Internews.org ICTR Reports

ARUSHA 6 May 2002 (Internews) Genocide suspect Elizaphan Ntakirutimana, a Seventh Day Adventist pastor, today took the stand in his own defense before judges at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR). Ntakirutimana is jointly tried with his son, Gerard, for their alleged role in the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.

Elizaphan, 77, testified that he asked people to leave the Mugonero Adventist Complex in Kibuye Province after he realized it was no longer safe. Elizaphan was a pastor at the church complex and Gerard worked as a doctor at a hospital in the complex. They have denied seven counts of genocide and crimes against humanity.

According to Elizaphan, an incident in which gendarmes (para- military police) shot a young man who attempted to attack refugees at the complex on 14 April 1994 prompted him to urge hospital and field mission workers seeking refuge at the complex to leave for their own safety.

"I wanted them to leave the hospital because it was no longer safe," Elizaphan maintained. Led by his counsel, former US Attorney-General Ramsey Clark, Elizaphan explained that he told the wife of the complex's treasurer to inform all the other workers at the complex that it was no longer safe and that they should leave.

The prosecution claims that Elizaphan and Gerard organized and participated in an attack at the complex the morning of 16 April 1994. Prosecutors also allege that Elizaphan and Gerard encouraged refugees to stay at the complex while they planned a militia attack against them.

Elizaphan told the court that despite hearing the news that a plane carrying Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana had crashed, he and other workers at the complex did not think the situation was going to get serious. "We thought it was an accident just like any other… later on, we found out that the plane had been shot down, we were far from Kigali and I did not think that the consequences were going to affect us where we were."

Gerard is expected to take the stand after his father.

Elizaphan continues to testify in Trial Chamber I of the ICTR, comprising Judges Erik Mose of Norway (presiding), Navanethem Pillay of South Africa and Andresia Vaz of Senegal.

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NTAKIRUTIMANA TRIAL: DEFENSE WITNESS WANTED IN RWANDA FOR GENOCIDE, PROSECUTOR ALLEGES

By Jane Some

ARUSHA 2 May 2002 (Internews) Charles Adeogun Phillips, prosecutor in the trial for Elizaphan Ntakirutimana and his son Gerard, today claimed before judges at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) that the defense witness who gave evidence today is wanted by prosecutors in Rwanda for genocide-related crimes.

Philips made the allegation when he began his cross-examination of the witness --identified only as number "5". The witness has been on the stand since morning, in the defense of Elizaphan and Gerard. Elizaphan, 78, was a pastor at the Mugonero Adventist Complex during the genocide, and Gerard, 45, worked as a doctor at the hospital in the church complex.

Elizaphan and Gerard have denied charges of genocide and crimes against humanity. The prosecution alleges that the father and son organized and participated in massacres at the church complex and in the nearby Bisesero hills during the April-June 1994 genocide in Rwanda.

Asked if he is currently wanted in Rwanda, Witness 5 responded that he was not aware, and that he is surprised by the prosecutor's allegation.

Former US Attorney-General Ramsey Clark, counsel for Elizaphan, objected to Phillips' question and asked the court to bring "ethical misconduct charges" against the prosecutor. However, the court allowed Philips to pose more follow-up questions before considering Clark's request.

Phillips then gave the witness a list of three women who he alleged were raped by Witness 5 in Mugonero, Kibuye Province, during the genocide.

"This is preposterous. I am really shocked by these allegations. This has surprised me enormously," the witness stated, adding that he did not take part in any violence during the genocide.

The witness worked at the Mugonero complex before and during the genocide and often saw Elizaphan and Gerard in the course of his duties.

During his main evidence, led by Clark, the witness testified that Elizaphan and Gerard took part in meetings to organize security for staff and refugees at the Mugonero Adventist Complex in Kibuye Province in April 1994.

He told the court that refugees started arriving at the church complex on 7 April 1994, a day after the death of Rwandan President Juvenal Habyarimana. Unknown assailants shot down Habyarimana's plane as it approached the capital Kigali, killing all on board. Habyarimana's death sparked the April-June 1994 violence in Rwanda

Witness 5 told the court that as refugees streamed into the complex, male staff at the complex organized night patrols to ensure security for all staff and the refugees.

According to the witness, a grenade was thrown into the church complex one night, approximately four days after Habyarimana's death, killing a member of one patrol team. He said the dead man was a watchman for John Nkuranga, a director of a secondary school in the church complex.

It was the morning after the watchman's death that Elizaphan and other heads of department at the complex held a security meeting, the witness said. Gerard, as the doctor who attended to the watchman after the grenade explosion, attended the meeting. The watchman died during his treatment at the hospital in the complex.

Witness 5 said he never saw Elizaphan or Gerard carrying weapons of any kind during the genocide. He said the father and son were fair people who loved God and loved their work and would not have participated in any massacres, contrary to claims by the prosecution.

Cross-examination of Witness 5 continues tomorrow before Trial Chamber I of the ICTR, comprising Judges Erik Mose of Norway (presiding), Navanethem Pillay of South Africa and Andresia Vaz of Senegal.

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CORRECTION: ICTY'S 2002/2003 BUDGET $218 MILLION, NOT $690 MILLION

By Mary Kimani

ARUSHA 29 April 2002 (Internews) In our story titled 'Expensive Justice: Cost of Running the Rwanda Tribunal' on 9 April 2002, we stated that the United Nations Security Council allocated the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) $690 million for its 2002/2003 budget. We have since learned that the $690 million figure represents the ICTY's expenditure since its inception in 1993, and that the Hague-based court was allocated $218,216,300 for its 2002/2003 budget.

We also stated that the ICTY and the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) have incurred a combined expenditure of more than $12 billion, and this figure should have read $1.2 billion.

We apologize for these errors and any inconvenience caused to the ICTR and the ICTY.

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NTAKIRUTIMANA TRIAL: VILLAGERS WERE ASKED TO FRAME GENOCIDE SUSPECTS, CLAIMS DEFENSE WITNESS

By Mary Kimani

ARUSHA 29 April 2002 (Internews) Six people in Mugonero, Kibuye Province, held meetings between September and November 1995 to convince villagers to accuse particular people of genocide-related crimes, a witness today told judges at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR).

The witness -- identified only as number "9" -- did not name the six for security reasons; some of them may have been protected prosecution witnesses. However, the witness indicated that one of the six was a councilor of Ngoma sector in 1994.

The witness is the 19th defense witness for genocide suspects Elizaphan Ntakirutimana and his son Gerard. The two have denied genocide and crimes against humanity. They allegedly committed the crimes in Kibuye Province between April and June 1994.

Elizaphan, 78, was a pastor at the Mugonero Adventist Complex during the genocide, and Gerard worked as a doctor at the hospital in the church complex.

Witness 9 told the court that in September 1995, Assiel Kabera, former governor of Kibuye, met regularly with the six people in Mugonero. Later, the six also met Elam Rutaganda and a woman named Christine, who the witness claims are members of genocide survivor group, IBUKA.

The witness claimed that after these meetings, the six individuals accused Gerard Muhagimana, Pierre Rudasimukinwa, and a man whom he only named as Samuel of genocide-related crimes.

According to the witness, Rutaganda claimed during one meeting that Muhagimana had property belonging to him. "We later discovered that he [Rutaganda] lied …He said that the family of Gerard had a refrigerator, a radio as well as couches. It was later discovered that the property did not belong to Rutaganda," the witness said.

The witness testified that the six Mugonero residents regularly participated in meetings where allegations of genocide were made, and took part in drawing up lists of people to be accused. According to the witness, people who were accused in this manner were transferred from Ngoma prison to Kibuye prison, to await investigations into the allegations.

Witness 9 claimed that one of the six people attempted to blackmail him, threatening him and a colleague that they would also be framed if they did not buy him alcohol.

"He said that if we do not buy him beer he was going to do to us what he was going to do to Pastor Elizaphan… their work was to make accusations against people," the witness alleged.

The witness claimed that in November 1994, a man named Elison Mukamulinda told him how he was beaten up after he refused to accuse Gerard Ntakirutimana.

"Mukamulinda told us he was beaten because he refused to make accusations against others," the witness stressed.

The witness said that a sergeant in the Rwanda Patriotic Army (RPA) named Ruragwa and another man, Ellie Ngarambe, were with him when Mukamulinda told his story. "He [the RPA sergeant] advised me to flee… he also advised Ngarambe to flee, he said nothing to Elison," the witness claimed.

The prosecution alleges that Elizaphan and Gerard organized and participated in an attack at the Mugonero Adventist Hospital on 16 April 1994. The father and son allegedly followed fleeing ethnic Tutsi refugees to the Murambi Adventist Church where they participated in further massacres as well at the Bisesero hills where an estimated 50,000 ethnic Tutsi died.

The trial is held before Trial Chamber I of the ICTR, comprising Judges Erik Mose of Norway (presiding), Navanethem Pillay of South Africa and Andresia Vaz of Senegal.

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PROSECUTION CLOSES ITS CASE IN SEMANZA TRIAL

By Sheenah Kaliisa

ARUSHA 25 April 2002 (Internews) The prosecution today closed its case in the trial for Laurent Semanza, a former Rwandan mayor, after presenting three witnesses in rebuttal before the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR).

When the trial resumed on 15 April, the prosecution indicated that it would call six witnesses in rebuttal to challenge Semanza's claim of alibi. However, the prosecution has withdrawn three of them: a protected witness from Rwanda identified only as "XXL," Kenyan police inspector Antipas Nyanjwa and Cameroonian prosecutor Messina Teme.

Prosecutor Chile Eboe-Osuji of Canada/Nigeria told the court today that Nyanjwa's testimony would not be necessary because there is no date mentioned in the section of Semanza's statement allegedly redacted during his arrest in Cameroon in 1996.

Nyanjwa, an expert in criminology and forensic science, would have presented the results of Kenya's Criminal Investigation Department's forensic analysis on the words allegedly redacted during Semanza's interview.

Testifying in his own defense in March, Semanza told judges that during an interview with Cameroonian authorities on 1 April 1996, he indicated that he left Bicumbi on 9 April 1994 but these words were "rubbed out" by the Cameroonian officials who arrested him, hence destroying his defense of alibi.

Eboe-Osuji stressed that the redacted words do not indicate that Semanza left his house on 9 April 1994. Defense attorney Sadikou Alao of Benin, co-counsel for Semanza, agreed with the prosecutor that there is no reason to call Nyanjwa because the redacted words in Semanza's statement do not include a date.

Teme, the Cameroonian prosecutor, would have testified on the circumstances surrounding the alleged redaction of Semanza's statement but the prosecution withdrew his testimony for the same reasons given in Nyanjwa's withdrawal. Eboe-Osuji told the court last week that XXL's testimony would be a repetition of others, hence there is no need to call him.

Semanza, 58, has denied 14 counts of genocide and crimes against humanity. He is a former mayor of Bicumbi commune in Kigali Rural Province.

The prosecution alleges that between 9 and 13 April 1994, Semanza organized and participated in massacres at Musha and Gikoro communes, where hundreds of people had sought refuge.

The defense today filed a motion to call witnesses in rejoinder, to challenge the evidence submitted through the prosecution's three rebuttal witnesses; "XXK," "DCH," and Andre Guichauoua, an expert on Rwanda's historical and socio-political situation.

Judge Yakov Ostrovsky of Russia (presiding) directed the prosecution to respond to the motion as soon as possible to enable the defense to call the rejoinder witnesses from 7 May 2002.

The judges rejected Eboe-Osuji's objection that he would not respond to the motion without the defense disclosing the names of the witnesses.

The trial is held before Trial Chamber III of the ICTR, comprising Judges Yakov Ostrovsky of Russia (presiding), Lloyd Williams of St. Kitts and Nevis and Pavel Dolenc of Slovenia.

