Rwanda's High Commissioner to the UK, Johnston Busingye, has reiterated the call for trying or extraditing six Rwandan genocide fugitives who are still roaming in UK.
ALSO READ: Tracking genocide fugitives: why so few have been tried
The call was made as members of the Rwandan Community living in UK began the 31st commemoration of 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi under the theme: "Under the theme, Remember, Unite, Renew.”
"Allowing the survivors to see justice served during their lifetime is a big relief. Most countries in the West including USA, Canada, Germany, Netherlands, Denmark, France, Sweden with the exception of the UK, have deported, extradited or tried genocide suspects found on their territories. There are six known genocide fugitives in the UK, hosted by the British Government,” he said.
ALSO READ: Envoy admits wheels of UK justice turning slowly on Genocide fugitives
Celestin Mutabaruka, Dr Vincent Bajinya, Emmanuel Nteziryayo, Celestin Ugirashebuja, Charles Munyaneza are some of the Genocide fugitives who are known to live in the UK.
He said Rwanda engaged first on their extradition to Rwanda to stand trial.
The courts ruled that they had a case to answer but would not receive fair trials if extradited to Rwanda.
That phase took 10 years.
ALSO READ: France promises to try a genocide suspect every six months
"From 2018, we requested that they are tried in the United Kingdom courts. We continue to hope, as they grow older.”
According to the National Public Prosecution Authority (NPPA), out of the 1,147 indictments issued since 2007 and sent to 33 countries, a paltry 62 fugitives were apprehended and tried.
"So, 31 years after, what must we do? First, recall the commitment by the International Community, under the 1948 UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, to enact legislations that engage them in fighting genocide ideology, a commitment that was reiterated by the UN Security Council in its Resolution No. 2150 of April 16, 2014, requesting member states to judge or extradite genocide fugitives on their territories,” Busingye reminded.
ALSO READ: How has Europe fared in bringing to book Genocide fugitives?
Message to international community
He said genocide survivors’ testimonies should help the international audience to collectively realise that while the international community looked on, over a million innocent people were systematically murdered, in broad day light, because of who they were during Genocide.
ALSO READ: Where are the 1,100 Genocide fugitives?
"We remember the specific acts of failure. We remember that the UN Belgian contingent, which sheltered thousands of people for days, as their killers surrounded the place daily, and these people were assured of safety. We remember that one afternoon the entire contingent packed and abandoned those people, aware they had not a single chance of survival. Before the last vehicle was gone they were instantly rounded up, herded to a suitable spot and killed in the most gruesome ways,” he noted.
He reminded the day the UN Security Council resolved to scale down the United Nations Assistance Mission in Rwanda, from 2,165 to a mere 270, while the Generals on ground, Canadian Romeo Dallaire and Ghanaian Henry Anyidoho passionately appealed for increase in troops and a Chapter VII mandate.
"We remember that the USA would not jam the infamous ethnic extremist RTLM radio which was literally monitoring, evaluating and directing the killings. But we also remember that one soldier, Senegalese Captain Mbaye Diagne, refused to obey orders to withdraw and was able to save scores of people, until he paid with his life. Capt Mbaye reminds us that the genocide was stoppable, if the choice to stop it was made. Rwanda honours him eternally.”
He said people must remember, but remain vigilant against the re-emergence of genocide ideology in any form.
"It will not always be manifest; sometimes it hides in the subtleties of exclusion, rhetoric that seeks to divide, or policies whose implementation resurrects ethnic division. Our responsibility is to recognize these dangers and confront them before they escalate,” the Rwanda’s envoy said.
He called for sustaining Rwanda’s achievements and ensuring that history is not forgotten but teaches lessons.
Integrating genocide against Tutsi into academic curricula
Integrating lessons on the genocide against the Tutsi into the academic curricula in schools, according to Busingye, will educate people about what happened in 1994, equipping young minds with the tools to identify the stages of Genocide, to make never again a reality.
"Today, we identify as Rwandans, not by ethnicity because ethnicity was manipulated and weaponised to divide and disunite us and this led to our near total destruction.
Peace education and learning about reconciliation have been essential in building an inclusive, equal opportunity society,” he said.
He also made the case for supporting Genocide survivors, making them be seen and their stories be heard as "their voices carry the weight of history and prevent recurrence.”
"We must ensure that "Never Again" is not an empty promise but an active commitment. Rwanda stands as proof that a society can reject ethnic bigotry and rise from its ashes," he added.
Dr Zoë Norridge, an Associate Professor of African, Comparative and Visual Cultures, said:
"Storytelling then is a particular kind of mourning—mourning for the time before genocide, mourning for the loved ones who died, and for the future that will never be."