EDITORIAL: Come what may, Rwandans will never tire to seek justice

A UK court has again turned down the extradition request for five Genocide suspects residing in the country. The reasons – as has been the case in previous trials –was that there was no assurance that the suspects would get a fair trial. That is a very flimsy assertion that is not based on any judicial logic. If many other countries as well as the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda have handed suspects to Rwanda for trial, what moral high ground is the British court standing on? If they hold the highest judicial pedigree, the least the UK judiciary could do is to try them and not let them off scot free. This latest saga is yet another reminder that some people do not take the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi seriously. It is not some petty crime where the accused receives a slap on the wrist and sent home with a warning. These are people who committed the world’s worst crime and did not bother to hide the fact; they did it in the open in front of thousands of witnesses. If at least the judges would show a fraction of sympathy they shower on the suspects to the victims, that would be some consolation. But no, the victims are just figures, to be added, subtracted and then forgotten. No, Rwandans will never forget even though they chose the path of forgiveness Letting suspects off lightly only emboldens them and helps entrench impunity. The crime of Genocide is imprescriptible, it will never go away however much time passes by. Rwandans will bid their time and never waver to seek justice.

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EDITORIAL: Come what may, Rwandans will never tire to seek justice