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NTAKIRUTIMANA TRIAL: 'ATTACKERS BOASTED ABOUT THEIR KILLLINGS,' WITNESS CLAIMS

By Mary Kimani

ARUSHA 24 April 2002 (Internews) A group of attackers who raided the Mugonero Adventist Church Complex on 16 April 1994 killed refugees and looted property, and then bragged about their actions, a witness today told judges at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR).

The witness -- identified only as "6" -- is testifying as the 16th defense witness for Elizaphan Ntakirutimana and his son Gerard, who are charged with genocide and crimes against humanity.

Elizaphan, who was a pastor at the church complex, and Gerard, who served as a doctor at the hospital in the complex, have denied the charges.

Witness 6 told the court: "I heard noises like grenades exploding and noises of people shouting… We saw people coming from that direction [of the church complex] with beds and mattresses they had looted from the hospital… they were bragging about how they had killed people."

The prosecution claims that Elizaphan and Gerard organized and participated in the 16 April attack. However, the witness testified that he was told that the father and son fled the complex on the morning of the attack, and hence did not participate in the killings. The two fled to Gishyita commune, the witness said.

The witness worked at the hospital before and during the April- June 1994 genocide. He said his friends and colleagues died in the 16 April attack, which he claims was carried out by "bandits" who took advantage of the poor security in the country following the death of President Juvenal Habyarimana on 6 April 1994. Unknown assailants shot down Habyarimana's plane as it approached the capital Kigali, killing all on board.

"We had not realized the seriousness of the situation… I lost people I knew… when I heard the news, I thought of committing suicide, we were near Lake Kivu and I thought of killing myself," the witness said.

According to witness 6, he worked with Gerard in May 1994 to clean up the hospital and get it operational after the attack.

The prosecution alleges that in May and June 1994, Elizaphan and Gerard went to Murambi and Bisesero hills on several occasions to participate in other massacres, but witness 6 claims that Gerard was often at work, "keeping the hospital going in difficult conditions."

The witness continues to testify before Trial Chamber I of the ICTR, comprising Judges Erik Mose of Norway (presiding), Navanethem Pillay of South Africa and Andresia Vaz of Senegal.

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DEFENSE LAWYERS APPLAUD WITHDRAWAL OF CONTROVERSIAL TASKFORCE

By Sukhdev Chhatbar

ARUSHA 23 April 2002 (Internews) The Association of Defense Lawyers at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) today praised Adama Dieng, ICTR Registrar, for withdrawing plans for a joint taskforce with the Rwandan government that would have investigated allegations of mistreatment of witnesses at the tribunal.

Kennedy Ogetto, the association's president, said in a statement that trial chambers, together with the relevant tribunal organs, are competent to deal with any issues regarding prosecution and defense witnesses.

Dieng announced the withdrawal of the taskforce on 18 April following a misunderstanding with the government of Rwanda over the team's mandate.

"The attempt by Kigali to unilaterally expand the mandate of the commission is a clear vindication of our position that the commission should never have been established in the first place," Ogetto states.

The statement stresses that defense lawyers at the ICTR are not against co-operation with Rwandan government. "We support constructive co-operation with Rwanda and any other state for that matter, as long as this is done within the strict confines of the statute and rules governing the operations of the tribunal… we shall continue to condemn actions by any state that amount to intimidation, blackmail and are an affront to the independence and impartiality of the tribunal," the statement continues.

Dieng withdrew the taskforce over what he described as "the inability to agree on certain fundamental points, beyond compromise, regarding the proposed commission's terms of reference."

The decision to set up the taskforce, comprising two officials each from the Registry and Rwanda government, was announced after a meeting between Dieng and Rwandan Justice Minister Jean de Dieu Mucyo on 4 March in Kigali.

However, controversy arose over the team's mandate, with Dieng maintaining that the taskforce's assignment would be only to investigate alleged mistreatment of witnesses at the tribunal. The Rwandan government insisted that the mandate be expanded to include investigation into claims that people suspected of involvement in the 1994 genocide are employed as defense investigators at the tribunal.

The suggestion to establish the taskforce followed a decision by two genocide survivor groups, IBUKA and AVEGA, on 25 January to suspend co-operation with the tribunal, protesting alleged harassment of protected witnesses at the tribunal.

When contacted for a comment today, Martin Ngoga, Rwandan government's representative to the ICTR, said:"We are uncomfortable with the grounds it was withdrawn."

"We do not have many difficulties in this commission being withdrawn because the primary issue is not about the commission or about its membership. The primary issue is that there are problems which necessitated the idea of the commission," Ngoga maintained.

According to Ngoga, Rwanda, for the time being, is keeping "an open mind" and is awaiting feedback from Dieng on an alternative to the taskforce.

Kingsley Moghalu, ICTR spokesman, told a press conference today that the Registry disassociates itself with the defense lawyers' statement.

"We are an independent and impartial tribunal," Moghalu stressed, adding that the Registrar alone made the decision to withdraw plans for the taskforce.

"The Registrar does not stand shoulder-to- shoulder with anybody [as indicated by the defense lawyers' statement]. He stands alone, he needs no company, " Moghalu stated.

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SEMANZA TRIAL: ANOTHER WITNESS CHALLENGES SEMANZA'S ALIBI

By Sheena Kaliisa

ARUSHA 22 April 2002 (Internews) Genocide suspect Laurent Semanza, a former Rwandan mayor, left Bicumbi commune on 19 April 1994, not 9 April 1994, an expert witness testifying in rebuttal for the prosecution today told judges at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR).

The witness, Andre Guichauoua, is an expert on Rwanda's historical and socio-political situation. He testified as an expert witness before the prosecution closed its case in October 2001. The prosecution has called him in rebuttal to challenge Semanza's alibi that he left Bicumbi on 9 April.

The prosecution alleges that Semanza organized and participated in massacres at Musha and Gikoro communes between 9 and 13 April 1994, where hundreds of people had sought refuge to escape killings.

Semanza, 58, is former mayor of Bicumbi commune in Kigali Rural Province. He has denied 14 counts of genocide and crimes against humanity.

Led by prosecutor Chile Eboe-Osuji of Canada/Nigeria, Guichauoua insisted that Semanza left Bicumbi on 19 April 1994 after Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF) soldiers arrived in the area. He added that RPF troops arrived on 18 April 1994 in Rwamagana and attacked Bicumbi and Gikoro the following day.

The first rebuttal witness -- identified only as "DCH" -- also challenged Semanza's alibi when he testified last week that the former mayor was in Rwanda on 15,16 and 17 April 1994. DCH alleged that Semanza led attacks on 16 and 17 April 1994 on ethnic Tutsi at a church at Gikoro commune.

The trial continues before trial chamber III of the ICTR, comprising Judge Yakov Ostrovsky of Russia of Judges (presiding), Lloyd Williams of St. Kitts and Nevis and Pavel Dolenc of Slovenia.

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NTAKIRUTIMANA TRIAL: 'DOCTOR DIDN'T GO TO BISESERO DURING GENOCIDE,' WITNESS CLAIMS

By Mary Kimani

ARUSHA 22 April 2002 (Internews) Genocide suspect Gerard Ntakirutimana did not go to Bisesero in Kibuye Province, southwestern Rwanda, between May and July 1994, a defense witness today told judges at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR).

The prosecution alleges that Gerard took part in massacres in Bisesero between May and June during the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.

"I never saw or heard of him going to Bisesero," the witness -- identified only as "23" -- said.

He is testifying in the joint trial for Gerard and his father Elizaphan Ntakirutimana. Gerard was a medical doctor at the Mugonero Adventist Complex in Kibuye Province during the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. Elizaphan was an Adventist pastor in the church complex.

The father and son are charged with participating in massacres of ethnic Tutsi at Mugonero on 16 April and in Bisesero between May and June 1994. They have denied charges of genocide and crimes against humanity.

The witness testified that he was at the complex between May and July and was not aware that either Gerard or Elizaphan went to Bisesero during that time, adding that Elizaphan was in poor health "and seemed to be in deep grief during that period."

Witness 23 began his testimony shortly before midday because he was not feeling well earlier. He is the first of five witnesses scheduled to testify this week before Gerard and Elizaphan take the stand in their own defense.

According to the witness, Gerard was a Christian who led a church choir and often preached. Witness 23 told the court that he attended the same high school as Gerard. Gerard later taught the witness at the Butare National University.

The trial is held before Trial Chamber I of the ICTR, comprising Judges Erik Mose of Norway (presiding), Navanethem Pillay of South Africa and Andresia Vaz of Senegal.

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WITNESS URGES SEMANZA TO CONFESS TO GENOCIDE CRIMES

By Sheenah Kaliisa

ARUSHA 19 April 2002 (Internews) A genocide convict testifying for the prosecution in the trial for Laurent Semanza, a former Rwandan mayor, yesterday insisted that Semanza should confess to the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) as he is guilty of the crimes he is charged with.

"You should advise Semanza to confess to the crimes like all of us and stop wasting time. There are so many genocide suspects and you should not waste time on Semanza," the witness -- identified only as "DCH" -- told Sadikou Alao of Benin, co- counsel for Semanza.

Judge Yakov Ostrovsky of Russia (presiding) cautioned the witness against giving his opinion and advised him to just answer questions posed in cross-examination by Semanza's lawyer.

DCH has confessed to having participated in the April-June 1994 genocide in Rwanda. He completed a five-year prison term in January this year in Rwanda. He is the first rebuttal witness called by the prosecution to challenge Semanza's alibi.

When he testified in his own defense in February, Semanza told the court that he left Bicumbi commune, Kigali Rural Province, on 9 April 1994 and hence did not take part in massacres that took place thereafter as alleged by the prosecution.

The prosecution has indicated that four more witnesses are scheduled to testify in rebuttal. Prosecutor Chile Eboe-Osuji of Canada/Nigeria had initially stated that six witnesses would testify in rebuttal but he withdrew one -- identified only as "XXL" -- saying his testimony would be a repetition of the others.

Eboe-Osuji identified the four witnesses as protected witness "XXK," Antipas Nyanjwa, a Kenyan police inspector who is an expert in criminology and forensic science, Andre Guichauoua, an expert on Rwanda's historical and socio-political situation, and Messina Teme, a Cameroonian prosecutor. Nyanjwa is scheduled to arrive in Arusha on Wednesday.

During yesterday's proceedings, Alao challenged DCH's testimony arguing that the witness never mentioned Semanza in his confession statement to the Rwandan government.

DCH responded that although he did not mention Semanza in his statement, he did so when he appeared before judges in a Rwandan national court. He maintained that Semanza committed genocide and urged Alao to advise him to confess.

In his main evidence, DCH stressed that Semanza was in Rwanda on 15,16 and 17 April 1994, and led attacks on hundreds of ethnic Tutsi at a church at Gikoro commune, contradicting Semanza's claim that he left Kigali Rural on 9 April 1994.

Semanza, 58, is a former mayor of Bicumbi commune in Kigali Rural. He has denied 14 counts of genocide and crimes against humanity. He allegedly committed the crimes between April and June 1994 in Rwanda.

During re-examination of DCH, Eboe-Osuji read out an article published in 'Le-Verdict', a Rwandan judicial magazine, about the trial of witness DCH in the Rwandan court. The article mentions that DCH told the court that Semanza "did everything in his powers to commit massacres."

The trial resumes on Monday with a status conference.

The trial is held before trial chamber III of the ICTR, comprising Judges Yakov Ostrovsky of Russia (presiding), Lloyd Williams of St. Kitts and Nevis and Pavel Dolenc of Slovenia.

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ICTR REGISTRAR WITHDRAWS CONTROVERSIAL TASKFORCE

By Sheenah Kaliisa

ARUSHA 18 April 2002 (Internews) Adama Dieng, Registrar of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), has withdrawn the establishment of a taskforce with the Rwandan government that was to investigate allegations of mistreatment of witnesses at the tribunal. The withdrawal follows disagreement with Rwanda over the taskforce's mandate. According to a press statement released yesterday, the withdrawal is due to the "inability to agree on certain fundamental points, beyond compromise, regarding the proposed commission's terms of reference."

