Weekly review

100 more refugees return from DRCOne hundred refugees last week, returned to Rwanda from the Democratic Republic of Congo after 17 years in exile. The returnees said that they were happy to return and received a warm welcome, contraly to what they were told before returning. They claimed to have security fears as a result of the misinformation they received while in the in the DRC where they were told they would be killed if they returned. Their repatriation was facilitated by the United High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) offices both in Rwanda and DRC.UNHCR also provides food items such as flour, rice beans that lasts the return three months as they settle to prepare their farms. Over Rwf100bn spent on survivors welfare - PMPrime Minister Bernard Makuza announced that, since the establishment of the Fund for Genocide Survivors (FARG), the government has spent Rwf 110.8 billion towards the welfare of survivors. The Premier made the remarks while appearing before the Senate to answer questions related to what had, been accomplished to ensure the welfare of survivors, especially in providing them with decent housing. FARG was established in 1998 to improve the welfare of Genocide survivors by providing them with basic needs like shelter, healthcare, education and guide them towards self-sustainability. Rwamagana wages war on stray dogsRwamagana District authorities have expressed concern over the rising number of stray dogs in the area. They said the dogs usually appear at night in large numbers, and attack domestic animals, often killing them. Dr. Jean de Dieu Niyitanga, the district veterinary officer, said authorities have made a decision to cull up to 200 stray dogs. He cited a recent case where 27 sheep were killed by the dogs in Musha and Muyumbu sectors. He advised dog owners to vaccinate their pets and keep them in compounds. The official also claimed that Kigali residents had dumped most of the stray dogs in Rwamagana. Imbuto launches parents –adolescent forumImbuto foundation has launched a sensitization drive that aims at encouraging adolescents and parents to hold open talks on sexual and reproduction health. The drive organised by the foundation together with various community based organizations at the District level, hopes to improve the adolescent-parents communication, through a series of open debate forums themed “Imbuto zitoshye”. The sensitization also aims at promoting HIV prevention among youth aged between 15 to 24 in 12 Districts. Rwanda, South Sudan Police officers in joint trainingAbout 30 senior police officers from the Rwanda National Police (RNP) and the South Sudan Police Force, on Friday, started a two-week course that aims at further professionalising the forces of the two countries. The training was organised by RNP in conjunction with the British High Commission in Rwanda. Five South Sudanese officers are part of the training. The course is in line with the implementation of the resolutions adopted during the 13th Eastern Africa Police Chiefs Cooperation Organisation (EAPCCO) meeting in Kigali, which called for further training of forces to ably combat trans-border crimes. At the same meeting, all the 12-EAPCCO member states, agreed to help train the newly formed South Sudan police force. French court releases Genocide suspectHours after blocking the extradition, to Rwanda, of Agathe Kanziga Habyarimana, the French Appeals Court freed Hyacinthe Rafiki Nsengiyumva, the former Minister of Public Works, who like Mrs. Habyarimana, is wanted for Genocide crimes and crimes against humanity. Kanziga is the widow of former president Juvenal Habyarimana and one of the key members of the inner circle (Akazu) that was at the forefront of planning and supervising the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. Nsengiyumva, who has been in detention since August 9, was released under legal restrictions after being remanded for 51 days in Paris. Rwanda filed an extradition request for him in 2008 and another one last month. French Judge Edith Boizette, the same judge who ruled against Mrs. Habyarimana’s extradition, ruled that Nsengiyumva be released and the formal hearing of his case will resume on November 9. ICTR Appeals Court upholds Munyakazi, Setako convictionsThe Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), on Wednesday, confirmed the sentences of former businessman Yusuf Munyakazi and former Rwandan military officer, Lt Col Ephreim Setako. Setako and Munyakazi were convicted on 25 February and 30 June 2010, respectively, and sentenced to 25 years in prison each, by Trial Chamber I. The tribunal rejected appeals by the defence of the two convicts, which called for acquittal, and the prosecution, which wanted a heavier sentence of life imprisonment. The chamber dismissed Setako’s appeal in its entirety and affirmed his conviction for genocide, for ordering the killing of Tutsis at Mukamira Military Camp.The Appeals Court said the lower court had reasonably concluded that Munyakazi failed to provide notice of his alibi and found no error in the assessment of evidence. Rwandan refugees in Uganda urged to repatriate Ugandan State Minister in charge of Disaster Preparedness and Refugee Affairs, Musa Echweru, has noted that Rwanda has gained stability since 1994, adding that the country is now safe and all refugees ought to repatriate. The Minister made the remarks while speaking to journalists on the sidelines of the Ninth Tripartite meeting between Uganda, Rwanda and the UNHCR. The three parties discussed the return and reintegration of Rwandan refugees still residing in various parts of Uganda. Uganda is home to over 16,000 Rwandan refugees, mainly in the camps of Nakivale, Kiryandongo, Kyangwari and Kyaka, all in western Uganda and Oruchinga camp in the southern part. Others are within the Ugandan capital, Kampala. The clause, under the UNHCR system, stipulates that no Rwandan living abroad will qualify for refugee status after 31 December 2011. Ends