Gov’t unhappy with West’s failure to arrest Genocide suspects

As the nation commemorates, for the 16th time, the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, many western countries are still reluctant to pursue Genocide suspects living in their countries. Augustin Nkusi, the Spokesperson of the National Public Prosecution Authority (NPPA), listed six known and already indicted suspects who still roam free in the USA. “We issued seven indictments for people who committed crimes here and fled to America, but only one, François Nambajimana was arrested,” said Nkusi. According to Nkusi, the list that was forwarded to the US action includes Oswald Rukemuye, Benoit Kabayiza, Leopold Munyakazi, Vincent Nzigiyimfura, and Michael Twagirayesu, former president of the Presbyterian Church and vice-president of the world council of churches in Rwanda. In its report; “Suspected War Criminals and Genocidaires in the UK: Proposal to strengthen our Laws”, a UK-based campaign organization, Aegis Trust, last year estimated that over 200,000 suspected perpetrators of the 1994 Genocide were believed to be freely moving in several parts of the world. Twagirayesu is alleged to have worked closely with killers in the Presbyterian stronghold of Kirinda, Kibuye, currently in the Western Province. Oswald Rukemuye supervised interahamwe militia as they slaughtered people in Kigali, while Benoit Kabayiza, who, like many others, has obtained US citizenship, is charged with Genocide related charges. Kabayiza’s charge sheet includes having stabbed to death an eight-year old child, as well as raping and brutally murdering female students at the National University of Rwanda, but he has been referred to as a ‘success story’ especially as a family man who arrived the US as a refugee a decade ago, not knowing a word of English, but later graduated from two colleges before becoming an accountant. Last year, human rights watchdog, Africa Rights, noted in a report that Vincent Nzigiyimfura, a key architect in the massacres in Nyanza town, was freely operating a business in Malawi, under the name Vincent Nzigiye before he fled to the US. Ends