Dieng's move follows allegations about the mistreatment of prosecution witnesses from Rwanda made by Rwandan authorities and non-governmental organizations.

Two genocide survivor groups, IBUKA and AVEGA, suspended their co-operation with the tribunal on 25 January, protesting alleged harassment of a protected witness who testified last October in the so-called "Butare Trial." The groups also allege that there are genocide suspects working at the tribunal.

The decision to set up the taskforce, comprising two officials each from the Registry and Rwanda, was announced after a meeting between Dieng and Rwandan Justice Minister Jean de Dieu Mucyo on 4 March in Kigali.

However, controversy arose when Dieng maintained that the taskforce's mandate would be to only investigate alleged mistreatment of witnesses at the tribunal, while the government of Rwanda insisted that the team would investigate the alleged mistreatment of witnesses as well as the employment at the ICTR of Rwandans suspected to have been involved in the 1994 genocide.

Mucyo told Internews that his government agreed to be part of the taskforce with the understating that the team would investigate the alleged mistreatment of witnesses at the tribunal and the recruitment of Rwandan personnel alleged to be suspects of genocide.

In a letter to Mucyo dated 28 March, Dieng said he regrets that the government of Rwanda expected an expansion of the taskforce's draft terms of reference, insisting that the team was established within the limits of his powers and on the basis of specific allegations by non-governmental organizations.

Yesterday's statement by Dieng stresses that the Registrar will take "all appropriate measures as lie within his powers, in compliance with the applicable rules, and that are consistent with the excellent spirit of co-operation that the tribunal has always enjoyed on the part of [UN] member states, including Rwanda."

"The Registrar will nevertheless spare no effort to shed light on the allegations of mistreatment of witnesses from Rwanda," the statement adds.

The taskforce was to have become operational on 1 April.

"The Registrar wishes to reassure the Rwandan authorities and witnesses, in particular those from Rwanda, that the tribunal is committed to making certain that, as always, witnesses called to testify in Arusha for either the prosecution or the defense will not suffer any mistreatment, and that their welfare and security will continue to be ensured in the interest of the proper administration of justice," Dieng states.

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RWANDA GOVERNMENT NOT INVESTIGATING ALLEGED GENOCIDE SUSPECTS ON ICTR PAYROLL

By Sukhdev Chhatbar

ARUSHA 17 April 2002 (Internews) Martin Ngoga, the Rwandan government's representative to the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) says that no defense investigators at the tribunal are currently under investigation by his government.

Addressing a press conference in his office yesterday, Ngoga stated that the government of Rwanda has completed investigations into alleged genocide suspects working as defense investigators at the ICTR, and has submitted a report to the tribunal.

"We have stopped investigating the genocide suspects working at the ICTR since early this year, " Ngoga stressed when asked whether his government is investigating defense investigators.

At another press conference in March 2001, Ngoga claimed there were genocide suspects engaged as defense investigators at the tribunal. Two months later, Simeon Nshamihigo, a defense investigator, was arrested and transferred to the United Nations Detention Facility (UNDF).

Nshamihigo has pleaded not guilty to genocide charges, and is currently at the UNDF awaiting trial. He was deputy prosecutor in Cyangugu Province during the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.

Another investigator, Joseph Nzabirinda, was arrested in December 2001 in Belgium and last month pleaded not guilty to genocide charges. The prosecution alleges that Nzabirinda was an organizer of the youth movement Butare Province during the genocide. He is also at the UNDF awaiting trial.

Yet another defense investigator, Pierre Karangwa, was last week suspended by the tribunal for his suspected involvement in the genocide.

In July 2001, Adama Dieng, ICTR Registrar, announced the dismissal of three defense investigators but reinstated one after it was established that he was not implicated in the genocide.

Defense investigators are hired by defense lawyers and paid by the tribunal.

Ngoga maintained yesterday that the Rwandan government is co-operating with the ICTR to facilitate the judicial duties of the tribunal, dismissing allegations that his government is hindering the movement of potential witnesses from Rwanda to Arusha, the tribunal's headquarters. "Rwanda, as a member of the UN, knows its obligations to the tribunal," he stressed.

The Rwandan official also reacted to allegations made by a Registry official in court on Monday during proceedings in the trial for Laurent Semanza, a former Rwandan mayor. The official, Saleem Vahidy, ICTR Chief of Witnesses and Victims Support Section, told the court that the Registry is facing difficulties in getting witnesses in Rwanda to testify after an announcement in January by two genocide survivor groups that they have suspended co-operation with the UN court.

Vahidy said in addition to the Rwandan ministry of justice, which authorizes travel documents for witnesses, the Registry is also having disagreements with genocide survivor groups IBUKA and AVEGA. The two groups announced over the radio in Rwanda that their members should not testify before the tribunal.

IBUKA and AVEGA suspended co-operation with the ICTR, alleging that witnesses are mistreated at the tribunal. The associations also want the tribunal to take measures against defense investigators whom they claim were involved in the genocide.

Vahidy made his explanation after prosecutor Chile Eboe-Osuji of Nigeria/Canada told the court that he is not sure when two witnesses he intends to call in rebuttal will arrive in Arusha.

Semanza, 58, is a former mayor of Bicumbi commune. He has denied 14 counts of genocide and crimes against humanity [murder, extermination and rape].

The prosecution and the defense had completed their presentation of witnesses when the trial adjourned on 28 February 2001. However, the prosecution applied to call six witnesses in rebuttal to counter Semanza's claim of alibi. The first rebuttal witness -- identified only as "DCH" -- is currently on the stand.

The trial is held before Trial Chamber III of the ICTR, comprising Judges Yakov Ostrovsky of Russia (presiding), Lloyd Williams of St Kitts and Nevis and Pavel Dolenc of Slovenia.

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NTAKIRUTIMANA TRIAL ADJOURNED FOR LACK OF WITNESSES

By Mary Kimani

ARUSHA 17 April 2002 (Internews) Judges at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) today adjourned the trial for genocide suspect Elizaphan Ntakirutimana and his son Gerard until Monday, following the cancellation of a flight on which witnesses were scheduled to arrive.

Elizaphan was a pastor at the Mugonero Adventist Complex in Kibuye Province during the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. Gerard served as a doctor at a hospital in the church complex. The father and son have denied charges of genocide and crimes against humanity, crimes they allegedly committed between April and June 1994 in Rwanda.

Former United States Attorney-General Ramsey Clark, counsel for Elizaphan, told the court that the witnesses who were scheduled to arrive yesterday will now arrive on Friday.

The attorney also withdrew a protected witness -- identified only as "34" -- who was available to testify today, stating that his testimony would be a repetition of other defense witnesses who have already testified.

Elizaphan and Gerard allegedly planned and participated in a massacre that took place on 16 April at the Mugonero complex where an estimated 5000 people died. The prosecution alleges that the two followed fleeing ethnic Tutsi to the Murambi Adventist church and took part in attacks on them and on other Tutsi hiding in the Bisesero hills.

The defense has brought 13 witnesses to testify so far, and today's withdrawal of witness 34 marks the fourth cancelled witness in their case.

According to Clark, five more defense witnesses are scheduled to testify before 10 May, when the trial chamber expects to complete the trial. Gerard and Elizaphan will testify in their own defense after the five witnesses, the attorney told the court.

The trial began on 18 September before Trial Chamber I of the ICTR, comprising Judges Erik Mose of Norway (presiding), Navanethem Pillay of South Africa and Andresia Vaz of Senegal.

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RWANDA TRIBUNAL SUSPENDS ANOTHER DEFENSE INVESTIGATOR

By Sukhdev Chhatbar

ARUSHA 12 April 2002 (Internews) The International Criminal Tribunal (ICTR) last week suspended Pierre Karangwa, a defense investigator, for his alleged involvement in the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.

Karangwa is investigator in the defense team of Augustin Ndindiliyimana, a former chief of staff of para-military police. Ndindiliyimana is in the custody of the ICTR, awaiting trial for genocide

According to an ICTR source who requested anonymity, Ndindiliyimana's lead counsel, Christopher Black of Canada, was informed of the suspension. The Association of Defense Lawyers at the ICTR announced at a press conference on Wednesday that they would denounce any further suspension or sanctions taken by the tribunal against defense investigators without the principal counsel being informed.

"Karangwa's suspension is to clear him of any suspicion of his involvement in the 1994 genocide," the source said. Explaining Karangwa's suspension, the source said: "We are conducting our own checks, and we thought we need some more details on Karangwa. This is our own initiative in line with the Registrar's policy to protect the integrity of the tribunal's judicial process and prevent abuses of the legal system."

However, the sources stressed that if Karangwa is not implicated in the 1994 events, "he will be immediately reinstated."

Comments from Black on Karangwa's suspension are currently unavailable as he is reported to be out of Tanzania and his exact whereabouts are unknown.

On 16 July 2001, Dieng announced the dismissal of three defense investigators and the suspension of another one, for their alleged involvement in the April-July 1994 genocide.

However, a few months later, Dieng renewed a contract for Aloys Ngendahimana, investigator in the defense team of Ferdinand Nahimana, a former Director of the Radio Television Libre des Mille Collines (RTLM), after it was established that he was not implicated in the genocide.

The contracts for Augustin Basebya and Augustin Karera were not renewed. Basebya was an investigator in the defense team of Juvenal Kajelijeli, a former mayor of Mukingo commune, Ruhengeri Province. Karera served in the defense team of Jean De Dieu Kamuhanda, a former minister of higher education.

Thaddee Kwitonda, investigator in the team of Arsene Ntahobali, a former militia leader in Butare Province, was suspended two months before his contract expired.

The defense investigators are hired by defense lawyers and paid by the tribunal. Two investigators were last year charged with genocide and crimes against humanity.

In May 2001, defense investigator Simeon Nshamihigo was arrested in Arusha, at the request of Carla Del Ponte, ICTR Chief Prosecutor. He is at the United Nations Detention Facility, and has pleaded not guilty to genocide charges.

In December 2001, defense investigator Joseph Nzabirinda was arrested in Brussels, Belgium. He appeared before the tribunal last week and pleaded not guilty to genocide charges. Nshamihigo was deputy prosecutor in Cyangugu Province during the genocide while Nzabirinda was a youth movement organizer in Butare Province.

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EX-RWANDAN PRIEST TRANSFERRED TO ARUSHA TO ANSWER GENOCIDE CHARGES

By Sukhdev Chhatbar

ARUSHA 11 April 2002 (Internews) Hormidas Nsengimana, a former Catholic priest in Rwanda during the 1994 genocide, was last night transferred to the United Nations Detention Facility (UNDF) in Arusha from Yaounde, Cameroon, where he was arrested on 21 March 2002.

Nsengimana, 48, faces four charges of genocide, conspiracy to commit genocide and crimes against humanity, including murder and extermination. He is the fifth clergyman to be indicted by the ICTR for genocide.

According to Kingsley Moghalu, ICTR Spokesperson, Nsengimana "will soon appear before the court."

Nsengimana is a former rector of Christ-Roi College in Nyanza, Nyabisindu commune in Butare Province, southern Rwanda. He allegedly played a leading role in a group called 'Les Dragons' (The Dragons) or the 'Escadron de la Mort' (The Death Squad). According to the ICTR Office of Prosecutor, the group terrorized ethnic Tutsi in Butare before killing them.

More than 800,000 ethnic Tutsi and politically moderate Hutu were killed during the April-July genocide in Rwanda. Unknown assailants shot down a plane carrying President Juvenal Habyarimana on 6 April 1994, triggering the violence in Rwanda.

Nsengimana's arrival brings the number of detainees at the UNDF to 52. Seven trials are currently in progress for 17 defendants.

