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Rwandans mark 20th anniversary of genocide amid reminders that justice has yet to be done Rwandans mark 20th anniversary of genocide amid reminders that justice has yet to be done
(35 minutes later)
KIGALI, Rwanda — Inside two adjacent houses in an upscale area of Rwanda’s capital, the unfinished business of the country’s 1994 genocide unfolds. Members of the Genocide Fugitive Tracking Unit work from here to bring to trial dozens of key perpetrators who fled abroad after the killings, some of them to the United States — and 20 years later, there’s still no end in sight.KIGALI, Rwanda — Inside two adjacent houses in an upscale area of Rwanda’s capital, the unfinished business of the country’s 1994 genocide unfolds. Members of the Genocide Fugitive Tracking Unit work from here to bring to trial dozens of key perpetrators who fled abroad after the killings, some of them to the United States — and 20 years later, there’s still no end in sight.
“In our lifetime we shall continue to pursue them, and those who come after us will continue to pursue them,” said Jean Bosco Mutangana, a Rwandan prosecutor who oversees the endeavor as head of the government’s international crimes unit. “You cannot have reconciliation without real true justice being done.” “In our lifetime we shall continue to pursue them, and those who come after us will continue to pursue them,” said Jean Bosco Mutangana, a Rwandan prosecutor who oversees the endeavor as head of the government’s international crimes unit. “You cannot have reconciliation without real, true justice being done.”
On Monday, Rwanda launched a week of official mourning to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the massacres in which more than 800,000 people, mostly ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus, died at the hands of Hutu extremists. The events, marked by displays of intense grief, began with a wreath-laying ceremony at the Kigali Genocide Memorial Center. Later, at Kigali’s main stadium, a flame was lighted that will burn for 100 days — the length of the killing sprees.On Monday, Rwanda launched a week of official mourning to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the massacres in which more than 800,000 people, mostly ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus, died at the hands of Hutu extremists. The events, marked by displays of intense grief, began with a wreath-laying ceremony at the Kigali Genocide Memorial Center. Later, at Kigali’s main stadium, a flame was lighted that will burn for 100 days — the length of the killing sprees.
In the years since the genocide, this tiny East African nation has rebounded: Its economy is surging, poverty has declined, life expectancy has soared, and it has been commended for its ongoing effort to achieve social reconciliation. But it has failed to bring to justice those who led the massacres — a quest that has been likened here to the decades-long hunt for Nazi leaders who planned and carried out the Holocaust. Many Rwandans note that an international tribunal created to judge the high-level killers known as genocidaires has delivered only 29 convictions since it began its work in 1995. In the years since the genocide, this tiny East African nation has rebounded: Its economy is surging, poverty has declined, life expectancy has soared and it has been commended for its ongoing effort to achieve social reconciliation. But it has failed to bring to justice those who led the massacres — a quest that has been likened here to the decades-long hunt for the Nazi leaders who planned and carried out the Holocaust. Many Rwandans note that an international tribunal created to judge the high-level killers known as génocidaires has delivered only 29 convictions since it began its work in 1995.
“Justice hasn’t been adequate, especially at the international level,” said Honoré Gatera, manager of the memorial center. “It’s been really a huge failure, mainly for the survivors’ community in Rwanda, to see that after 20 years there are still genocidaires around the world when the court is there for the last 19 years.” “Justice hasn’t been adequate, especially at the international level,” said Honoré Gatera, manager of the memorial center. “It’s been really a huge failure, mainly for the survivors’ community in Rwanda, to see that after 20 years there are still génocidaires around the world when the court is there for the last 19 years.”
Monday’s ceremonies were full of reminders of this perception that the international community has failed Rwanda. A French representative was noticeably absent after Rwandan President Paul Kagame accused France of involvement in the genocide in an interview with Jeune Afrique, a French-language magazine, last week. France, which was a close ally of the Hutu-led government that was in place before the genocide, in turn accused Kagame of distorting history.Monday’s ceremonies were full of reminders of this perception that the international community has failed Rwanda. A French representative was noticeably absent after Rwandan President Paul Kagame accused France of involvement in the genocide in an interview with Jeune Afrique, a French-language magazine, last week. France, which was a close ally of the Hutu-led government that was in place before the genocide, in turn accused Kagame of distorting history.
In an address to visiting dignitaries and thousands of Rwandans, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon reiterated the United Nations’ remorse that its peacekeepers had failed to stop the genocide. “In Rwanda, troops were withdrawn when they were most needed,” Ban said.In an address to visiting dignitaries and thousands of Rwandans, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon reiterated the United Nations’ remorse that its peacekeepers had failed to stop the genocide. “In Rwanda, troops were withdrawn when they were most needed,” Ban said.
The killings were triggered on April 7, 1994, when a plane carrying Rwanda’s Hutu president, Juvenal Habyarimana, and Burundian President Cyprien Ntaryamira, also a Hutu, was shot down near Kigali’s airport. Within hours, Hutu militias began targeting Tutsis with machetes, clubs and guns. They ordered the country’s Hutu majority, through radio programs, to exterminate the Tutsi “cockroaches.” Neighbors attacked neighbors. Teachers killed students. In mixed-ethnicity marriages, husbands handed over wives to be killed. Even churches were not sanctuaries, as several Catholic nuns and priests ordered killings. The killings were triggered on April 7, 1994, when a plane carrying Rwanda’s Hutu president, Juvenal Habyarimana, and Burundi’s Hutu president, Cyprien Ntaryamira, was shot down near Kigali’s airport. Within hours, Hutu militias began targeting Tutsis with machetes, clubs and guns. They ordered the country’s Hutu majority, through radio programs, to exterminate the Tutsi “cockroaches.” Neighbors attacked neighbors. Teachers killed students. In mixed-ethnicity marriages, husbands handed over wives to be killed. Even churches were not sanctuaries, as several Catholic nuns and priests ordered killings.
Meanwhile, Western nations shied from intervention. Then-President Bill Clinton publicly apologized years later for the American inaction. On Monday, the U.S. delegation to the ceremonies was headed by U.N. Ambassador Samantha Power, who won a Pulitzer Prize for her book on U.S. failures to respond to genocides.Meanwhile, Western nations shied from intervention. Then-President Bill Clinton publicly apologized years later for the American inaction. On Monday, the U.S. delegation to the ceremonies was headed by U.N. Ambassador Samantha Power, who won a Pulitzer Prize for her book on U.S. failures to respond to genocides.
Along with the commendation for Rwanda’s recent progress, there has also been growing criticism of Kagame’s strong-man rule and the lack of freedoms in the country. Opponents of the government have been jailed or assassinated, and the United States and other Western powers have slashed development aid over Rwanda’s backing of rebels in neighboring Congo, which Kagame has denied.Along with the commendation for Rwanda’s recent progress, there has also been growing criticism of Kagame’s strong-man rule and the lack of freedoms in the country. Opponents of the government have been jailed or assassinated, and the United States and other Western powers have slashed development aid over Rwanda’s backing of rebels in neighboring Congo, which Kagame has denied.