Kagame lauds documentary on rape during the Genocide

President Paul Kagame on Wednesday graced the premiere of a feature documentary titled “The Uncondemned” at Kigali Serena Hotel. The documentary brings out the plight of women who were raped during the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. After watching the documentary with other dignitaries, the President congratulated the filmmakers and the resilient women who were able to testify and seek justice despite the pain they endured testifying about their plight during the Genocide. “These women bring out the voices of many other who couldn’t speak for themselves. I am part of that history of what happened to these women, I feel, I share and I live their pain. Thank you the filmmakers and everyone who contributed to this, it is part of justice, said the President. Eric Kabera, founder of Rwanda Cinema Center, was the MC at the premiere of The Uncondemned at Kigali Serena Hotel. (Doreen Umutesi) The Uncondemned, which was co-produced by Michele Mitchell, a former journalist with CNN, is based on the trial of Jean-Paul Akayesu, a former mayor who is serving a life sentence handed to him by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR). Akayesu’s is the first ever trial that prosecuted rape as a war crime and act of Genocide. When asked why the documentary is titled The Uncondemned, Mitchell said: “After the Genocide, the perpetrators roamed freely while their victims felt shattered. With the Akayesu trial, the tables turned. Michele Mitchell (R), co-producer of The Uncondemned, chats with the US Ambassador to Rwanda Erica Barks-Ruggles and her husband after the premiere of the documentary. (Doreen Umutesi) “In making the documentary, we wanted rape to be taken as a serious war crime.” Akayesu, the former mayor of Taba was convicted for his role in the Genocide and his was the first trial worldwide where prosecution included rape as a war crime although its recognition as a crime against humanity dates as far back as 1919. The key witnesses in the rape case against Akayesu feature in the documentary under code names JJ, NN and OO and they attest that they are happy that justice was served. Minister Gasinzigwa chats with some women prior to the screening of the documentary. (Doreen Umutesi) Other people that feature in the documentary who consider it a story of their fight are a group of lawyers and activists who worked hard to prosecute Akayesu for rape as a crime against humanity. While speaking at the premiere of the documentary, Pierre Prosper, the lead prosecutor in the Akayesu trial said that rape destroys the fabric of society. “We had an opportunity and we used it although getting evidence of rape is hard. It’s a question of getting the victim to speak. After the Akayesu trial, we have no excuse of not pursuing justice for rape victims,” Prosper emphasizes.

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Kagame lauds documentary on rape during the Genocide