Grégory Doucet, the Mayor of Lyon, the capital city of France’s Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, has condemned the use of eastern DR Congo crisis as an excuse in fuelling genocide ideology and denialism across the world. ALSO READ: France must stop selective justice in pursuing genocide fugitives He was speaking during the 31st commemoration of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda. During the event organized by Ibuka-France in Lyon, he acknowledged that genocide ideology continues to circulate with voices that seek to minimize the facts, reverse responsibilities, and deny the evidence, “using as an alibi the conflicts and the acts of the terrible wars which took place and are currently underway in the Kivus (eastern DR Congo).” ALSO READ: Belgian lawyer on why genocide ideology doesn’t dissolve three decades after dispersion of genocidaires He noted that international law must prevail to bring peace to eastern DR Congo. ALSO READ: April 9, 1994: As Tutsi killings rage, France evacuates citizens, Akazu members “It is fundamental that a genocide should never again be perpetuated, anywhere. The humanitarian community, the council of nations, all of us, must unite to prevent it and prevent it as soon as risks are averted or even simply identified.” Doucet said that it requires everyone in their different capacities to mobilize and demonstrate absolute vigilance in light of this. In fighting against genocide deniers, he gave an example of French-Cameroonian journalist and author Charles Onana who was pursuing his doctorate at Jean Moulin Lyon 3 University where he tried to dismantle the Genocide against the Tutsi in his thesis as if it was a myth or an invention, in December 2017. Last December, a French court convicted Onana and his publishing director Damien Serieyx for denying the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. The Paris Criminal Court's 17th Chamber issued a landmark ruling, fining both men €70 per day for 120 days, totalling €8,400. ALSO READ: Why Charles Onana’s guilty verdict sends a clear message to Genocide deniers Onana was convicted in court on first instance, for complicity in public denial of a crime against humanity. “This is why the city of Lyon is committed, alongside Ibuka and memory stakeholders, to fighting against these falsifications, particularly, by supporting the work of researchers and lecturers and actively participating in actions of raising awareness,” Doucet said. While France is one of the few western countries that has made some prosecutions of perpetrators of the genocide, especially over the past few years, they still ring hollow in the face of continued inaction against key fugitives living freely in France. For decades, France has been a safe haven for some of the most notorious masterminds of the 1994 Genocide, particularly members of the Akazu, the inner circle that planned and coordinated the extermination of the Tutsi. Among them is Agathe Kanziga, the former First Lady and patron of Akazu who was the glue that held together the elite group genocide masterminds. The group comprised top politicians, military officers, businessmen and senior clerics. Kanziga remains in France despite Rwanda’s longstanding calls for her extradition or prosecution in France. Others like Laurent Serubuga, a senior military officer who played a direct role in the massacres, continue to evade justice and have found a safe haven in France. As Rwanda marks the 31st commemoration of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, President Emmanuel Macron once again pledged France’s commitment to bringing genocide perpetrators to justice.
