Mucyo Commission report out on Tuesday

KIGALI - The long awaited findings of the Mucyo Commission will be made public on Tuesday, August, 5, Sunday Times has learnt. The Commission headed by renowned legal expert, Jean de Dieu Mucyo, was established to discover the alleged complicity of the French government in the 100-day Rwandan Genocide. The Minister of Justice, Tharcisse Karugarama, confirmed the development yesterday. “The Cabinet directed the Minister of Justice to release the report not later than August 5,” Karugarama said in a telephone interview. Kigali has accused Paris of abetting the Genocide, but France has repeatedly denied having had a hand in the horrible slaughter. During its tenure, the Commission heard testimonies from witnesses who openly accused the French of complicity. Among those who testified were residents in the former provinces of Cyangugu, Gikongoro, Kibuye, Gisenyi and Ruhengeri where French established a buffer zone, dubbed “Operation Turquoise” at the height of the killings. Preliminary testimonies also indicated that French troops trained Rwandan Interahamwe militia two years prior to the Genocide. The militia and the former government soldiers (Ex-FAR) spearheaded the Genocide. The French army is said to have facilitated the mass murder of Tutsi civilians who had strongly resisted in Bisesero hills in the former Kibuye Province. Some witnesses testified that at least 50,000 people are reported to have perished in attacks by Interahamwe and the military after French forces asked them to come out of hiding, under the pretext that they had brought peace. Other witnesses claim that French soldiers were involved in supplying the genocidal regime with military equipment, supervising killings, raping Tutsi women and smuggling drugs. One witness, Orosi Ntisengwa, during the hearing described in detail how he witnessed the French supervise and take part in the killings and export Interahamwe militia to Goma Airport (DRC) in 1994 to load armaments that were later used in the massacres. Karugarama in the past had said the commission would make recommendations to the government, who in turn would decide whether or not to take legal action against France. Ends