The tribunal has handed down nine judgments since it was established in 1995, eight convictions and one acquittal.

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NTAKIRUTIMANA TRIAL: 'RADIO URGED PEOPLE TO SEEK REFUGE IN BISESERO,' WITNESS CLAIMS

By Mary Kimani

ARUSHA 11 April 2002 (Internews) Anna Nzabumunyurwa Ntakirutimana, wife of genocide suspect Gerard Ntakirutimana, today told judges at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) that Radio Muhabura, a station belonging to the Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF), in 1994 instructed RPF supporters in Kibuye Province to seek refuge in the Bisesero hills.

"Radio Muhabura told people in Kibuye to go to the Bisesero hills because that area would be safe. the radio asked people to go to school buildings, churches hospitals and up high hills," she said.

Nzabumunyurwa, who is testifying as the 11th defense witness in the joint trial for Gerard and his father Elizaphan Ntakirutimana, denied that her husband encouraged people to seek refuge at the Mugonero Adventist Complex during the April-June 1994 genocide in Rwanda. Gerard was a doctor at the church complex and Elizaphan was an Adventist pastor in Mugonero.

The prosecution alleges that Gerard and Elizaphan Ntakirutimana encouraged ethnic Tutsi to seek refuge at the church complex while planning a militia attack against them. The father and son have denied charges of genocide and crimes against humanity.

Nzabumunyurwa told the court that she is half-Tutsi and that the best man at their wedding was half-Tutsi.

She said that after the killing of President Juvenal Habyarimana on 6 April 1994, they sheltered the family of a Tutsi man named Israel Nsengimana until they fled their house to seek refuge at the hospital.

At one point during her testimony, Nzabumunyurwa broke down when she recalled that their domestic worker, who was Tutsi and who refused to seek shelter with them, was subsequently never found. "I looked around [for her] but I could not obtain any information about what had happened to her," she said in tears.

She narrated how Gerard took her and other workers at the hospital to Gisovu, where he believed they would be safe. The hospital workers included a Tutsi woman named Clementine and her family. Nzabumunyurwa told the court that during their journey, they feared that Clementine would be hurt because they had heard that people were looking for ethnic Tutsi to kill.

According to Nzabumunyurwa, when they got to Gisovu, the local mayor told Gerard: "I hope you have not brought any 'Inkotanyi' (a term used to mean RPF soldiers as well as all Tutsi), I do not want any Inkotanyi in my commune."

Nzabumunyurwa said that Clementine opted to return to Mugonero with Gerard, together with two of her three children. She testified that she never saw Clementine again.

Royifi Nyirahakizimana, Elizaphan's wife, completed her testimony before the ICTR this morning. She began her testimony yesterday.

The trial is held before Trial Chamber I of the ICTR comprising Judges Eric Mose of Norway (presiding), Navanethem Pillay of South Africa and Andresia Vaz of Senegal.

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KAJELIJELI TRIAL: PROSECUTION CLOSES ITS CASE

By Sukhdev Chhatbar

ARUSHA 10 April 2002 (Internews) The prosecution today closed its case in the trial for genocide suspect Juvenal Kajelijeli, after their last two witnesses refused to testify before the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR). Judges adjourned the trial until 16 September 2002.

"We're closing the case although the two witnesses were necessary to testify, and we might call them in rebuttal," Ken Fleming, senior trial attorney, told the court.

Fourteen prosecution witnesses have testified in the trial, which began on 4 July 2001.

When the trial resumed on Monday, Carla Del Ponte, ICTR Chief Prosecutor, told the court that the two witnesses have declined to testify despite the prosecution's attempts to persuade them. The witnesses informed prosecutors that they would not testify until they hear from IBUKA, a Rwandan association of genocide survivors, that they can travel to Arusha to testify.

IBUKA and AVEGA, an association of widows who survived the genocide, have suspended co-operation with the tribunal, alleging that people suspected to have been involved in the 1994 genocide in Rwanda are working as ICTR defense investigators.

Kajelijeli, 50, is a former mayor of Mukingo commune, Ruhengeri Province in Rwanda. He has denied 11 counts of genocide and crimes against humanity. Kajelijeli allegedly committed the crimes between April and July 1994 in Rwanda.

Lennox Hinds of the United States, lead counsel for Kajelijeli, told the court that he is ready to open the defense case on 16 September. Hinds said he intends to call approximately 25 witnesses to testify for Kajelijeli.

Judge William Sekule of Tanzania (presiding) directed that a status conference be held next Monday to finalize arrangements for the beginning of the defense case.

The two Rwandan associations, IBUKA and AVEGA, announced on 24 January 2002 that they were suspending co-operation with the tribunal, citing disillusionment with the UN court.

The last two prosecution witnesses in the Kajelijeli trial are members of the two genocide survivors groups. They declined to testify "because they heard over Radio Rwanda that witnesses should not attend the trials at the ICTR," Del Ponte told the court on Monday, adding that the two told prosecutors that they will only change their minds after another radio announcement urging them to attend the trials.

IBUKA claims it has a list of 41 defense investigators who were allegedly involved in the genocide, and who could pose a serious threat to the security of prosecution witnesses.

Martin Ngoga, Rwanda government's special representative to the ICTR, said at a press conference in his office yesterday that the government of Rwanda would like to see the trials continue uninterrupted, and that his government is unhappy with the witnesses' boycott. However, Ngoga pointed out that the Rwandan government couldn't force witnesses to testify, adding, "we don't have full control over these autonomous associations."

Ngoga said his government is concerned that witnesses are boycotting ICTR trials, but stressed, "the government of Rwanda has no capacity to resolve the problem unilaterally."

The Rwandan representative denied claims that his government is using the genocide survivors groups to stall the trials to reiterate its position against alleged genocide suspects working at the ICTR.

At the same time, Ngoga said the government of Rwanda would submit a report to the ICTR Registry, regarding the "unauthorized" acquisition of 26 judicial documents by Hinds, lead counsel for Kajelijeli. Hinds allegedly made copies "without authorization" of documents from files containing confessions by four detainees currently in the Ruhengeri Prison in Rwanda. The attorney visited the prison in September last year. "We want these documents returned to Rwanda. If the lawyer requires them, a proper procedure must be followed to acquire them," Ngoga maintained.

However, Hinds, who addressed the press in Arusha today, denied the allegations. "I obtained the documents through official permission. I was assigned a clerk to sit with me as I went through the files of detainees I wanted. I photocopied the documents with assistance of the clerk. I did it all officially."

The attorney added: "What has happened is that someone has got alarmed that I used the documents [in court at the ICTR] to prove that a prosecution witness' testimony was fabricated."

Ngoga said he would submit, in a day or two, a report by Jean Baptiste Nsabimana, Ruhengeri Prosecutor, to the Registry regarding Hinds' "unauthorized" access of judicial documents and illegal access into the Ruhengeri prison. Hinds stressed that the core work of the tribunal is to establish the truth about the suspects (for their role in the 1994 genocide), "not intimidation" to any of the involved parties.

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RESPECT INVESTIGATORS' RIGHTS, DEFENSE LAWYERS URGE RWANDA TRIBUNAL

By Sheenah Kaliisa

ARUSHA 10 April 2002 (Internews) Defense lawyers at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) want the tribunal to stop suspending, arresting or failing to renew contracts for defense investigators without informing them, stressing that such actions violate the rights of the defense.

Addressing a press conference in Arusha, officials of the Association of Defense Lawyers at the ICTR also expressed concern over the "deplorable" working conditions that their legal assistants and investigators "endure" at the tribunal.

The officials called the press conference to announce resolutions they made during an annual general meeting on 29-30 March.

The lawyers said they are concerned that the rights of their legal assistants and defense investigators are not respected. "If you are investigating somebody, then you have to hear the person before. We have to respect the rules," said Jean Degli of Togo/France, the association's new secretary-general. Degli is counsel for Gratien Kabiligi, one of the suspects in the so-called "Military Trial" before the tribunal.

The attorneys stated that they have resolved to denounce future suspension or sanctions against defense investigators without the tribunal advising the principal lawyer concerned.

Two defense investigators were last year arrested on genocide charges. Joseph Nzabirinda, alias Biroto, a former defense investigator in the defense team of Sylvain Nsabimana, was arrested on 21 December 2001 in Belgium on the request of Carla Del Ponte, ICTR Chief Prosecutor. Simeon Nshamihigo, who was an investigator in the defense team of Samuel Imanishimwe, was arrested in May 2001 in Arusha for his alleged role in the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.

Nzabirinda and Nshamihigo are currently in the custody of the ICTR, awaiting trial for genocide.

On 24 January this year, two Rwandan genocide survivor groups, IBUKA and AVEGA announced that they were suspending their co-operation with the tribunal until the tribunal takes action against the alleged genocide suspects working as defense investigators, among other demands.

IBUKA maintains that there are 41 genocide suspects working at the tribunal as defense investigators. The association urged its members not to testify before the tribunal until the ICTR addresses its concerns, which includes the allegation that witnesses have been mistreated at the tribunal.

Following IBUKA's position, a number of prosecution witnesses have refused to testify, forcing the prosecution to close its case in the trial for Juvenal Kajelijeli, a former Rwandan mayor. The prosecution in the so-called "Butare Trial," withdrew 10 witnesses from its list after they declined to testify.

According to Del Ponte the witnesses "say that they heard over the radio that IBUKA has urged them not to attend trials at the ICTR and they say that they will only appear before the tribunal after hearing over the radio that they can do so."

The new officials of the defense lawyers association elected during the annual general meeting are: Kennedy Ogetto of Kenya (President), Nicole Bergevin of Canada (Vice-President), Jean Yaovi Degli of Togo/France (Secretary-General), Raphael Constant of Martinique/France (Deputy Secretary-General), Rety Hamuli of the Democratic Republic of Congo/France (Treasurer), Josette Kadji of Cameroon (Deputy Treasurer), Andre Tremblay of Canada (Information Advisor), Louise Mbida of Cameroon (Administration
Advisor) and Michel Boyer of Canada (Legal Affairs Advisor).

Degli said the association has more than 40 members.

During their general meeting, the lawyers also resolved not to accept any unilateral modification to their contracts without their acceptance.

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NTAKIRUTIMANA TRIAL: PASTOR'S WIFE TESTIFIES IN HIS DEFENSE

By Mary Kimani

ARUSHA 10 April 2002 (Internews) The trial for genocide suspects Elizaphan Ntakirutimana and his son Gerald resumed today before the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), with the testimony of Royifi Nyirahakizimana, Elizaphan's wife. She is the 10th defense witness.

Ntakirutimana, 77, was an Adventist pastor in Mugonero, Kibuye Province in Rwanda, during the 1994 genocide. Gerald worked as a doctor at the Mugonero Adventist Complex. They allegedly participated in a massacre that took place on 16 April 1994 at the Mugonero complex, where approximately 5000 people died.

Elizaphan and Gerard have denied seven counts of genocide and crimes against humanity. The prosecution alleges that the father and son committed these crimes at the complex and in the hills of Bisesero between May and June 1994.

The Ntakirutimana trial was adjourned on 15 February to facilitate the hearing of an alternate trial. The defense began presenting their witnesses on 4 February 2002. The prosecution team presented 17 witnesses before closing its case in November. The defense has indicated that it will call 37 witnesses before closing their case.

During today's proceedings, Nyirahakizimana testified that Elizaphan was unwell for most of April and May 1994, and spent his time in the church office or at home resting.

She told the court that she married Elizaphan in 1950 and that he has always worked in the church. She claimed that Elizaphan and Gerard did not participate in any massacres and did not possess any weapons.

Nyirahakizimana told the court that her family fled the violence in Mugonero on 16 April after Elizaphan informed them that there was no commitment from commune officials regarding their security.

