29 December 2006

Genocidaires no longer in suburbia?

Genocidaires in suburbia Genocidaires still in suburbia also refer. Today’s Guardian reports that four Rwandans , including Charles Munyaneza and Celestin Ugirashebuja, have been arrested after Rwanda sought their extradition in connection with its 1994 genocide. The other men detained are Vincent Bajinya and Emmanuel Nteziryayo.

According to the provisional extradition warrant issued earlier this week, they are accused of killing and conspiring to kill groups of Tutsis "with the intent to destroy in whole or in part, that group" between January 1 and December 12 1994.

Munyaneza and Ugirashebuja, were town mayors in provinces of southern Rwanda where many killings took place. Mr Munyaneza is accused by prosecutors of playing a part in killings of Tutsis in Gikongoro, southern Rwanda. Prosecution witnesses claim he wore a military uniform, carried a gun, and visited roadblocks set up to catch Tutsis.

Human rights groups have expressed exasperation at the slow progress in bringing to justice Rwandan genocide suspects who have settled in Europe. When the Guardian revealed the whereabouts of Mr Munyaneza and Mr Ugirashebuja in May, they had yet to be contacted by the British authorities. Had they been investigated when they first arrived in the UK in 2000, the men could have been sent for trial to the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) in Tanzania. However, no further indictments are being issued by the tribunal.

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