Pie Habimana, a lecturer of Law at the University of Rwanda and a member of the Rwanda Bar Association has criticized the behaviour of Vicent Lurquin, a Belgian lawyer who showed up in Rwanda’s High Court Chamber for International and Cross-Border Crimes, dressed up in a lawyer’s gown, yet he is not accredited to practise in the country. Lurquin is said to be a lawyer of Paul Rusesabagina, one of the 21 terror suspects being prosecuted in connection to the FLN, a militia that carried out several attacks against civilians on Rwandan territory in 2018 and 2019. During the attacks, 9 people lost their lives, many others injured, and property destroyed or looted. Lurquin appeared in a court session on Friday, August 20, when the judges were announcing the dates on which the final verdict of the case will be pronounced. “The Rwandan law is clear that a person who can practice law in Rwanda should be a member of the Rwandan Bar Association. But, a lawyer who is a member of another bar association can practise in Rwanda upon receiving authorization from the president of the Rwanda Bar Association. Without such authorization, it is against the law to practise in Rwanda,” Habimana said. In addition, he noted that it is as well not allowed for an unaccredited lawyer to visit a client in prison, unless he does it in another capacity – not as a lawyer. “Not every person can go to a prison and say, ‘I want to meet someone.’ If you say that you are visiting a person in your capacity as a lawyer, then you have to prove that you are a lawyer. So, if you are a foreign lawyer, you have to make a request, and it should be endorsed by the Rwanda Bar Association,” he said. Habimana also had something to say about the fact that Lurquin was dressed up in a lawyers’ gown when he came to court. “First of all, dressing up as a lawyer is a privilege for lawyers only. That dress is not for just any person. If you dress like that, the message you are sending to the public is that you are a lawyer. Lurquin is a lawyer in Belgium, but not one in Rwanda,” he said. “If you are not a lawyer and you dress up like one, it is an offence. It is punishable,” he added. He noted that the incident can be taken up by the Rwanda Investigation Bureau (RIB) since it is against Rwanda’s criminal law. However, he noted that it can as well be sorted out in another way, through negotiations between the bar associations of Rwanda and Belgium, “The Rwanda Bar Association also has rights to inform the president of the Belgian Bar Association that their member came to Rwanda and did something against the professional ethical rules. At that time, he (Lurquin) can get disciplinary sanctions in Belgium. These two actions are possible: disciplinary action and criminal action,” he said. The Rwanda Bar Association also officially criticized Lurquins behaviour, “Rwanda Bar Association notes Me. Vincent Lurquin today appeared in court as a lawyer, in a lawyer’s gown, although he is not a member of the Rwanda Bar Association and he is not allowed to practice in Rwanda. He has been requested to explain his behaviour,” read a statement posted by the Rwanda Bar Association, via their Twitter handle. In a Twitter post, Yolande Makolo, the Government Spokesperson also had something to say about the incident, referring to Lurquin’s behaviour as “crooked.” “Lurquin’s crooked behaviour is a clear violation of the rules of legal practice in Rwanda. They are desperate to distract from the facts of the FLN trial and Rusesabagina’s suspected leadership role in terror attacks in Nyungwe in which 9 innocent Rwandans died, including 2 minors,” she wrote
