Kigali ponders dragging France to court over genocide fugitives

There is no disclaimer for that. It is as true as it sounds—the government is mulling over the possibility of settling a deadlock with the French government through arbitration after the latter has continued to play blasé to pleas that fugitive genocide suspects in Paris be extradited to face justice in Kigali.Prosecutor General Martin Ngoga told The New Times during the week that following almost two decades of giving the French government the benefit of the doubt, it is now clear that the authorities are unwilling to deliver justice in genocide cases. Well, looks like ours is not a government of barking dogs, for the toothmarks are clearly visible for all to see. The bite is real. And Rwanda is as dicey as they come when it comes to the harrowing issue of paying for the crimes of that gory 1994 episode.And with France having the audacity to grant former First Lady, Agathe Kanziga Habyarimana, permanent residence well knowing she is wanted for trial; and the blocking of the extradition to Rwanda of Hyacinthe Rafiki Nsengiyumva, a former minister in the genocidal regime, it is apparent only a court of arbitration can do for now. Last week, a Paris court rejected the extradition to Rwanda of Vénuste Nyombayire, a former senior official with SOS, a child support NGO.These are times a genocide victim deep in a village here would wish turning Jack Bauer or Jason Statham from Hollywood to reality was possible so that those fugitive suspects can be forcibly extradited. You know, the National Public Prosecution Authority says France, a country which maintained close ties with the genocidal regime of Juvenal Habaryimana, is home to at least 21 indicted genocide fugitives. Several of these fugitives have previously been arrested on Rwanda’s request, only to be released shortly after.But sending Rwandan ‘commandos’ to foreign soil for ‘combat’ is not too impossible as the Rwanda Defence Forces this week dispatched troops to South Sudan for peacekeeping mission. Rwanda deployed three aviation units to the troubled Africa’s newest and just one-and-a-half-year-old country under the auspices of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS). The units that were seen off Thursday morning are composed of three helicopters with a crew of 18 personnel, including pilots, co-pilots and technicians.It is the first time that Rwanda is deploying aviation units to a UN peacekeeping mission. Part of the new deployment includes the ground equipment that travelled by road and have since arrived in the world’s youngest nation. Investments shoot upSure, it is time to wish our boys well. Let them excel on duty and show the world what we can do. That way, we might attract more investment, like double the monetary figure we yielded this year. Efforts by the government to ease doing business in Rwanda paid off this year with statistics from Rwanda Development Board (RDB) indicating a record US$ 1.1 billion worth of investment as of December 19.The RDB said this is the first time investments have hit the one billion dollar mark, despite the continued global economic uncertainties, rising way above the set target of $835 million. RDB chief Clare Akamanzi said the results demonstrate that the country’s business reforms have a significant impact, heralding a rapid economic transformation. Last year’s investments were worth $626 million. Statistics show the tourism sector attracted more investments (US$327 million) followed by energy and water, fetching US$165 million, while construction and real estate came third with US$156.5 million. Others were manufacturing, with US$150 million; US$137 million came from agriculture as the rest were got from mining, services, ICT and education.So with such a trend, there is a justification to toast a little, especially considering that news at the week also said China has pledged Yuan 220 million (about $35m) in grants and concessional loans to Rwanda. The grant include an interest-free loan of Yuan 120 million worth US $19 million in addition to two grants worth US $16 million. Chinese ambassador to Rwanda, Shu Zhan, said his country will continue to strengthen the relations between the two countries.With these developments and investments, there is a high chance of the job market getting more flexible. And like astrologers, the Rwanda Job Day, an initiative aimed at linking people with the various skills to prospective employers, is out and about as if they already smelt the scents of good things in offing. The initiative is primed to hold its second forum in Kigali on Friday.The forum is organised through a partnership between the Ministry of Public Service and Labour, and two organisations; Job in Rwanda and Awakening Abilities. According to Grace Nyinawumuntu, the event coordinator, during Rwanda Job Day, employers screen candidates for job openings and can introduce themselves as a desirable place to work, while job candidates gather career information. The investment mode we have been in aside, there is a political one; Rwandans anywhere in the world eligible to vote in next year’s parliamentary elections can register online to take part in the exercise, the National Electoral Commission (NEC) has said. The elections are slated for September next year, at the end of the five-year term of the current Chamber of Deputies.NEC president Kalisa Mbanda said online registration will help curb bureaucratic tendencies that characterised previous electoral processes, in some cases frustrating voters, especially those in the Diaspora.Mbanda said voters will be free to use either their mobile phones or computers to register and the information will be transmitted directly to the Commission’s website. Presently, NEC is developing the software that will run the system. The new arrangement will also facilitate the electoral observers to register online, he added. The election commission chief also said the same system will be used for the 2017 presidential elections. One question: Will ghost voters default our ambitious project? We can only hope the NEC knows what this means and has Plan B to kill the ghosts!We are in 2013, and it is blowing hot and cold. Make it feisty!