Canadian court dismisses Genocide convict’s appeal

A Canadian appeals court yesterday upheld a guilty verdict against Désiré Munyaneza, a former commander of the Interahamwe militia. The appellant was in 2009 found guilty of playing a major role in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. The latest decision by Quebec’s Court of Appeal means Munyaneza will serve his life sentence, with a chance for parole only after he has spent 25 years behind bars for torturing and raping civilians, according to CTV Montreal. But considering time already served since his initial arrest in 2005, Munyaneza has only 15 more years to serve in prison, according to the report. The Head of the Genocide Fugitive Tracking Unit, Jean-Bosco Siboyintore, told The New Times that Rwanda still awaits an official communication from Canada about the development before they can comment on the verdict. No hiding place in Canada But the National Commission for the fight against Genocide (CNLG) welcomed the court’s decision to reject Munyaneza’s appeal. “It shows how serious his crimes are and how Canada is committed to help deliver justice for victims. Everyone knows what Munyaneza did and how his evil acts left permanent scars on many families in Rwanda,” Jean de Dieu Mucyo, the executive secretary of National Commission for the fight against Genocide, said. Munyaneza, a former resident of Butare prefecture in the present-day Southern Province, fled the country in the immediate aftermath of the Genocide and was arrested by Canadian authorities after arriving in the North American country on a fake Cameroonian passport. He has had a rollercoaster of days in court and became the first person to be convicted under Canada’s War Crimes Act. In January 2012, Canada deported Genocide fugitive Léon Mugesera to Rwanda after he had lost a last-minute court battle to stay in the country, bringing to end a case that spanned almost two decades.