"He (the pastor) was very badly off, he was ill and we were not living in very good conditions. He just used to sit in front of the building where we were staying. even when we went back he was not okay, he was ill," Nyirahakizimana said.

The trial is held before Trial Chamber I of the ICTR, comprising Judges Erik Mose of Norway (presiding), Navanethem Pillay of South Africa and Andresia Vaz of Senegal.

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EXPENSIVE JUSTICE: COST OF RUNNING THE RWANDA TRIBUNAL

BY Mary Kimani

ARUSHA 9 April 2002 (Internews) The United Nations Security Council has approved $192,312,400 for the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) budget for 2002-2003. The approval follows protracted discussions, numerous meetings and demands to the tribunal to justify its latest budget.

The amount authorized by the UN gives ICTR $96,156,200 to spend each year, $2,079,000 less than what the court requested. The amount is markedly lower than that allocated to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), whose 2002-3 budget is $690 million.

Since 1996, the two tribunals have incurred a combined expenditure of more than $12 billion. The ICTY has spent $653,499,522 while ICTR has spent $536,797,000. The cost of justice for the two tribunals has been undeniably high.

However, international justice seems to follow the ICTR/ICTY trend. For instance, the trial of two Libyans suspected of involvement in the 1998 Lockerbie bombing has cost Scotland and the United States of America more than $100 million, four million dollars more than the ICTR's budget for a year. The venue for the trial cost more than $17 million to renovate, but it may never be used for any other trial. Such is to date the cost of international justice.

Yet international justice need not be this expensive. At the beginning of the April-June 1994 genocide in Rwanda, General Romeo Dallaire, commander of the UN Assistance Mission in Rwanda (UNAMIR) sent a fax to UN headquarters in New York, requesting additional troops and a wider mandate to contain hostilities in the country. According to his testimony before the ICTR on 25 February 1998, Dallaire had assessed that only 5000 troops were required to contain the massacres and ensure peace.

With a wider mandate and more troops, UNAMIR would have been in a position to stop the concerted campaign to kill ethnic Tutsi and politically moderate ethnic Hutu. However, the request was rejected, and a few days later, following the assassination of 10 Belgian peacekeepers, most of the UN troops were withdrawn. Seven years later, the ICTR's work of bringing to justice those responsible for the killings in Rwanda is an attempt to repair the damage done by not preventing the genocide in the first place. This damage control has cost the UN millions of dollars.

In 1996, ICTR's budget was $40 million. Four years later, it has doubled to $86,154,900. In that time, the ICTR workforce grew from less than 100 to 800.

ICTR held its first trial in 1997. Since then, three trials, for Jean Paul Akayesu, Alfred Musema and the joint trial of Clement Kayishema and Obed Ruzindana, have been completed up to Appeals level. Jean Kambanda, Omar Serushago and Georges Ruggiu pleaded guilty, saving the ICTR the need to conduct trials. Appeal cases for Georges Rutaganda and Ignace Bagilishema are pending.

Keeping in mind that it cost $536, 797,000 to conduct these trials only, it is difficult to fathom what the final cost of justice for the ICTR will be. For example, $500,000 was spent on the defense of Akayesu alone, a figure that excludes the fees paid to his lawyers for appeal hearings.

Where the Money Goes:

Legal fees are not the only expenses of justice. It costs $20 a day to maintain each detainee at the United Nations Detention Facility (UNDF) in Arusha. Currently, there are 51 detainees at the UNDF and six are serving their sentences in Mali. At $20 a day, each detainee costs the UN court $7,300 a year, yet most people in the African continent live on less than a dollar a day.

The ICTR estimates medical costs for detainees at $1,000 monthly, and requested the UN Security Council for $104,000 for 2002 and $156,000 for 2003. Medical supplies for the UNDF cost $220,000 a year.

Transport and maintenance of detained witnesses is estimated at $50,000 for 2002 and $84,000 for 2003. Air travel and sustenance for inspectors who periodically monitor conditions at the UNDF stand at $47,900 for the year 2002 and $55,600 for 2003.

Each ICTR unit has a mini-budget. The Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) asked for $39,466,200 for 2002-2003 to pay its employees and received $400,000 more to pay consultants and experts, an increase of $136,900 from the previous budget. Interestingly, of $195,100 the OTP requested for these services in 2001, only $75,165 was spent by 30 September 2001.

The Office of the Prosecutor says that their expenses are based on the assumption that there will be "six trials per year during 2002-2003." They expect an average of three expert witnesses per trial in 2002 and two expert witnesses per trial in 2003.

"Assuming that each witness remains at Arusha approximately seven days per trial, the related requirements would amount to $230,100 [per person], $73,500 in fees at $350 a day, plus travel and subsistence expenses of $156,600," the OTP states in the budget request.

The OTP's travel expenses amount to $3,310,00, exceeding the previous year's request by $1,482,600. After review, the budgetary commission recommended that only $3 million be allocated.

The $3,310,000 is spent as follows: Travel by investigators, $1,300,000; travel by tracking teams, $900,000; travel for the prosecutor, deputy prosecutor, trial teams, appeals counsel and other staff, $1,110,000. In contrast, the previous year's costs were: $312,900 for investigations, $299,500 for tracking teams and $333,071 for the Office of the Prosecutor.

The OTP requested an additional $100,000 for forensic experts. According to the report, "the typical cost of a forensic examination is $2,500." Allowance is made for an estimated 20 such processes every year, out of an estimated evidence unit holding of 160,000 exhibits.

Forensic expertise has been presented twice before the ICTR, the joint trial for Clement Kayishema and Obed Ruzindana and the trial for Georges Rutaganda. In the trial for Laurent Semanza, forensic evidence was denied after defense lawyers failed to present the expert's report on time. It is unclear what forensic expertise the prosecution refers to in the budget given how rarely it is used.

Judges

The UN Assembly allocated $4,139,400 for the annual salaries of nine trial judges and $3,520,000 for two appeals judges; $30,000 is set aside as a special allowance for the ICTR president and a maximum of $18,800 special allowance for the vice-president for whenever he acts as president. $570,600 covers the pensions of three retired judges and $150,500 to cover education grants for the serving judges; $170,200 is slated for home leave and travel and $392,000 is for air travel for members of the Appeals Chamber to Arusha three times a year.

The Registry, which runs all the other functions of the tribunal, requested $150,050,500, an increase of $20,499,400 from what was received in 2000-2001. Salaries account for $84,632,800, with $18,991,200 paid to defense lawyers. The rent for ICTR working space in Arusha and Kigali, including the UNDF and safe houses, costs $4,567,000.

The rest of the budget covers general operating costs. The ICTR incurs $817,700 in bank charges. Costs for electricity, water and diesel fuel for Arusha and Kigali amount to $1,122,200. Renting a beach craft, which flies between Kigali- /Arusha-Nairobi, amounts to $1,752,000.

Pouch and courier services cost the ICTR $230,000; international mail costs $80,000 and renting space on Intelsat, the communication satellite, costs a $1,623,900. Telephone and fax services, cell phones and radio communication take up $528,000 while long-distance telephone charges cost $360,000. It costs the tribunal $ 80,000 a year to stay online.

Laundry for security officers and drivers' uniforms, mechanics' overalls and court gowns cost $40,000. Purchase of uniforms cost $240,000, film and film processing, $350,000; periodicals and library books, $240,000; and photocopy paper costs $200,000. The Registry pays $600,000 annually in overtime for its staff.

Consultants

The Registry budget includes payment for consultants, pegged at $460,200 for 2002-2003. In 2001, the Registry paid consultants $251, 400 for their reports. One such report included in the 2002-2003 budget is titled: 'A Study on the Impact of Technology on the Tribunal,' and is billed at $25,000.

The Registry requested $2,240,000 for travel costs, significantly less than the prosecution, despite having a bigger workforce. However the request is $1,053,000 more than that of 2000- 2001 budget.

Tanzanian police officers and a Kigali security firm hired to supplement ICTR security officers take $1,519,400. In Arusha, the tribunal has an agreement with government of Tanzania to pay $10 daily for every police and prison official working at the court. This translates to $300 a month for each officer.

Prosecution witnesses will be paid allowances amounting to $500,000 a year. Witnesses receive a daily subsistence allowance of $20 for the duration of their testimony. A total of $640,000 has been budgeted for protected witnesses. This money is used to relocate witnesses, pay "accompanying support person costs, upkeep and child care costs, medical costs, clothing for witnesses, security guards and farm help costs, compensation for lost wages and cost of meals."

Defense attorneys have objected to remuneration for witnesses called to testify before the tribunal, arguing that this encourages fabrication of testimony by some witnesses. Nevertheless, defense witnesses also receive these stipends and the Registry has requested $400,000 for them.

In addition to this budget, several countries annually give additional funds to an ICTR trust fund. A donor country determines how the money is to be used. For instance, a donation by France was used to set up a closed-circuit digital video system for viewing trials at the ICTR. The court has $87,000,000 in the trust fund for a training seminar for defense lawyers, and most of the tribunal's 'outreach' work, aimed at informing Rwandans about the functions of the court, is funded in a similar manner.

Given the huge expense incurred in the process of administering international justice, there is a strong case to be made for preventative UN missions rather than post-conflict attempts at discharging justice. There is also a greater need to empower societies to deal with political crimes and human rights violations in their own countries. Had this been done for Rwanda on the onset, the need for such an expensive justice may never have existed.

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PROSECUTION WITNESSES BOYCOTT KAJELIJELI TRIAL

By Sukhdev Chhatbar

ARUSHA 8 April 2002 (Internews) The trial for Juvenal Kajelijeli, a former Rwandan mayor, which resumed today before the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), was adjourned until Wednesday after the prosecution reported that two protected witnesses have declined to testify.

The witnesses' move follows allegations that people suspected to have been involved in the 1994 genocide in Rwanda are working as ICTR defense investigators.

Carla Del Ponte, ICTR Chief Prosecutor, told the court that prosecutors on 5 March persuaded the two witnesses to come to Arusha to testify but "they [witnesses] say that they heard over the radio that IBUKA [an association of genocide survivors in Rwanda] has urged witnesses not to attend trials at the ICTR."

"They say will appear before the tribunal after hearing over the radio that they can do so," Del Ponte added.

Lennox Hinds of the United States, lead counsel for Kajelijeli, emphasized that there is need for the co-operation from potential witnesses for the smooth running of trials at the ICTR.

"We cannot see that justice is done without adequate co-operation of witnesses, not only for the prosecution but also for defense", he stressed.

IBUKA, the Association of genocide Survivors in Rwanda, and AVEGA, an association of genocide widows, announced on 24 January 2002 that it was suspending co-operation with the tribunal, citing disillusionment with the functioning of the UN court. The association claimed that genocide suspects are working as defense investigators at the tribunal.

IBUKA claims it has a list of 41 defense investigators who were allegedly involved in the genocide, and who could pose a serious threat to the security of prosecution witnesses.

The prosecution is expected to inform the court on Wednesday whether the witnesses will be available to testify.

Martin Ngoga, the Rwandan government's special representative to the ICTR, dismissed allegations that the Rwandan government had a hand in the witnesses declining to testify. "It's not true at all. What I know is that the stand [of boycotting] has been taken by the genocide associations. We are going to consult the Registry to see that the trials continue uninterrupted," he said.

The trial is before before Trial Chamber II of the ICTR, comprising Judges William Sekule of Tanzania (presiding), Winston Churchill Maqutu of Lesotho and Arlette Ramaroson of Madagascar.

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RWANDAN MUSICIAN DENIES GENOCIDE CHARGES

By Sheenah Kaliisa

(see photos)

ARUSHA 4 April 2002 (Internews) Simon Bikindi, a Rwandan composer and singer, today pleaded not guilty to genocide charges before the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR). To all the five counts he is charged with, Bikindi responded: "Loyally and honestly, I plead not guilty."

