Video evidence pins Ingabire on Genocide ideology

On the fourth day into the second week of the trial involving Victoire Ingabire and her co-accused, prosecution presented to court video and audio material incriminating the opposition politician on the charge of Genocide ideology. Ingabire is on trial on six charges formation of an armed group, complicity to acts of terrorism, conspiracy against the government by use of war and terrorism, inciting the masses to revolt against the government, genocide ideology and provoking divisionism. In his presentation to the panel of judges led by Alice Rulisa, prosecutor Alphonse Hitiyaremye played a video of Ingabire’s press briefing at the Kigali Genocide Memorial. At the memorial, she said that only one side of genocide is depicted, clearly suggesting that there was double Genocide, prosecution averred. She said that the reconciliation process has a long way to go unless those who killed Hutus during the Genocide are punished. If you look at this memorial centre, it only shows one side of the Genocide committed against the Tutsi. There is another side of the Genocide committed against the Hutu because they are also in pain and asking themselves when their grievances will be settled, she is quoted as saying in the video. The utterances, according to prosecution, are tantamount to the Genocide ideology, a crime punishable under the Rwandan laws. “It is known internationally that the 1994 Genocide was against the Tutsi. For a person like Ingabire to suggest there was another genocide against the Hutu is clearly a way of confusing people; and it is against Rwandan laws,” said Hitiyaremye. The prosecuting attorney further said that in several broadcasts, Ingabire does not acknowledge the Genocide and calls it a conflict between two ethnicities, which was fuelled by a ‘meaningless war waged by the RPF.’ Another video recorded at the beginning of 2008 shows the defendant addressing FDU-Inkingi partisans in which she reportedly said that the Rwandan government was using the Genocide as a political tool to silence its opponents. Prosecution also played an audio in which Ingabire refers to the 1994 Genocide against Tutsi, “the Rwandan genocide”. She further says that she came to Rwanda to free the people from fear caused by the RPF government. She made the statements during an interview at Voice of Africa Kigali FM, a week after her arrival in Rwanda in January last year. Prosecution also alleges that another piece of evidence that incriminates Ingabire and her party regarding her views of the genocide ideology is that among the provisions for one to be registered as a member of FDU-Inkingi is to recognise that there was Genocide among both Tutsi and Hutu. Ends

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Video evidence pins Ingabire on Genocide ideology