A new bill that the Government has tabled before Parliament seeks among other things to bolster the ability of the National Commission for the Fight against Genocide (CNLG) abroad.

Soline Nyirahabimana, the State Minister in charge of Constitutional and Legal Affairs at the Ministry of Justice made the observation while presenting the relevance of the draft law governing CNLG before the plenary of the members of the Chamber of Deputies.

The Chamber of Deputies approved the relevance of the bill on Monday, July 20, 2020, and it will be scrutinized by a responsible parliamentary committee before it is voted into law.

Nyirahabimana told lawmakers that after 13 years since the enactment of the current law governing CNLG [in 2007], some of its provisions should be amended in order to match the national policy on the fight against the genocide and its ideology.

The proposed provisions of the new draft law include that the organisational structure of CNLG will have a commissioners’ council comprising seven members, and the bureau.

The bureau, Nyirahabimana said, will be composed of a chairperson and a vice-chairperson who serve on a permanent basis – over a five-year-term renewable once, and a director in charge of corporate affairs, who will also be its Chief Budget Manager.

A visitor looks different names of victims of the Genocide against the Tutsi  during his tour at Kigali Genocide Memorial ./ Sam Ngendahimana

She pointed out that the two leaders will mainly be responsible for dealing with genocide propaganda and genocide fugitives abroad.

The director, who Nyirahabimana said will be on the level of a director-general in the civil service statute, will assume responsibilities similar to those that have been assigned to the Executive Secretary, a position which the new bill seeks to remove.

This, she said, will enable CNLG to enhance its performance.

At present, the executive secretary of CNLG – who is its current top official – is carrying out everyday duties including staff and asset management which is taking up [much of the] time he needs to focus on the responsibilities for which the Commission was established, explained Nyirahabimana.

"We looked at ways to give CNLG an organisational structure that enables it to be somewhat aggressive abroad through working with Rwanda’s embassies, and other organisations with similar responsibilities so that we strongly deal with the genocide fugitives who attempt to evade justice and those who deny and trivilise the the Genocide,” she said.

"Therefore, we found it better to provide CNLG with two senior officials who are experienced and have a political mandate such that they can assume such responsibilities in the region  and worldwide,” she said.

In the National Strategy for Transformation (NST1), Nyirahabimana observed, government made a committed to make more efforts towards the fight against genocide ideology both in Rwanda and elsewhere in the world.

NST1 is a seven year development roadmap that runs from 2017 to 2024.

This pledge, she said, has to be achieved through furthering good relations based on diplomacy between Rwanda and countries in regional as well as across the world,  and to scale up anti-genocide campaign efforts.

MP Begumisa Safari said that the bill was important especially as it would reinforce CNLG‘s work abroad in lie with tackling the denial and trivilisation of the genocide against the Tutsi which is being identified across the world.

"We should endorse this draft law so that we give powers to CNLG to tackle genocide abroad and better explain [genocide-related] issues.  

"I think that it is the propagandas by the people who committed the Genocide which is changing the understanding of the genocide against the Tutsi. CNLG should be helping us to make things clear through countering those who have the propaganda to trivilise the Genocide,” he said.

MP Euthalie Nyirabega said that there should be an independent board of directors that could hold the Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson of the Bureau accountable.

"What can happen if the Chairperson misuses his powers yet he/she has an upper hand on the commissioners and other workers of the Commission? In fact, that implies a lack of checks and balance,” she said.  

Following the discussions, lawmakers in the Chamber of Deputies unanimously approved the relevance of the bill