Dressed in a gray suit, white shirt and a bright-colored tie, Bikindi kept smiling as a Registry official read out his indictment. He burst out into laughter at one point as the crimes he allegedly committed during the 1994 genocide were read out.

Bikindi declined to respond when asked by Judge Pavel Dolenc of Slovenia (presiding) to state his profession.

At the beginning of the proceedings, Bikindi declined to be photographed by journalists as he entered the courtroom. "Stop, I do not want CNN to take my pictures," he told the photographers.

Bikindi, 48, denied all the counts of genocide and crimes against humanity, including murder and persecution. He was arrested in the Netherlands last year and transferred to the United Nations Detention Facility (UNDF) in Arusha on 28 March.

According to the indictment prepared by the Office of the Prosecutor, Bikindi incited the killings of ethnic Tutsi through songs he composed and sang. His music was played on Radio Libre Des Mille Collins (RTLM), which the prosecution claims was used to incite ethnic Hutu to kill ethnic Tutsi.

The prosecution claims that Bikindi was a member of the Movement of the Republic for National Development (MRND), the party that led a coalition government during the genocide. Bikindi also allegedly participated in the planning, instigation and preparation of the killings, and played a major role in recruiting and training 'Interahamwe' militiamen. The Interahamwe was the militia wing of the MRND.

Judge Dolenc, sitting in Trial Chamber III of the ICTR, said a trial date would be set in due course.

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BUTARE TRIAL: WITNESS FAILS TO IDENTIFY HER ALLEGED RAPIST IN COURT

By Sukhdev Chhatbar

ARUSHA 4 April 2002 (Internews) A prosecution witness, who alleges that she was raped twice during the 1994 genocide in Rwanda by one of the defendants in the so-called "Butare Trial," yesterday failed to identify her alleged rapist when she testified before the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR).

The witness -- identified only as "TN" -- pointed at a UN security officer guarding the accused when asked to identify her alleged rapist, Shalom Ntahobali, who was a militia leader in Butare Province during the genocide.

Defense attorneys for all the six defendants in the trial declined to cross-examine TN at the end of her main evidence. "We don't see any need to cross-examine the witness because she has failed to identify her alleged rapist," Normand Marquis of Canada, co-counsel of Ntahobali, told the court. TN was subsequently discharged from testifying this morning.

In her testimony, TN said she was 17 when Ntahobali allegedly raped her twice between 22 and 25 April 1994 in Butare. TN testified that she, together with six other ethnic Tutsi girls, were picked from fleeing refugees and kept for five days in a house by Ntahobali and other attackers who raped them daily. She claimed they had no food, only water, for the five days they were held in the house near the Butare provincial offices.

After raping her the first time, TN claimed, Ntahobali shoved a wooden brush handle into her vagina. "I felt a lot of pain and was bleeding," the witness narrated, adding that Ntahobali thereafter asked three soldiers to rape her, instructing them: "When you're tired [of raping], use the handles."

The witness told the court that before raping her, Ntahobali used a knife to tear off her skirt and forced her to lie down on ground. "Shalom than undressed himself and came on me. After that [rape] he pushed a handle into me," she stated.

According to TN, Ntahobali also told the girls to take the soldiers as their husbands "or be killed."

Led by prosecution attorney Adesola Adeboyejo of Nigeria, TN claimed that after the five days, Ntahobali took her to a refugee camp in Burundi. "A soldier named Alexi [who accompanied Ntahobali] ordered me to have sex with three soldiers [at the camp] and I did so," the witness alleged.

TN is the second witness to come face-to-face with her alleged rapist in the courtroom. In October last year, another witness --identified only as "TA" -- testified that she was gang-raped three times by 16 men during the genocide and alleged that Ntahobali was one of the rapists.

The Butare Trial is against six former leaders of Butare Province. They are: Pauline Nyiramasuhuko, a former Rwandan minister for family and women's affairs; Nyiramasuhuko's son Arsene Ntahobali, a former militia leader; Elie Ndayambaje, a former mayor of Muganza commune; Alphonse Nteziryayo, a former governor of Butare; Joseph Kanyabashi, a former mayor of Ngoma commune and Sylvain Nsabimana, a former Butare governor.

All six have denied charges of genocide and crimes against humanity. They allegedly committed the crimes in Butare, southwestern Rwanda.

After TN's testimony, the chamber adjourned for an hour before resuming to hear an oral motion submitted by the defense on the order of witnesses scheduled to appear before the judges.

The trial is held before Trial Chamber II of the ICTR, comprising Judges William Sekule of Tanzania (presiding), Winston Matanzima Maqutu of Lesotho and Arlette Ramaroson of Madagascar.

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NEWS FEATURE: CHALLENGES OF TRYING THE MEDIA FOR GENOCIDE

By Mary Kimani

ARUSHA 3 April 2002 (Internews) At the beginning of the so-called "Media Trial," on 23 October 2000 before the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), the prosecution indicated that they would present more than 90 witnesses and volumes of evidence to prove that the media was used to incite the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. Nearly halfway into the trial, 43 out of the 90 witnesses have testified, and three expert witnesses are expected to take the stand in May before the prosecution closes its case.

A number of the remaining eight lay witnesses are reported to be unwell and it is not clear whether or not they will testify because the prosecution has indicated that it may close its case in May, after presenting evidence from 46 witnesses, just above half of the total number expected.

At the beginning of trial, Bernard Muna of Cameroon, then ICTR Chief of Prosecution, told the judges that the prosecution would submit evidence from more than 600 broadcasts by Radio Television Libre Des Mille Collines (RTLM) and 72 copies of 'Kangura,' an alleged anti-Tutsi newspaper, to illustrate how a conspiracy of the media and the government led to civilian Rwandans arming themselves with machetes and killing neighbors they had known for years and lived with peacefully.

The Media Trial defendants are Ferdinand Nahimana, an RTLM founding member, Jean Bosco Barayagwiza, another RTLM founding member, and Hassan Ngeze, a former editor and owner of Kangura.

Radio Broadcasts

So far, the prosecution has submitted into evidence transcripts of 345 tapes of radio broadcasts, 273 of which are from RTLM tapes. The transcripts were admitted as evidence through the testimony of the first expert witness in the trial, Mathias Ruzindana, a socio-linguist in the tribunal's language section, amid objections from the defense.

Although the Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) names the people who copied the tapes and brought them into the evidence unit, the people who recorded the initial broadcasts remain unknown. Moreover, with the exception of about 60 tapes that were copied from the Rwandan Information Office, the tapes are from the archive of the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), which the defense contends is biased.

Defense attorneys in the trial also claim that the prosecution has been given a lot of leeway and that critical documents are disclosed to the defense late into the trial. This late disclosure of documents gives the defense little time to prepare, the lawyers argue.

According to Diana Ellis of the United Kingdom, co-counsel for Nahimana, the problem arises from the framework of the statute of the ICTR. She notes that although the statute is clear that witness statements and exculpatory material be served to the defense within specific time limits, it does not mention what is to be done with other documents. ICTR rules allow a prosecutor to file a document late if there is good cause.

"This does not take into account the size and complexity of the case. If you are to answer charges, the defense needs to see the basis on which they are based, for example witness statements and in this particular case the vast amount of material in Kangura and the broadcasts of RTLM and Radio Rwanda," Ellis stresses.

"There is no obligation on the prosecution to show the defense anything they are relying on as exhibits . no rules apply to the documents that will be used," Ellis stated.

Prosecution Case

Recently, prosecution attorney Simone Monasebian produced 48 documents with details of RTLM finances and signatories through the 42nd witness, Aaron Musonda, a prosecution investigator. Four of the documents were new to the defense and, following a complaint by Ellis, the judges threatened to sanction Monasebian for filing the documents late. However, the threat was lifted after the prosecutor explained that she only came across the documents a few days before.

Monasebian told the court that the prosecution has experienced difficulty in accessing documents from 'Zy-find', a computer database in their evidence section, adding that certain documents only come to their attention quite late.

The prosecution attorney has stated many times that documents were moved from Kigali to Arusha during the transfer of prosecution offices and were subsequently not organized well. Other documents were transferred to The Hague when there was concern that sensitive documents would not be safe in Kigali.

Monasebian told Internews that due to the turnover of members of staff in the prosecutor's office and in the investigation department, information about what documents are available is only being found now.

"Some of the complaints by defense counsel are spurious and are only intended to make the OTP look bad, and years back there was a reputation of the OTP perhaps not being as organized as it should be. However, the current Chief of Prosecution Silvana Arbia is working hard to ensure that all other sources of evidence in the database are in the best and most accessible order," Monasebian stresses.

Defense attorneys, who in March cross-examined Musonda, said that production of materials late in trial was prejudicial to the defense. Monasebian clarified that the material submitted is not covered by the rules of disclosure and that the prosecution is not obligated to produce the material in advance. She maintained that if the defense asked to see the material, it would have been provided to them. Monasebian argued that it is the prosecution that suffers when documents are not disclosed early in a trial.

However, Ellis rejects Monasebian's argument. "It is not understandable when it inappropriately comes out of the mouth of the prosecution that 'we are working very hard, doing everything we can' when very often they have held documents for years in a system that they have had for many years and could find them," Ellis counters.

"It is certainly not something they should seek to use as justification as we have heard of late," Ellis adds.

She notes that the fact that judges allow the prosecution to rely on documents even when they are disclosed late makes it very difficult for the defense to know in advance what charges they are defending their clients against.

"In a sense, the prosecution will continue this way because they are allowed to do so by the judges.When you say you are working very hard, that is irrelevant, it is just not fair to be producing this material for the first time and then say you did not know that it existed!" Ellis notes.

Fair Trial

When asked whether she thinks there is hope for a fair trial, Ellis
responds: "I hope we are not going through the motions of what is just a show trial, if not, then it does matter if the documents don't come in on time. I think the defense has complained about this but our concerns seem to fall on deaf ears. We just hope that when it comes to deliberating, the judges will be able take all this into consideration."

However, the issue of late disclosure of documents is only one of many problems in the trial. A key issue of concern is the number of RTLM tapes, which the defense argues is too limited to give a proper perspective of the actual content of RTLM broadcasts.

According to Ellis, the selection of tapes before the court "lacks even the fairness it would have if it was even said to be a random sample of RTLM broadcasts."

"We have been told that these are representative of the worst of what was broadcast," Ellis points out.

"One will never get a full understanding of what was said because not all the tapes of RTLM are available, what we have are recordings of some parts of the day. Someone still has to know if there is a full archive somewhere otherwise the actual tapes provided are dependent on those the prosecution acquired," Ellis points out

Availability of more recordings of RTLM is not the only issue. Although written transcripts into Kinyarwanda have been produced for all the 273 RTLM tapes available, even the senior prosecution attorney in the trial, Stephen Rapp of the United States, admits that only about 30 per cent have been fully translated into either English or French.

The evidence from Kangura has also invited controversy. With only a month before the end of the prosecution case, there is no complete translation in both English and French of the set of 72 issues of Kangura.

When trial started, Ngeze's defense team complained that only selected excerpts of stories have been translated into English and French, posing a risk of the content being read out of context.

In response, Muna said: "We've translated the passages we think are most incriminating. Evidently, it would be luxury to get all of the Kangura issues translated, but I don't think the tribunal has the resources." He observed that Ngeze speaks Kinyarwanda, the source language, and French, and therefore could point out any mistranslations.

Translation Hitch

John Floyd of the United States, counsel for Ngeze, notes that the choice of what to translate is the problem. The prosecution has translated what it considers incriminating; the defense lawyers do not speak Kinyarwanda and do not have the same means as the ICTR to independently undertake total translations, hence the element of what he calls lopsided justice.

As Ellis points out, to say that the accused are Kinyarwanda speakers is not helpful. She states that a lawyer cannot be expected to depend on the accused to tell them what is said in a document and the legal implications of the document.

