Museminari raps French minister over comments

KIGALI - Foreign Affairs Minister, Rose Museminari, has challenged the French defence minister on his comments that the Mucyo commission report was ‘intolerable allegations’ against France. She added that bilateral relations should be based on truth. AFP reported that French Defence Minister Herve Morin had denounced the report on a Radio France International (RFI), calling the report ‘intolerable allegations’. Paris has acknowledged making mistakes in Rwanda but denies any responsibility for the genocide, according to AFP. “I still remember what the military did to save hundreds and thousands of human lives in abominable conditions,” Morin told French radio RFI. Museminari added that the French government should cooperate and let the officials who are alleged to have participated in 1994 Tutsi Genocide face justice. She pointed out that Rwanda was working hard in rebuilding its relations with France, “Our efforts to bring back bilateral relationships have never stopped. We have had talks but we still believe the two countries’ relationship should be built on truth,” Museminari said in a telephone interview yesterday. The report, released on Tuesday, names 13 senior politicians, including former French president Francois Mitterrand, and 20 military officials as responsible for the mastering the 1994 Tutsi Genocide. Rwanda’s Justice Minister and Attorney General, Tharcise Karugarama, called for thorough reading and proper examination of the Mucyo report, adding that it was full of evidence and facts that cannot be denied. Karugarama said that if they cannot look at all the elements that unearth France’s complicity in the 1994 Tutsi Genocide, then they have not given the report the value it deserves, and still want to hide the truth. “Hiding the truth will not take us anywhere. The truth will always win no matter how long it will take. If that minister has said it is an intolerable allegation, that would be anger because intolerance and anger go together,” Karugarama told The New Times on phone yesterday. Ends

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Museminari raps French minister over comments