Munyagishari pinned on genocide in Gisenyi

Prosecutors have said that had it not been for the personal direct role of Bernard Munyagishari to prepare and incite militiamen, the Genocide against the Tutsi would not have been committed at the magnitude it did in Gisenyi, the present-day Rubavu District. Speaking in court Wednesday, John Bosco Mutangana, a national prosecutor, said that several witness accounts implicate Munyagishari, who was referred to Rwandan jurisdiction by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. He is being tried at the specialized chamber for international crimes at the High Court. According to Mutangana, Munyagishari organised or was part of several meetings, mostly held in Gisenyi town, where he openly incited the Hutu to kill their Tutsi neighbours and after these meetings Tutsi homes were indeed raided at the direct supervision of the accused. Prosecution said that Munyagishari, who was arrested in the DR Congo in 2011 at an arrest warrant issued by the ICTR, created five militia groups in Gisenyi town which he coordinated to launch attacks on Tutsi in different neighbourhoods. “Munyagishari was seen holding guns and wore military fatigues during the Genocide, yet he was a civilian. He moved about with other Interahamwe leaders like Omar Serushago and a one Captain Bizumuremyi, who was a military commander in Gisenyi,” he told court. Personal role Besides commandeering militiamen, Mutangana said, they have evidence to attest to Munyagishari’s personal direct role; where, armed, he attacked people’s homes and killed them using machetes. Some of the Genocide victims that Munyagishari is accused of killing include Biruru, Augustin Kalimunda, Munyampeta, Mukamudenge and Gasacye, who were attacked by Munyagishari himself at their respective homes, according to the prosecutor. However, the lawyers representing Munyagishari, Bruce Bikotwa, and Jeanne d’Arc Umutesi said they were concerned with the progress of the case, saying that they did not have enough time to prepare defence. They said they needed more resources to look for more defence witnesses. To this, the presiding judge, Alice Rulisa, said that enough time was allocated to them and that there should be no further delays. “You have been given enough time, of five months, to prepare your defence and no other time should be granted to you,” said. Prosecution, yesterday, concluded its arguments presenting evidence on the defendant’s role in the crime of rape during the Genocide. The defence will start presenting its arguments on April 11. editorial@newtimes.co.rw

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Munyagishari pinned on genocide in Gisenyi