"There is no equality of arms. The defense does not have the language resources available to the prosecution. For instance, we do not have the kind of assistance they have had from the Rwandan language expert [who is currently testifying] that they have had over the years, we have no right of similar access to a Kinyarwanda speaker to assist in the contents of this material," Ellis explains.

Meanwhile, the trial has been adjourned until May to allow for Judge Asoka De Zoysa Gunawardana of Sri Lanka to sit on an Appeals bench. Ruzindana is expected to continue testifying when the trial resumes in May.

The trial is held before Trial Chamber I of the ICTR, comprising Judges Navanethem Pillay of South Africa (presiding), Erik Mose of Norway and Gunawardana.

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CONTROVERSY OVER MANDATE OF ICTR-RWANDA TASKFORCE

By Sheenah Kaliisa

ARUSHA 3 April 2002 (Internews) Uncertainty has emerged regarding the recent mandate for a taskforce by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) and the government of Rwanda.

On the one hand, ICTR Registrar Adama Dieng says the taskforce was set up to investigate alleged mistreatment of witnesses at the tribunal. On the other hand, the government of Rwanda maintains that the taskforce was formed to investigate the alleged mistreatment of witnesses as well as the employment at the ICTR of Rwandans alleged to be genocide suspects.

Jean de Dieu Mucyo, Rwandan Justice Minister, told Internews that his government agreed to be part of the taskforce with the understanding that the team would investigate the alleged mistreatment of witnesses at the tribunal and the recruitment of Rwandan personnel alleged to be suspects of genocide.

In a letter dated 13 March 2002 to Dieng, Mucyo seeks to determine the taskforce's mandate, stating, "While respecting the spirit of our previous meeting, it seems very useful [for both parties] to make clear the mandate of this taskforce."

Mucyo's letter was in response to one he received from Dieng dated 4 March over the mandate of the taskforce. Dieng's letter indicated that the taskforce would only investigate the alleged mistreatment of witnesses.

Mucyo said the idea to form a taskforce came from a meeting between Dieng and Rwandan officials in Kigali in February.

However, Mucyo told Internews that he is surprised Dieng announced that they had only agreed to one task for the new team. "We were here in my office and I did not attend the meeting alone. We agreed on both things. I thought it was an oversight in the first place," the minister said.

Mucyo explained that more than four other people attended the meeting with Dieng. They included Frank Mugambage, police commissioner-general, Patrick Karegeya, director of security and external relations and Gerald Gahima, Rwandan prosecutor-general. Mucyo clarified that the formation of the taskforce was not Dieng's idea; rather, it was Gahima's suggestion. "I am surprised at the way he [Dieng] calls it his idea. The registrar did not suggest the idea of the taskforce," Mucyo insists.

In his letter to Mucyo, dated 28 March, Dieng says he regrets that the government of Rwanda expected an expansion of the taskforce's draft terms of reference, maintaining that the team was initially established within the limits of his powers and on the basis of specific allegations by non-governmental organizations.

A genocide survivors' association, IBUKA, on 26 February reiterated its decision not to co-operate with the tribunal, protesting the alleged harassment of a protected witness who testified late last year in the so-called "Butare Trial."

An official of IBUKA told Internews that they are investigating 41 people employed as defense investigators at the ICTR on their possible involvement in the genocide, adding that the association has completed nine investigations.

Kingsley Moghalu, ICTR Spokesperson, said at a press conference in Arusha yesterday that there might have been a misunderstanding regarding the taskforce's mandate. "We have an internal panel that investigates whether or not defense investigators are eligible to work for the tribunal. Why then do we need external assistance from the Rwandan government?" he asked.

Moghalu stressed that "it is logical that the tribunal could not allow the Rwandan government to get involved in investigating UN staff."

The taskforce, if implemented, would comprise two people appointed by the government of Rwanda and two from the ICTR Registry.

The taskforce was scheduled to begin work on 1 April but Dieng's letter to the Rwandan government on 28 March indicates that the team will be operational as soon as the Kigali government agrees on the tribunal's proposed mandate for the taskforce.

"The Registrar looks forward to a positive response on the part of the Rwandan authorities regarding the establishment of the investigative commission within the time limits prescribed, on the basis of the initially proposed terms of reference, solely consisting of the joint investigation of the allegations of mistreatment of witnesses coming from Rwanda," Dieng says in his letter to Mucyo.

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MILITARY TRIAL POSTPONED UNTIL SEPTEMBER

By Sheenah Kaliisa

ARUSHA 3 April 2002 (Internews) The so-called "Military Trial," which opened yesterday before the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR), was today postponed until 2 September to give the prosecution and the defense time to prepare themselves.

After a status conference held in closed session this morning, it was announced that all parties in the trial would hold another status conference on 28 June.

Sources told Internews that the adjournment would facilitate, among other things, the translation of documents, which the defense yesterday complained had not been translated from English to French.

Prolonged debate concerning the documents delayed the opening of the trial yesterday, with the prosecution making their opening statement in the afternoon.

The Military Trial defendants are: Colonel Theoneste Bagosora, Brigadier-General Gratien Kabiligi, Colonel Anatole Nsengiyumva and Major Aloys Ntabakuze.

Bagosora, 61, served as director of cabinet in the Rwandan Ministry of Defense in 1994. He retired from the army after attaining the rank of colonel. The prosecution alleges that Bagosora was the mastermind of the 1994 genocide.

According to the prosecution, Bagosora assumed 'de facto' control of military and political affairs in Rwanda after 6 April 1994 when unknown assailants shot down a plane carrying President Juvenal Habyarimana. All on board the plane died and killings started soon thereafter throughout the country.

Nsengiyumva, 52, served as commander of military operations in Gisenyi Province between 1993 and 1994. He is also former chief of military intelligence in the Rwandan army. Kabiligi, 51, was chief of military operations in the Rwandan army during the genocide. Ntabakuze, 48, was a commander of the para-commando battalion of the Rwandan army in 1994.

Prosecution sources have indicated that they will call more than 200 witnesses to prove their case. The first expert prosecution witness listed is Alison des Forges, an American human rights activist.

The trial is held before Trial Chamber III of the ICTR, comprising Judges Lloyd George Williams of St Kitts and Nevis (presiding), Pavel Dolenc of Slovenia and Andresia Vaz of Senegal.

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MILITARY TRIAL: EX-ARMY OFFICERS TURNED RWANDA INTO A KILLING FIELD, PROSECUTOR SAYS

By Sheenah Kaliisa

ARUSHA 3 April 2002 (Internews) Genocide suspects Theoneste Bagosora, Gratien Kabiligi, Anatole Nsengiyumva and Aloys Ntabakuze, who are jointly tried in the so-called "Military Trial," turned Rwanda into a killing field in 1994, the prosecution yesterday told judges at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR).

In his opening statement in the long-awaited trial against the former senior Rwandan Army officers, Chile Eboe-Osuji of Nigeria/Canada said that the prosecution will prove that the four planned and incited Rwandans to kill, maim and "rape every Tutsi woman they could find."

The violence in Rwanda in 1994 escalated so much that desperate victims would even pay the killers to shoot them using bullets instead of being "brutally murdered with machetes," the prosecutor told the court.

Violence erupted in Rwanda after 6 April 1994, resulting in the death of more than 800,000 ethnic Tutsi and politically moderate ethnic Hutu within a three-month period.

Bagosora, 61, served as director of cabinet in the Rwandan Ministry of Defense in 1994. He retired from the army in 1993 after attaining the rank of colonel. The prosecution alleges that Bagosora was the mastermind of the Rwandan genocide.

According to the prosecution, Bagosora allegedly assumed 'de facto control of military and political affairs in Rwanda after 6 April 1994 when unknown assailants shot down a plane carrying President Juvenal Habyarimana. All on board the plane died and killings started soon thereafter throughout the country.

Nsengiyumva, 52, served as commander of military operations in Gisenyi sector between 1993 and 1994. He is also a former chief of military intelligence in the Rwandan army. Kabiligi, 51, was chief of military operations in the Rwandan army during the genocide and Ntabakuze, 48, was commander of the para-commando battalion in the Rwandan Army.

Eboe-Osuji promised that the prosecution would produce evidence to show that the four planned and executed the genocide. "Even if someone is to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the Rwanda Patriotic Front [RPF] is responsible for the assassination of President Habyarimana, this cannot justify that the genocide was not planned."

The prosecution attorney stressed that however much the defendants tried to work behind the scenes it was obvious that they are responsible for the genocide. "They tried to hide their hands but in the end they came out," Eboe-Osuji added.

Eboe-Osuji displayed a graph entitled the 'entangled web of conspiracy,' which he said shows how the four co-coordinated in their common goal of exterminating the Tutsi and their sympathizers.

Bagosora is charged with 12 counts of genocide and crimes against humanity. Nsengiyumva faces 11 counts of genocide and crimes against humanity. Kabiligi and Ntabakuze are jointly indicted and face 10 counts of genocide and crimes against humanity. All have denied the charges.

Eboe-Osuji stated that the prosecution intends to call witnesses and produce evidence to prove that the four are responsible for the charges against them. "You will hear the stories of horror that these defendants subjected innocent civilians in Rwanda to," the attorney said.

"The crimes committed in Rwanda in 1994 shock the human conscience by their gravity, widespread and massive character. Crimes of the magnitude of those in the indictments before the chamber today affect all of us throughout the world," Carla del Ponte, ICTR Chief Prosecutor, told the court.

The prosecution's opening statement was read in the afternoon after a morning delay due to the absence of the accused in court.

Bagosora, Kabiligi, Nsengiyumva and Ntabakuze did not attend the proceedings, claiming that their rights under the ICTR statute have been violated. They empowered their attorneys to represent them "in full capacity."

Raphael Constant of Martinique/France represents Bagosora, Jean Degli of Togo/France represents Kabiligi, Clemente Monterosso of Canada represents Ntabakuze and Kenyans Keneddy Ogetto and Otachi Bw'Omanwa represent Nsengiyumva.

Defense counsel for Kabiligi, Ntabakuze and Nsengiyumva told the judges that they would present their opening statements when the prosecution closes its case. Constant said he would consult with his client before informing the chamber as to when he would make an opening statement.

The judges directed that a status conference be held this morning in closed session, before resumption of proceedings.

The trial is held before Trial Chamber III of the ICTR, comprising Judges Lloyd George Williams of St Kitts and Nevis (presiding), Pavel Dolenc of Slovenia and Andresia Vaz of Senegal.

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ABSENCE OF ACCUSED IN COURT DELAYS START OF MILITARY TRIAL

By Sheenah Kaliisa

ARUSHA 2 April 2002 (Internews) Four genocide suspects jointly tried in the so-called "Military Trial" today boycotted court, delaying the opening of the trial before the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR).

When Judge Lloyd George Williams of St. Kitts and Nevis (presiding) asked a Registry official why the defendants were not in court, the official told the court that the four have asked their attorneys to represent them "in full capacity." Defense lawyers told the court that the four are absent because "their rights were violated."

The trial is against former Rwandan military leaders Colonel Theoneste Bagosora, Brigadier-General Gratien Kabiligi, Colonel Anatole Nsengiyumva and Major Alloys Ntabakuze.

The prosecution alleges that Bagosora, 61, masterminded the Rwandan genocide. He served as advisor (chef de cabinet) at the Rwandan Defense Ministry in 1994. Bagosora allegedly assumed 'de facto' control of military and political affairs in Rwanda after the 6 April 1994 downing of President Juvenal Habyarimana's plane. Unknown assailants shot down Habyarimana's plane as it approached the capital, Kigali, sparking the April-June 1994 genocide.

Nsengiyumva, 52, is a former chief of Military Intelligence in the Rwandan Army. He was commander in chief of operations for Gisenyi Province in 1994. Kabiligi, 51, is a former chief of military operations in the Rwandan Army. Ntabakuze, 48, is a former the commander of the para-commando battalion of the Rwandan Army in 1994.

