The International criminal court (ICC) should start a full investigation into the continued human rights violations and Torture in Rwanda given the full USA State Department and Human Rights Reports that the RPF led government has committed crimes under the Jurisdiction of this court.

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The Rwandan government should also be warned by the international criminal court (ICC) that if it does not cooperate with an initial investigation into possible breaches of international law the court may launch a full investigation without its input.

According to the US State Department, the Rwandan government has committed numerous crimes that could constitute crimes against humanity if are fully investigated;

 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom from: Share

 Arbitrary or Unlawful Deprivation of Life

The State Department highlights several reports in which the Rwandan government committed arbitrary or unlawful killings.

On May 17, Alfred Nsengimana, the former executive secretary of Cyuve Sector in Musanze District, was shot and killed while in police custody. Nsengimana was among at least 77 people arrested in Musanze and Rubavu districts from January through May for suspected links to the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR). Police stated that a Rwanda Correctional Services (RCS) guard shot Nsengimana while trying to escape after leading police to an FDLR weapons cache. Nsengimana was allegedly tortured prior to his death, and police reportedly refused to release Nsengimana’s body to his family. The government responded that Nsengimana’s body was turned over to his family for burial, and that an internal investigation found he was not tortured.

On June 5, President Kagame defended the government’s policy and practices with regard to individuals suspected of posing a threat to state security. During a speech in Nyabihu District, Kagame stated, “those who talk about disappearances…we will continue to arrest more suspects and if possible shoot in broad daylight those who intend to destabilize our country.”

On September 25, the commissioner of the Rwanda National Police (RNP) Criminal Investigations Division announced the arrest of two RNP officers in connection with the July 2013 murder of Transparency International Rwanda Office Coordinator Gustave Makonene. Makonene was strangled and his body dumped on the shores of Lake Kivu near the town of Rubavu; the government and domestic observers noted that Makonene was investigating cases of local police corruption and the trafficking of conflict minerals from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) at the time of his death.

From July to October, a number of corpses appeared in Lake Rweru, which is bisected by the border between Rwanda and Burundi. Fishermen reported seeing dozens of floating bodies, some bound and wrapped in sacks. The fishermen alleged that the bodies were carried into the lake by the Nyabarongo River and that the majority of the bodies were then carried away from the lake by the Kagera River. Four bodies were recovered and buried near Kwidagaza village in Burundi’s Muyinga Province. Fishermen living near Kwidagaza reported that on the nights of September 21 and 22, Rwandan marines attempted to exhume the bodies, allegedly to return them to Rwanda. Both Rwanda and Burundi called for a joint investigation into the identity and origin of the bodies. On December 16, Burundi’s minister of foreign affairs accepted an offer of forensic assistance from a group of countries through an international NGO for an investigation led by the African Union. Rwandan officials stated that the government also supported a joint investigation, but no investigation was conducted by year’s end.

The government did not investigate reports that SSF were responsible for the death of former Rwandan intelligence chief and government critic Patrick Karegeya, who was killed on the night of December 31, 2013, in a hotel room in Johannesburg, South Africa. The government denied responsibility for and involvement in the murder, although senior officials publicly welcomed the news of Karegeya’s death. The South African government expelled four Rwandan diplomats, and one from Burundi, in March in connection with Karegeya’s killing and a March attack on the home of another prominent Rwandan government critic.

Government support to the M23 armed group ceased in November 2013, and in contrast to previous years, there were no reports of material support to armed groups. The government continued to deny it provided any support to the M23.

 

 Disappearance

There were more reports of disappearances and politically motivated abductions or kidnappings than in previous years. The NGO Human Rights Watch (HRW) and domestic observers alleged the SSF–including the Rwandan Defense Force (RDF), the National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS), and the RNP–were involved in reported disappearances. The government stated the police opened missing person’s investigations for all individuals reported to be missing by families or human rights organizations, but no perpetrators were identified or punished.

 

 Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment

The Rwandan constitution and law prohibit such practices, but there were numerous reports of abuse of detainees and prisoners by police, military, and NISS officials. The places of Torture include military and police detention centers, including the Kwa Gacinya detention center in Kigali and the Kami military intelligence camp. Again, there were numerous reports of detainee abuse and lengthy illegal detention by police and the SSF at the Gikondo Transit Center (locally known as Kwa Kabuga), the Kwa Gacinya detention center in Kigali, and the Kami military intelligence camp.

The Great Lakes Human Rights Link is very concerned and urges the ICC to use the above reports both from US State Department and Human Rights Link to initiate investigations in Rwanda. Pursuant to the Rome Statute, the Prosecutor can initiate an investigation on the basis of a referral from any State Party or from the United Nations Security Council. In addition, the Prosecutor can initiate investigations proprio motu on the basis of information on crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court received from individuals or organisations (“communications”).

Indeed, the ICC armed with the above reports and other reports could start investigations in the continued violations of human rights in Rwanda. This will not only bring to justice those involved in these heinous crimes but will deter the culture of impunity in our governments.

Noble Marara

Executive Secretary

Great Lakes Human Rights Link.