Genocide suspect Mbarushimana asks for four months to prepare his defence

A key Genocide suspect extradited in 2014 from Denmark has asked for four months to be able to prepare his defence, after prosecution presented his indictment to the Special Chamber for International Crimes at the High Court. At a hearing held Wednesday, Emmanuel Mbarushimana, 52, outlined a number of requests to court, among them getting ample time to prepare for his defence and private investigators to assist him put together his case. Concerning private investigators, the prosecution team, led by John Bosco Mutangana, said these are not provided for under the Rwandan laws as any investigations can only be facilitated by the Police. Mutangana said some of the work, like looking for defence witnesses, can be done by the suspect’s lawyers. Mbarushimana was initially tried in absentia and convicted by a Gacaca court to 19 years in prison, but the sentence was quashed after he was extradited and the trial expected to start afresh. During the hearing, the suspect also accused lawyers assigned to him by Rwanda Bar Association, of being ineffective, and not punctual. But the judge said the two parties can sit and agree on a working arrangement to ensure he gets the defence to which he is legally entitled. Concerning his request for four months to be able to put together his case, the judge said he would pronounce himself on this on February 11, but prosecution had claimed this was a long period, given that the accused already had the indictment with him. Mutangana said two months would be the maximum time given but was quick to interject that this was at the discretion of the judge. Facts of the case Mbarushimana, who was a teacher at the primary school of Dahwe in the then Butare prefecture in 1994, is accused of genocide complicity in genocide, conspiracy to commit genocide, murder and extermination in the former Muganza Commune, currently in Southern Province. He is accused of instigating the establishment of two road blocks in the area where many people were killed. He is also said to have been among the leaders of the attack on Kabuye Hill, where thousands of Tutsi were killed between April 21 and 25, 1994. He was arrested in Denmark over similar charges but the Danish Supreme Court ruled that he could not be tried by the country’s courts of law, thereby heeding an extradition request that had earlier been filed by Rwanda. Mbarushimana was extradited in July 2014, after exhausting all avenues to block extradition efforts, including petitioning the European Court of Human and Peoples’ Rights, which ruled that there were all conditions necessary for him to get fair trial in Rwanda once extradited. editorial@newtimes.co.rw

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Genocide suspect Mbarushimana asks for four months to prepare his defence