Whitewashing genocidaires will not work

Author: Samson Kasujja

• 2023-05-01 04:39:00

The offsprings of genocide fugitives were radicalized and continue to spread the same deadly genocidal ideology blamed for the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, in Rwanda, when more than one million people were murdered within 100 days.

This is the case of Peter Mutabaruka, son of Célestin Mutabaruka. He runs a platform called ‘Amahoriwacu’, through which he tarnishes the Rwandan government’s image with allegations of human rights violations in a bid to whitewash his father’s genocide crimes.

Worse still, Mutabaruka’s son is investing more effort in spreading the double genocide theory.

During the 29^th Commemoration, he made a viral video clip where he was filmed claiming that Rwanda’s ruling party, RPF–Inkotanyi, which halted the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, has committed ‘Hutu massacres’ in Rwanda and neighboring countries.

By referring to RPF as killers, Mutabaruka is whitewashing his father and other genocidaires who have the Tutsi’s blood on their hands.

The United Nations recognizes one genocide in Rwanda, the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.

On December 23, 2003, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution to designate April 7 as the International Day of Reflection on the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda.

Peter Mutabaruka is pushing hard to sanitize his father’s hands, but mass murderers are wicked whether tried or not.

His 67-year-old father who is currently living in Ashford, UK, was working as the director general of the Crete Zaire-Nil (CZN) project in 1994. It was a state forestry project headquartered in the former Musebeya Commune, now Nyamagabe district.

He is linked to the killings of Tutsi refugees at Gatare in April, 1994. In May, he led Interahamwe militia to the hills of Bisesero where some Tutsi were seeking refuge. About 40,000 Tutsi were massacred there.

In 1994, during the Genocide, he was the president of UNISODEC, a political party affiliated to the ruling MRND party of President Juvénal Habyarimana.

As a member of the Pentecostal Church (ADEPR), he was very known for discriminating the Tutsi. Genocide survivors from Gatare revealed that Célestin Mutabaruka established three roadblocks in the neighborhood of CZN project to prevent the Tutsi from fleeing.

To encourage the acceleration of killings, he used to reward Rwf 20,000, meat and beer to everyone who managed the roadblocks, as incentives.

Some 72 Tutsi who sought refuge in a Presbyterian church near the CZN project offices were killed on orders of Mutabaruka and Viateur Higiro, the former mayor of Musebeya.

After the genocide, Mutabaruka fled to then Zaire, now DRC, and later to the UK where he founded Fountain Church.

Kigali released his arrest warrant and asked the UK to extradite him.

But British courts rejected the request on allegations that he was, and still is, an active politician in opposition to the Government of Rwanda, and will, for that reason, not be accorded a fair trial in Rwanda.

Genocide fugitives have been shielded by hiding behind political activism to evade justice for their genocide crimes. The UK doubting Rwanda's justice is also seen as merely discrediting the Rwandan government and its institutions yet the two countries have cooperation agreements in various areas.