French judiciary should review the handling of genocide cases

Civil society and Human Rights groups have expressed dismay at the way the French judiciary has handled the case of genocide suspect Hyacincthe Rafiki Nsengiyumva.

Sunday, March 04, 2012

Civil society and Human Rights groups have expressed dismay at the way the French judiciary has handled the case of genocide suspect Hyacincthe Rafiki Nsengiyumva.This follows the mysterious disappearance, from French courts, of a case file for an extradition request from Rwanda. It is not the first case file to disappear in a similar manner according to rights groups.The indifference displayed by the French judicial system in regard to the disappearance is disturbing. It is expected that Genocide must always be handled in a more serious manner given the gravity the crimes Nsengiyumva and others of the kind are accused of.The disappearance of the file and similar incidences only serve to delay justice for the victims of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.Many people suspected of playing a leading role in the Genocide, have found shelter in France. Efforts to extradite them or have them conclusively tried in France have hit a dead end.The case of Agathe Kanziga that has dragged on endlessly is a case in point.It is becoming a pattern for cases of genocide suspects in France to hit a dead end or get derailed.A review of the manner in which these cases are handled, will serve to assure that no one in the French judiciary is complicit in these disturbing developments.