffering an undignified arrest, he walked
through the gates of the U.S. embassy in Rwanda’s capital on Monday,
announced his surrender and demanded to be taken to the International
Criminal Court in The Hague.Kigali - The Rwandan rebel Bosco Ntaganda, wanted by the International Criminal Court for a string of alleged atrocities, has surrendered to the US embassy in Kigali, US and Rwandan officials said Monday.
Ntaganda asked to be sent to the ICC, the world's
permanent independent war crimes court, said US State Department
spokeswoman Victoria Nuland.
"I can confirm that Bosco Ntaganda... walked into
the US embassy in Kigali this morning. He specifically asked to be
transferred to the ICC in The Hague," she told reporters in Washington.
Nuland's comments confirm an earlier statement by
Rwandan Foreign Minister Louise Mushikiwabo that the rebel general had
"presented himself" at the US embassy in Rwanda's capital.
Nuland said that Washington was in contact with the ICC and the Rwandan government, adding that the United States "strongly (supports) the ICC and their investigation on the atrocities committed in the DRC".
Nuland said that Washington was in contact with the ICC and the Rwandan government, adding that the United States "strongly (supports) the ICC and their investigation on the atrocities committed in the DRC".
DR Congo government spokesman Lambert Mende said
Sunday that Ntaganda had fled to neighbouring Rwanda, which has been
accused by Kinshasa and the United Nations of masterminding, arming and
even commanding M23 rebels in resource-rich east of the vast country.
Ntaganda, a former general nicknamed "The
Terminator" and widely seen as the instigator of the M23 group's
rebellion against Kinshasa last year, is wanted by the ICC on charges of
war crimes and crimes against humanity including rape, murder and
recruiting child soldiers.
Neither Rwanda nor the United States are
signatories to The Hague-based ICC's founding document, the Rome
Statute, and therefore would not be obliged to hand Ntaganda over to the
tribunal.
However, his presence in the embassy raises thorny diplomatic issues for both Washington and Kigali.
Kinshasa earlier demanded that Kigali refuse to give asylum to the Rwandan-born Ntaganda.
ICC spokesman Fadi el-Abdallah told AFP late Monday that the court was trying to confirm Ntaganda's surrender.
"If this information is confirmed, the court will
make the necessary arrangements for the transfer of Ntaganda to The
Hague," he said, adding that "nothing prevents a state which is not a
signatory of the Rome Statute from cooperating with the court on a
voluntary basis."
Fighting between the M23 -- mainly ethnic Tutsi
army mutineers -- and Congolese forces in the eastern province of North
Kivu has displaced 500,000 people since last May, according to the UN
refugee agency.
Over 25,000 Congolese fled to Rwanda, according to officials in Kigali.
Mushikiwabo on Sunday had scoffed at Kinshasa's claims that
Ntaganda had entered Rwanda, but said that 600 fighters from the M23 had
crossed into the country, including its former political leader
Jean-Marie Runiga.
Runiga -- seen as loyal to Ntaganda -- has been fighting rivals within the M23 under the group's military chief Sultani Makenga.
Kigali, which accuses Kinshasa of sheltering and
supporting Rwandan rebel groups thought to include perpetrators of the
1994 genocide, signed a deal aimed at ending the crisis along with other
regional countries last month.
The Truth can be buried and stomped into the ground where none can see, yet eventually it will, like a seed, break through the surface once again far more potent than ever, and Nothing can stop it. Truth can be suppressed for a "time", yet It cannot be destroyed. ==> Wolverine
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