Supreme Court signs deal for construction of international crimes chamber

The Supreme Court has signed a memorandum of understanding with Horizon Construction Company to build offices for the High Court Chamber of International Crimes (HCCIC). The building, worth Rwf2.315 billion, will be constructed in Nyanza District. The chamber has been hosted within the offices of the High Court in Kigali since its establishment in 2012. Speaking after the signing ceremony in Kigali, yesterday, Beth Murora, the secretary-general for the Supreme Court, said the building will help the chamber to meet international standards in terms of logistics. “The chamber will be equipped with all needed equipment to meet the standards we need as Rwandans but also those required internationally,” Murora said. “The chamber has been taking on Genocide cases at the High Court. As the chamber gets its permanent offices and enough equipment needed to try international crimes, this will ensure safety of their files and documents.” Murora said having the chamber closer to Mpanga Prison, where convincts of international crimes are incarcerated, will ease the process as everything will be handled in one district without necessarily having to visit Kigali as it used to be. The building, that will host both the High Court Chamber for International Crimes and the Nyanza High Court, is expected to be completed within a year. Construction of the building is to be jointly funded by the Government of Rwanda and the Netherlands. HCCIC was established in 2012 with the mandate to try persons accused of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity extradited from foreign countries and from the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.

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Supreme Court signs deal for construction of international crimes chamber