Francois Karera, the man behind Tutsi massacres at Ntarama and Nyamata Churches

The Churches of Nyamata and Ntarama were converted into genocide memorials after the killings of Tutsi inside those churches during the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. The memorials contain human remains, clothing, and artefacts belonging to the Tutsi who were killed at the churches.

One notorious killer who organised those massacres is Francois Karera.  He died on May 10 in a Benin prison where he was serving his life sentence since 2009.

Karera was incarcerated with other five convicted genocidaires who were given lengthy sentences by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR): Gerard Ntakirutimana, Juvenal Kajelijeli, Emmanuel Ndindabahizi, Juvenal Rugambarara and Athanase Seromba.

 Karera who was convicted of complicity in genocide, extermination and murder as crimes against humanity was born in 1939 from former Musasa Commune in former Rural Kigali, currently in Rulindo District.  

He was appointed Préfet of Rural-Kigali in April 1994 due to his role in persecuting the Tutsi in Bugesera region before 1994. Then he was Sous-Préfet of Bugesera and killed a big number of Tutsi in the infamous “Bugesera Tutsi massacres” of 1992.

From 1975 to 1990, Karera was Bourgmestre of Nyarugenge urban commune, an administrative unit which was later replaced by Kigali-Ville prefecture. He was also at one time the President of the MRND party in Nyarugenge commune.

Karera was convicted of the crimes of genocide committed between April and mid-July 1994,  in different distinct areas like in Rwezamenyo Sector, Nyarugenge District, Ntarama and Nyamata Sectors in Bugesera District and other different places.

Karera lived in the Nyamirambo area of Kigali. As former Mayor of Nyarugenge he spearheaded the campaign to kill the Tutsi and destroy their homes in Nyamirambo area which was inhabited by a big number of Tutsi.

Among those that were killed as a direct consequence of Karera’s acts are Rukemampunzi,  Mazimpaka, Joseph Kahabaye, Leonard, Murekezi and his three children, Kabuguza, Enode Ndoli, John, Nana, Bosco and Kazadi who were all killed on April 7, 1994 by Interahamwe and  three communal policemen who were stationed at a roadblock in front of Karera's house.

On December 7, 2007, the ICTR Appeals Chamber found Karera guilty of genocide and extermination and murder as crimes against humanity, for his participation in the killing of the Tutsi in Nyamirambo at Ntarama and Nyamata churches, and in former Rushashi commune  currently in Rulindo District. The Appeals Chamber affirmed Karera’s convictions for instigating and committing genocide, and for extermination and murder as crimes against humanity.

After fleeing to Zaire, now the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Karera continued the anti-Tutsi campaign. This included openly justifying the killing of Tutsi civilians by denying the Genocide against the Tutsi. Between July and December 1994, Karera and several other former genocidal government officials convened a meeting in a refugee camp in Zaire to develop a strategy to regain power.

Discussions at the meeting included references to the mission of killing all the Tutsi. Karera suggested fund-raising activities to purchase weapons. Karera suggested to schoolteachers at Katale refugee camp schools that instead of teaching children mathematics and academic subjects, they should concentrate on teaching them that there was only one enemy, the Tutsi.