Raphael Constant of Martinique/France, counsel for Bagosora, explained that his client is absent because he does not have essential documents from the prosecution about expert reports and witnesses.

"My client has not received any expert report before the appearance today. And therefore he cannot be present today because he needs more time to organize himself," Jean Degli of Togo/France, counsel for Kabiligi, said.

"My client says that unless all the statements are disclosed to him, then he will not come to court," Clemente Monterosso of Canada, counsel for Ntabakuze, told the trial chamber.

Otachi Bw'Omanwa of Kenya, co-counsel for Nsengiyumva, said his client does not want to associate himself with "an unfair-trial." He accused the prosecution of not respecting the rules and decisions by the chamber but Judge Williams reminded the attorney that the judges are the ones running the proceedings, not the prosecution.

"You are accusing the prosecution of running the show, but at the look of things you and the defendants are trying to run the show and that is not acceptable," Williams stated.

Prosecution attorney Chile Eboe-Osuji of Nigeria/Canada asked the judges to direct that the defendants be brought to court by force, adding that the four should not attend only when they please.

Judge Williams said the chamber cannot force the defendants to attend court and asked the Registry to write to the four, reminding them that it is in their interest and in the interest of justice to attend the court's proceedings.

The defense attorneys sought an adjournment in order to have more time to prepare themselves but the prosecution insisted that they be allowed to make an opening statement.

"An opening statement is in no way the evidence brought by the prosecution against the defendants so I do not see any reason why it should not to be heard," Eboe-Osuji argued. The chamber adjourned the proceedings until 3 pm when a ruling on the motion will be given. The trial is held before Trial Chamber III of the ICTR, comprising Judges Lloyd George Williams of St Kitts and Nevis (presiding), Pavel Dolenc of Slovenia and Andresia Vaz of Senegal.

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RWANDAN MUSICIAN TRANSFERRED TO ARUSHA TO FACE GENOCIDE CHARGES

By Sukhdev Chhatbar

ARUSHA 2 April 2002 (Internews) Simon Bikindi, a Rwandan composer and singer, was last week transferred to the United Nations Detention Facility (UNDF) in Arusha to answer charges for his alleged role in the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.

Bikindi was arrested in the Netherlands last year at the request of Carla Del Ponte, Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR). He arrived at the UNDF on 28 March.

Bikindi, 48, is charged with conspiracy to commit genocide, genocide, or in the alternative, complicity in genocide, direct and public incitement to commit genocide and crimes against humanity, including murder and persecution.

The musician was a member of the Movement of the Republic for National Development (MRND), the party that led a coalition government during the genocide. Bikindi allegedly incited the killings of ethnic Tutsi through songs he composed and sang. His music was played on Radio Libre Des Mille Collins (RTLM), which the prosecution claims was used to incite ethnic Hutu to kill the Tutsi.

In addition, the prosecution claims that Bikindi participated in the planning, instigation and preparation of the killings, and played a major role in recruiting and training 'Interahamwe' militiamen. The Interahamwe was the militia wing of the MRND.

Sources in the ICTR say that Bikindi will make an initial appearance in court "soon."

Bikindi's arrival brings the number of suspects in the custody of ICTR to 56.

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CYANGUGU TRIAL ADJOURNED UNTIL 14 APRIL

By Sheenah Kaliisa

ARUSHA 2 April 2002 (Internews) The so-called "Cyangugu Trial" before the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) has been adjourned until 14 April to facilitate the hearing of an alternate trial.

The trial is for three former Rwandan officials from Cyangugu Province, southwestern Rwanda: Andre Ntagerura, a former minister of transport and communication; Samuel Imanishimwe, a former commander of the Cyangugu military barracks; and Emmanuel Bagambiki, a former Cyangugu governor. All have denied charges of genocide, conspiracy to commit genocide and crimes against humanity.

The 18th defense witness -- identified only as "BCH" -- completed his testimony on 28 March. His testimony was heard mostly in closed session.

The trial is held before Trial Chamber III of the ICTR, comprising Judges Lloyd George Williams of St. Kitts and Nevis (presiding), Yakov Ostrovsky of Russia and Pavel Dolenc of Slovenia.

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MILITARY TRIAL: 'WE WILL NOT BE PARTY TO AN UNFAIR TRIAL,' DEFENSE LAWYERS STATE

By Mary Kimani

(see photos)

ARUSHA 2 April 2002 (Internews) Defense lawyers for four former senior Rwandan military officers today urged judges at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) to comply with the tribunal's statute in conducting the trial against their clients.

Addressing a press briefing after their clients failed to appear in court for the opening of the trial, the lawyers said the four were not in court because their "rights have been violated."

The lawyers explained that Colonel Theoneste Bagosora, a former director of cabinet in the Rwandan Ministry of Defense, Brigadier-General Gratien Kabiligi, a former chief of military operations, Major Aloys Ntabakuze, a former commander of the para-military commando unit of the Rwandan Army and Lieutenant-Colonel Anatole Nsengiyumva, a former chief of Military Intelligence in the Rwandan Army, did not attend trial because "their fundamental rights have not been respected neither by the prosecution nor by the court."

The former military officers are jointly tried in the so-called "Military Trial." They boycotted today's proceedings to protest what they claim is the prosecutor's non-compliance of the tribunal's orders and a ruling by the chamber reducing the number of days before which the prosecutor must disclose statements made by protected witnesses to the defense.

Andre Tremblay of Canada, counsel for Ntabakuze, noted that according to ICTR rules, detainees should be given witness statements that contain all the relevant personal information of protected witnesses "at least 60 days before trial." He pointed out that Trial Chamber III has revised this rule in the case of their clients and ordered that they be given the documents "35 days before each witness is scheduled to testify."

The judges explained that the accused are powerful people in Rwanda and could influence the security of witnesses if given the information 60 days before trial.

Tremblay maintained that this ruling violates the statute of the tribunal, arguing, "the judges do not have the right to interpret the rules in this manner." He noted that since the decision was based on influence of the accused, "imagine what they will be thinking of about what influence the accused had during the [1994] events."

The attorneys told journalists that they have appealed against the chamber's ruling on the basis that the judges lack the mandate to modify the rules of the tribunal. The ICTR Appeals Court is yet to rule on the matter.

Tremblay pointed out that Ntabakuze and Bagosora have been awaiting trial for more than six years, adding that their clients do not want any further delay of the proceedings but do demand a fair trial process.

Jean Yaovi Degli of Togo/France, counsel for Kabiligi, noted that even with the 35 days ruling, the prosecutor failed to meet the deadline and has not yet provided crucial documents before trial. "All we want is for the rules of the tribunal, notably the statute, to be adhered to," he stressed.

Gershom Bw'Omanwa of Kenya, co-counsel for Nsengiyumva, said: "The accused are not asking a favor, they are demanding a right that is recognized by the statute of the tribunal." He noted that the prosecution does not seem to have a clear idea of what their case is and that although the defense has been asking for an expeditious trial, the prosecutor sought adjournments in order to group the accused in one trial and later to amend the indictments against them.

"The prosecutor is not ready. We have not yet received the witness statements and the pretrial brief has only been received in English. It is the obligation of the tribunal to provide the accused with these documents in a language they can understand . The beginning of trial is not an opening statement, it is the presentation of witnesses, so it is not the defense that are delaying this trial, it is the prosecution," Bw'Omanwa insisted.

When asked why the defense has not taken the initiative to translate the documents themselves, Tremblay responded that in principle, it is the obligation of the prosecution, which is bringing the charges, to make sure the accused understands them. He stressed that this obligation is stated in the statute and it is the ICTR, which has the means and obligation to make sure the accused have the right documents on time. "We cannot undertake the translation of documents to accuse ourselves," Tremblay noted.

"In an ideal situation, when the prosecution is not ready, they ought to release the detainee until they are ready, that is not what we are calling for here, but that is the ideal situation," Bw'Omanwa added.

The trial is held before Trial Chamber III of the ICTR, comprising Judges Lloyd George Williams of St Kitts and Nevis (presiding), Pavel Dolenc of Slovenia and Andresia Vaz of Senegal.

INTERNEWS REPORTS - April 2002 The International War Crimes Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR)

NTAKIRUTIMANA TRIAL: PASTOR ELIZAPHAN TESTIFIES IN HIS OWN DEFENSE

NTAKIRUTIMANA TRIAL: DEFENSE WITNESS WANTED IN RWANDA FOR GENOCIDE, PROSECUTOR ALLEGES

CORRECTION: ICTY'S 2002/2003 BUDGET $218 MILLION, NOT $690 MILLION

NTAKIRUTIMANA TRIAL: VILLAGERS WERE ASKED TO FRAME GENOCIDE SUSPECTS, CLAIMS DEFENSE WITNESS

PROSECUTION CLOSES ITS CASE IN SEMANZA TRIAL

NTAKIRUTIMANA TRIAL: 'ATTACKERS BOASTED ABOUT THEIR KILLLINGS,' WITNESS CLAIMS

DEFENSE LAWYERS APPLAUD WITHDRAWAL OF CONTROVERSIAL TASKFORCE

SEMANZA TRIAL: ANOTHER WITNESS CHALLENGES SEMANZA'S ALIBI

NTAKIRUTIMANA TRIAL: 'DOCTOR DIDN'T GO TO BISESERO DURING GENOCIDE,' WITNESS CLAIMS

WITNESS URGES SEMANZA TO CONFESS TO GENOCIDE CRIMES

ICTR REGISTRAR WITHDRAWS CONTROVERSIAL TASKFORCE

RWANDA GOVERNMENT NOT INVESTIGATING ALLEGED GENOCIDE SUSPECTS ON ICTR PAYROLL

NTAKIRUTIMANA TRIAL ADJOURNED FOR LACK OF WITNESSES

RWANDA TRIBUNAL SUSPENDS ANOTHER DEFENSE INVESTIGATOR

EX-RWANDAN PRIEST TRANSFERRED TO ARUSHA TO ANSWER GENOCIDE CHARGES

NTAKIRUTIMANA TRIAL: 'RADIO URGED PEOPLE TO SEEK REFUGE IN BISESERO,' WITNESS CLAIMS

KAJELIJELI TRIAL: PROSECUTION CLOSES ITS CASE

RESPECT INVESTIGATORS' RIGHTS, DEFENSE LAWYERS URGE RWANDA TRIBUNAL

NTAKIRUTIMANA TRIAL: PASTOR'S WIFE TESTIFIES IN HIS DEFENSE

EXPENSIVE JUSTICE: COST OF RUNNING THE RWANDA TRIBUNAL

PROSECUTION WITNESSES BOYCOTT KAJELIJELI TRIAL

RWANDAN MUSICIAN DENIES GENOCIDE CHARGES

BUTARE TRIAL: WITNESS FAILS TO IDENTIFY HER ALLEGED RAPIST IN COURT

NEWS FEATURE: CHALLENGES OF TRYING THE MEDIA FOR GENOCIDE

CONTROVERSY OVER MANDATE OF ICTR-RWANDA TASKFORCE

MILITARY TRIAL POSTPONED UNTIL SEPTEMBER

MILITARY TRIAL: EX-ARMY OFFICERS TURNED RWANDA INTO A KILLING FIELD, PROSECUTOR SAYS

ABSENCE OF ACCUSED IN COURT DELAYS START OF MILITARY TRIAL

RWANDAN MUSICIAN TRANSFERRED TO ARUSHA TO FACE GENOCIDE CHARGES

CYANGUGU TRIAL ADJOURNED UNTIL 14 APRIL

MILITARY TRIAL: 'WE WILL NOT BE PARTY TO AN UNFAIR TRIAL,' DEFENSE LAWYERS STATE

INTERNEWS REPORTS - April 2002
The International War Crimes Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR)