After lengthy court proceedings, the climax of the FLN terror trial is beckoning, and a number of people are expected to follow with interest, as the High Court Chamber for International Crimes sitting in Kigali will pass the final verdict on Friday, August 20. 2018 and 2019 were two years that changed the lives of many Rwandans in a negative way, owing to several attacks perpetrated by the FLN militia during this period in south western Rwanda. At least nine people were killed, several others injured, property looted or destroyed by the insurgents. The first major incursion took place in June 2018 in Nyabimata Sector, Nyaruguru District, when FLN fighters invaded a village at around midnight, carrying out violent activities that claimed 3 civilian lives and injured at least two people. The second attack targeted public transport, when the assailants ambushed three buses along the Kigali-Rusizi highway during the Christmas season. Six passengers lost their lives – mainly due to gunshots, others were injured, and the buses were set ablaze by the attackers. More attacks took place in Rusizi District, among which was one that happened in Kamembe town near a bar called Stella, where grenades were thrown at a group of people, leaving many injured - four of whom seriously. Fortunately, no one died but many were injured and property was destroyed. Following this series of attacks, Rwandan authorities arrested a number of individuals allegedly behind them, all linked to FLN, an outfit whose operations oscillated between neighbouring countries. The now infamous FLN trial has 21 suspects who played different roles in the militia, including their political figurehead Paul Rusesabagina. Ahead of the sentencing, The New Times spoke to some of the survivors of the attack who told us about what they hope for, as the case comes to a close. “First, we are happy that some of the people that orchestrated the attacks were arrested, and we had a chance to take part in their trial,” said Vincent Nsengiyumva, the former Executive Secretary of Nyabimata Sector, who survived by a whisker, after a bullet brushed his head. “We believe that the evidence we presented to court will be well considered, and we have faith in our justice system that a satisfactory decision will be taken, especially in regard to punishing the attackers,” he added. Besides going through physical pain and incurring expenses for treatment, Nsengiyumva also suffered property losses, as his car was set on fire by the attackers and his house damaged. In an earlier hearing, he told court that he was seeking for about Rwf7,560,000 million in compensation from those behind the attacks. Alice Kayitesi, a young woman from Kigali, is another survivor who spoke to The New Times about her expectations of the trial. On the fateful day of the attacks, she was traveling from Rusizi to Kigali when the bus she had boarded fell into an FLN ambush. “They shot at the bus and lobbed grenades at it. People were shot, for example, I was sitting next to a young girl of about 13 years, who got shot in the head. I too was shot in the leg,” she said. Along with several other passengers, she managed to escape through the front window of the bus and fled into the Nyungwe forest, where they spent hours and hours. “I escaped together with a young man called Ivan. He had been shot in the leg so severely that he could not move without support. Soon, two other men who had escaped joined us, and we tried to assist Ivan. But as we were doing it, the attackers shot at us and injured one of the two men,” she said. At this point, they left Ivan there and fled deeper into the forest, and stayed there for some hours, before they later decided to go back to the road, where they met with Rwanda Defence Force soldiers who took them to a hospital. Years after the incident, Kayitesi says she still has grenade fragments lodged in her leg, and sometimes gets backache due to an injury sustained when she was pricked in the back by a piece of wood as she fled from the attackers. Besides this, she says she gets psychologically disturbed. “I hope justice will be served to everyone. And I hope these people will be punished, so that even in future, no one else will dare do the things they did,” she said. Other survivors interviewed include Vianney Bwimba, 28, a former MC at events who sustained permanent disability in his right leg, something that has made him unable to find gigs, due to his physical state. “It is hard now to get hired for events. You know, being an MC, you need to be in a good physical state, but here I am limping,” he said. “The attackers really retarded my life. I spent about two months in the hospital, and afterwards, I went for specialised treatment. I had a major injury around my thigh, and I still live with pain,” he added. Broke and out of employment, Bwimba currently lives with his mother in Kayonza District. “The judiciary should prescribe penalties commensurate to the crimes they committed. I will not speak much about what kind of penalties they should receive, because if I were asked, I would give them the heaviest there is. They really hurt people,” he said. “I also hope I can get compensated, so that I can get better treatment. I also need money to open up a business,” he added. Bwimba seeks Rwf150 million in compensation. Antoine Karerangabo, a 72-year-old survivor who was hit on the head with an unidentified weapon and remained unconscious for about two hours during the Nyabimata attack also had something to say; “I was lucky the injuries did not reach the brain, but they were severe. I was unconscious for about two hours, laying on the ground, I was not even aware when people were being killed. Later, I was taken to the health centre, and I survived,” he said. “I spent money on medication until I got better. It was my own money, and I need compensation. In addition, we hope that the justice system will do what is fit for these attackers,” he added.
